Joe Rice

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Joe Rice
Joe Rice
Member of the Colorado House of Representatives
from the 38th district
Incumbent
Assumed office 
January 10, 2007[1]
Preceded by Matt Dunn[2]
Born May 7, 1967 (1967-05-07) (age 41)
New Castle, Indiana
Political party Democratic Party
Spouse Kendall
Religion Methodist

Joe Rice (born May 7, 1967[3]) is a legislator in the U.S. state of Colorado, an Iraq War veteran, and a former mayor of Glendale, Colorado.

Rice is a business consultant and U.S. Army Reservist. He was elected to the city council of Glendale, Colorado in 1994 and to the post of mayor in 1996 on a platform of developing a "resident-friendly" community in the Denver enclave. Rice was re-elected in 2000 and later resigned from the post of mayor in 2003 when called up to serve the first of three tours on active duty in Iraq. In Iraq, he has served as an advisor to the Baghdad city council and to Iraqi security forces.

Rice won election to the Colorado House of Representatives as a Democrat in 2006 and represents House District 38, which encompasses Greenwood Village, Bow Mar, and Littleton, Colorado as well as parts of Englewood, Centennial, Aurora, and Columbine Valley.[4] In the legislature, Rice has focused heavily on transportation issues; other key measures he has promoted have included the creation of a statewide cold case homicide unit and a reduction in the business personal property tax.

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] Personal life

Born in New Castle, Indiana,[3] Rice earned an associates degree from New Mexico Military Institute in 1987 and a bachelor's degree in history from Metropolitan State College of Denver in 1989[3] while an active-duty military officer. He later earned a Masters of Public Administration degree from the University of Colorado.[5]

After being discharged from active military duty at Fort Carson, Rice settled in Glendale, Colorado in 1990.[6] Rice and his wife, Kendall, were married around 1990, and have three children — twins Harrison and Alexandria, born around 2001, and a younger son, Dalton, born in 2005.[7][8] They currently live in Littleton, Colorado.[3] Among his hobbies, Rice enjoys jogging.[8][9]

[edit] Military career

Lt. Col. Rice in uniform during Military and Veterans Appreciation Day at the State Capitol in February 2008. Rice, an Army Reservist, has served three tours of duty in Iraq.
Lt. Col. Rice in uniform during Military and Veterans Appreciation Day at the State Capitol in February 2008. Rice, an Army Reservist, has served three tours of duty in Iraq.

Rice enlisted in the United States Army at the age of 17.[5] After two years of enlisted service, Rice spent three years on active duty as an Airborne Ranger Infantry Officer. His military service included duty in Bosnia-Herzegovina as a staff officer during UN peacekeeping operations, and as project officer for a Colorado National Guard program to provide medical care to poor civilians.[10]

Presently a lieutenant colonel in the United States Army Reserve, Rice has been called up to serve three tours of duty in Iraq — from March 2003 to May 2004, where he was a senior U.S. military advisor to the Baghdad City Council; from October 2005 to February 2006, where he advised coalition forces on interactions with Iraqi civilians; and his current tour, from October 2007 to January 2008, where, as an operations analyst, he evaluated Iraqi military and police forces.[10][11] Rice has completed Airborne and Ranger training, and has been awarded the Combat Action Badge, the Expert Infantryman’s Badge, and the Bronze Star.[5] Building upon his work in Baghdad, Rice has also helped coordinate the Baghdad-Denver Region Partnership for Sister Cities International since 2004.[3] The partnership brought several delegations of Iraqis, including business leaders, government officials, and scholars. The most recent delegation was composed of Iraqi teenagers who lived with Colorado families.[12]

[edit] Private sector career

From 1993 to 1995, Rice was the manager of Dismas House, a halfway house for ex-convicts. In his first legislative campaign, Rice was criticized for his association with Dismas House founder Bob Sylvester, who was found guilty in 2000 of sexually abusing inmates. The incidents for which Sylvester was tried occurred after Rice left his employment at Dismas, and Rice testified on behalf of the prosecution during Sylvester's trial.[13]

Between 1994 and 2003, while in the Army Reserve, Rice worked in the private sector as a customer service supervisor and trainer with MCI, JDEdwards, and Wells Fargo Bank.[7] From 2004 to 2005, Rice worked in government relations for the Colorado Department of Transportation.[3] At the time of his first legislative campaign in 2006, Rice also worked as a self-employed management and training consultant,[7] and was vice president of RIGOR Engineering Corporate Services,[3] an consulting firm specializing in engineering project management.[14]

[edit] Mayor of Glendale

In 1994, Rice was elected to the Glendale, Colorado city council,[3] running on a platform of shifting the small Denver enclave's business base away from adult-oriented businesses and towards a more "resident-family community." He was elected mayor in 1996. During his first term, Rice proposed new regulations on erotic dancers at Glendale nightclubs, garnering strong opposition from local business owners, who formed the "Glendale Tea Party" and successfully elected three members to the city council in 1998 in response to the new regulations.[6] Running for re-election, Rice faced opposition from Tea Party member Mike Dunafon, who promoted accusations that Rice used racial slurs and denigrated African-American and Mexican citizens.[15] Rice was also criticized for being absent from Glendale during six months of his term as mayor, while he attended U.S. Army National Guard command school at Fort Leavenworth.[6] However, after an election that saw record campaign spending and record turnout for Glendale, Rice defeated Dunafon and was re-elected to a second term in 2000.[16]

As mayor, Rice touted his efforts to lower city property taxes, expand city parks and open space, and open the city's first pre-school and recreation center.[5][17] He served on the executive committee of the Denver Regional Council of Governments from 1995 to 2003, as vice-chair of the Denver Metro Mayors Caucus from 2001 to 2003,[3] and received the John V. Christensen Award from the Denver Regional Council of Governments in 2004. In 2003, Rice resigned from his post as mayor during the last year of his second term after being called up to active military duty in Iraq.[17]

[edit] Legislative career

[edit] 2006 election

Republican Rep. Joe Stengel was term-limited in 2006 and could not stand for re-election to the Colorado House of Representatives from House District 38; both Rice and Republican Matt Dunn sought election to Stengel's house seat.[18] The race was a top target for the Colorado GOP, who unsuccessfully tried to keep the seat in Republican hands during a year where Republicans lost ground both nationally and in Colorado.[19]

During the campaign, Rice was criticized in attack ads for his support, as mayor of Glendale, of the use of Mexican-issued matricula consular cards as legal forms of identification for use by immigrants.[20][21] In his campaign, Rice outlined his top legislative priorities as public safety, economic security, and quality of life.[8][22] Rice was regarded by both conservative and liberal observers as a moderate Democrat,[23][24] and is a member of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council[25][26].

Rice was endorsed by the Denver Post[27] and by both union groups (including the local chapter of the teacher's union Colorado Education Association, and the Colorado Association of Public Employees, a branch of the Service Employees International Union) and business interests (including the Colorado Subcontractors Association and the state Chamber of Commerce, the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry). He was also endorsed by Colorado Conservation Voters and the Colorado Medical Society.[28]

Rice ultimately defeated Dunn, earning 53 percent of the vote,[4] and was sworn into office on January 10, 2007.[2]

[edit] 2007 legislative session

Bills Introduced in 2007 by Rep. Rice
(for which Rep. Rice is the primary originating sponsor)
BILL TITLE OUTCOME
HB07-1148    Concerning a process to allow the registrations of multiple vehicles with common ownership to expire simultaneously. Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1049 Concerning voting by citizens residing overseas [...] Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1263 Concerning authority for the division of criminal justice to charge a fee for training [...] Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1272 Concerning [...] creating a cold case team in the Colordo Bureau of Investigation [...] Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1274 Concerning the creation of a commission for the visually impaired [...] Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1275 Concerning authorization for the Colorado National Guard [...] to receive property forfeited to the federal government. Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1285 Concerning the method for determining the timeliness of matters filed [..] under the "Colorado Employment Security Act." Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1325 Concerning an increase in the property tax exemption for business personal property [...] Passed house; Postponed indefinitely in Senate committee
HB07-1351 Concerning the authority of a metropolitan district to provide specified business services. Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1352 Concerning the issuance of special license plates to members of the United States Armed Forces [...] Signed by Gov. Ritter
HB07-1364 Concerning the authority of the Commissioner of Insurance to promulgate rules regarding life insurance for military personnel. Signed by Gov. Ritter

In the 2007 session of the Colorado General Assembly, Rice was vice-chairman of the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee and a member of the House Transportation and Energy Committee.[29]

During the 2007 legislative session, Rice sponsored 16 pieces of legislation, including 11 as the primary sponsor in the House of Representatives. Among the most prominent of his bills was a measure to set up a cold case unit within the Colorado Bureau of Investigation[30] to investigate Colorado's 1200 unsolved homicides.[31] After passage, Gov. Ritter signed the bill into law. Rice also pursued legislation to cut taxes for businesses by raising the personal property tax exemption.[32] After having passed the state house unanimously, the measure died in a Senate committee.[33]

Rice worked with fellow military officer and state senator Steve Ward on several pieces of legislation during his first term in the legislature. Rice sponsored legislation to allow military personnel serving overseas to apply for absentee ballots electronically; Ward was the Senate sponsor.[34] Following the 2007 session, Rice and Ward called for Colorado to divest state pension funds from companies doing business in Iran.[35]

Rice was a key player during House debate on a resolution critical of the ongoing War in Iraq; he supported amendments to the resolution to remove specific criticism of the 2007 troop surge, but supported the final compromise version, which called for eventual withdrawal from Iraq and passed on a party-line vote.[36][37]

Rice was also the house sponsor of legislation introduced in the Colorado State Senate to make driving without a seat belt a primary offense;[38] the measure narrowly failed in the House despite Rice's objections during a heated debate that defeating the bill would "kill kids."[39][40]

For his voting record during the 2007 legislative session, Rice earned a 4% rating from the fiscally conservative Colorado Union of Taxpayers[41] and a 100% rating from the environmentally-oriented Colorado Conservation Voters;[42] both ratings placed him at opposite end of the Democratic caucus from average Republican ratings.

Following the regular session, Rice served on the legislature's Police Officers' and Firefighters' Pension Reform Commission[43] and the interim Transportation Legislation Review Committee.[44]

[edit] 2008 legislative session

Rice's third tour of duty in Iraq caused him to miss the first weeks of the 2008 legislative session; he was welcomed back by his fellow legislators with a standing ovation.
Rice's third tour of duty in Iraq caused him to miss the first weeks of the 2008 legislative session; he was welcomed back by his fellow legislators with a standing ovation.

At the start of the 2008 legislature year, Rice was still in Iraq on his third tour of duty. His absence was acknowledged by lawmakers during their opening speeches,[45] his seat was decorated with yellow ribbons, and his children were invited to lead the Pledge of Allegiance on the first day of the session.[46] During his time in Iraq, Rice met with Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Congressman Ed Perlmutter, and Congressional candidate Jared Polis during their trips to the country,[47][48][49] and also met with U.S. Marine and Colorado state senator Steve Ward, who was stationed in Iraq at the same time.[50] Rice returned to the legislature on January 28, 2008, and was received with a standing ovation during the morning roll call.[51][52]

In the 2008 session of the Colorado General Assembly, Rice sits on the House Transportation and Energy Committee, and is vice-chairman of the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee.[53] During the session, Rice has explored introducing legislation to increase vehicle registration fees in order boost transportation funding,[54] and plans on introducing legislation to make aggravated rape of a child under 12 a capital crime, eligible for the death penalty.[55] Rice also introduced legislation to exempt some school fundraisers from sales tax,[56] a measure which he placed on hold pending consideration of a broader measure by Rep. Jerry Sonnenberg.[57]

Rice re-introduced a bill that had passed the House but failed in the Senate the previous year to raise the business personal property tax exemption, after the measure was endorsed by Gov. Ritter as part of his economic development platform.[33] Rice also hoped to sponsor legislation supported by Ritter to raise vehicle registration fees in order to fund road and bridge repairs, but failed to find a suitable cosponsor for the bill.[58] Late in the session, though, Rice signed on as House sponsor on a measure to raise registration and rental fees to create trust funds for transportation;[59] the measure was later dropped in favor of a bipartisan study committee between legislative sessions.[60]

In March 2008, Rice received the Bridge Builders Award from the Colorado Contractors Association for his work on transportation issues.[61]

[edit] References

  1. ^ House Journal - January 10, 2007 (pdf). Colorado General Assembly. Retrieved on 2007-12-08.
  2. ^ a b Washington, April M.. "Aide replacing senator", Rocky Mountain News, 29 December 2006. Retrieved on 2008-04-06. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Representative Joe Rice (html). Project Vote Smart. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  4. ^ a b State House District 38 (html). COMaps. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  5. ^ a b c d Joe Rice - Colorado - State House District 38 candidate (Biography) (html). RockyMountainNews.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  6. ^ a b c Berton, Justin. "The Glendale T&A Party", Westword, 20 January 2000. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  7. ^ a b c About Joe. Citizens for Joe Rice. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  8. ^ a b c Rice, Joe. "Candidate profile: Joe Rice", YourHub.com, 11 October 2006. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  9. ^ Joe Rice - Colorado - State House District 38 candidate (In My Own Words) (html). RockyMountainNews.com. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  10. ^ a b Joe's Military Service. Citizens for Joe Rice. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  11. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "State Rep. Joe Rice headed for Iraq", Denver Post, 26 September 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  12. ^ Martin, Nick. "Iraqi youths revel in Colorado", Denver Post, 31 July 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  13. ^ Staff Report. "Blake: Roy can't give up politics", Rocky Mountain News, 1 November 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  14. ^ Capabilities. Rigor Engineering(SM). Retrieved on 2008-04-18.p
  15. ^ Berton, Justin. "That Doggone Glendale", Westword, 2 March 2000. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  16. ^ Staff Report. "Hall of Shame", Westword, 28 December 2000. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  17. ^ a b Joe as Mayor of Glendale. Citizens for Joe Rice. Retrieved on 2008-01-11.
  18. ^ Ewegen, Bob. "GOP fights to regain Colorado House", Denver Post, 20 October 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  19. ^ Bartels, Lynn. "Dems find selves in rare defense mode", Rocky Mountain News, 9 August 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  20. ^ Quintero, Fernando. "Rice rips ads saying he's 'soft' on illegals", Rocky Mountain News, 24 October 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  21. ^ Quintero, Fernando. "Mexican ID cards caught in politics", Rocky Mountain News, 27 October 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  22. ^ Joe Rice - Colorado - State House District 38 candidate (Campaign Q&A) (html). RockyMountainNews.com. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  23. ^ Blake, Peter. "Blake: Can passing bad bills help GOP?", Rocky Mountain News, 10 March 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  24. ^ Ingwalson, Matt. "I have a moment of terror about '06", Coloradolib, 27 September 2006. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  25. ^ Rice, Joe. "Keys to Affordable Housing", Denver Post, 9 April 2001. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  26. ^ (1 August 2000). "The Hyde Park Declaration: A Statement of Principles and a Policy Agenda for the 21st Century". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  27. ^ Editorial Board. "Weighing Colorado legislative candidates", Denver Post, 8 October 2006. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  28. ^ Endorsements. Citizens for Joe Rice. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  29. ^ House Committees of Reference (html). Colorado General Assembly. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
  30. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Cold-case pursuits vs. death penalty", Denver Post, 13 June 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  31. ^ Staff Report. "Under the dome, 2/22", Denver Post, 21 February 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  32. ^ Shanley, Will. "Small firms' tax cut on tap", Denver Post, 14 March 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  33. ^ a b Sealover, Ed. "Small businesses may get tax relief", Colorado Springs Gazette, 19 February 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-23. 
  34. ^ Bartels, Lynn. "Veterans support absentee ballot bill", Rocky Mountain News, 7 February 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  35. ^ Washington, April M.. "2 legislators want pension funds to cut ties to Iran", Rocky Mountain News, 12 December 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  36. ^ Associated Press. "House opposes Iraq surge", Denver Post, 5 April 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  37. ^ Gathright, Alan. "House opposes Iraq surge", Rocky Mountain News, 6 April 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  38. ^ Washington, April M.. "Seat-belt crackdown sought", Rocky Mountain News, 2 February 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  39. ^ Sealover, Ed. "House kills seat belt bill after fiery debate", Colorado Springs Gazette, 13 April 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  40. ^ Gathright, Alan. "Effort to stiffen seat-belt law dies again", Rocky Mountain News, 12 April 2007. Retrieved on 2008-04-18. 
  41. ^ CUT Rates the Colorado Leigslature - Sixty-seventh General Assembly, 2007 Report. Colorado Union of Taxpayers. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  42. ^ Colorado Legislative Conservation Scorecard 2007. Colorado Conservation Voters. Retrieved on 2008-04-18.
  43. ^ Police Officers' and Firefighters' Pension Reform Commission. Colorado Legislative Council. Retrieved on 2008-04-27.
  44. ^ Transportation Legislation Review Committee 2007. Colorado Legislative Council. Retrieved on 2008-04-27.
  45. ^ Slevin, Colleen. "Peter Groff elected first black president of Colorado Senate", Denver Post, 9 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  46. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Curtain rises on 2008 legislature", Denver Post, 10 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  47. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Ritter trip to Iraq a secret", Denver Post, 13 December 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  48. ^ Mulkern, Anne C.. "Perlmutter heading to Iraq", Denver Post, 28 November 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  49. ^ Barge, Chris. "Polis takes to Web with observations on journey to Iraq", Rocky Mountain News, 22 November 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  50. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Littleton legislator heads to Iraq for 3rd tour of duty as Army officer", Rocky Mountain News, 31 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-12. 
  51. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Rice cheered on House return", Denver Post, 28 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-15. 
  52. ^ Hartman, Todd. "Legislator saw progress, but . . .", Rocky Mountain News, 29 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-15. 
  53. ^ House Committees of Reference (html). Colorado General Assembly. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  54. ^ Sealover, Ed. "Ritter urges increased road funding", Colorado Springs Gazette, 31 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-15. 
  55. ^ Barge, Chris. "Execution for child rape?", Rocky Mountain News, 19 February 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-23. 
  56. ^ Stelton-Holtmeier, Jenel. "Bake-sale tax under fire", Denver Post, 9 March 2008. Retrieved on 2008-03-14. 
  57. ^ Mason, K.C.. "Bake sale bill alive at Capitol", Sterling Journal-Advocate, 11 April 2008. Retrieved on 2008-04-11. 
  58. ^ Brown, Jennifer. "Governor drops car-fee hot potato", Denver Post, 5 March 2008. Retrieved on 2008-03-06. 
  59. ^ Leib, Jeffrey. "Bridge plan ups car tags $25", Denver Post, 25 April 2008. Retrieved on 2008-04-25. 
  60. ^ Leib, Jeffrey. "Car fees killed at Capitol", Denver Post, 2 May 2008. Retrieved on 2008-05-02. 
  61. ^ Colorado House Democrats (6 March 2008). "Rep. Rice Receives a Bridge Builder Award". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-03-02.

[edit] External links

Current members of the Colorado House of Representatives

1st: Jeanne Labuda (D)
2nd: Mark Ferrandino (D)
3rd: Anne McGihon (D)
4th: Jerry Frangas (D)
5th: Joel Judd (D)
6th: Andrew Romanoff (D)
7th: Terrance Carroll (D)
8th: Rosemary Marshall (D)
9th: Alice Borodkin (D)
10th: Alice Madden (D)
11th: John Pommer (D)
12th: Paul Weissmann (D)
13th: Claire Levy (D)
14th: Kent Lambert (R)
15th: Douglas Bruce (R)
16th: Larry Liston (R)

17th: Stella Garza-Hicks (R)
18th: Michael Merrifield (D)
19th: Marsha Looper (R)
20th: Amy Stephens (R)
21st: Bob Gardner (R)
22nd: Ken Summers (R)
23rd: Gwyn Green (D)
24th: Cheri Jahn (D)
25th: Robert Witwer (R)
26th: Andy Kerr (D)
27th: Sara Gagliardi (D)
28th: James Kerr (R)
29th: Debbie Benefield (D)
30th: Mary Hodge (D)
31st: Judith Anne Solano (D)
32nd: Edward Casso (D)

33rd: Dianne Primavera (D)
34th: John Soper (D)
35th: Cherylin Peniston (D)
36th: Morgan Carroll (D)
37th: Spencer Swalm (R)
38th: Joe Rice (D)
39th: David Balmer (R)
40th: Debbie Stafford (D)
41st: Nancy Todd (D)
42nd: Karen Middleton (D)
43rd: Frank McNulty (R)
44th: Mike May (R)
45th: Victor Mitchell (R)
46th: Dorothy Butcher (D)
47th: Liane McFayden (D)
48th: Glenn Vaad (R)

49th: Kevin Lundberg (R)
50th: Jim Riesberg (D)
51st: Don Marostica (R)
52nd: John Kefalas (D)
53rd: Randy Fischer (D)
54th: Steve King (R)
55th: Bernie Buescher (D)
56th: Christine Scanlan (D)
57th: Albert White (R)
58th: Raymond Rose (R)
59th: Ellen Roberts (R)
60th: Thomas Massey (R)
61st: Kathleen Curry (D)
62nd: Rafael Gallegos (D)
63rd: Cory Gardner (R)
64th: Wesley McKinley (D)
65th: Jerry Sonnenberg (R)
Democrat (40 seats) | Republican (25 seats)