Steamboat Pilot & Today

U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard has pledged to hold a town hall meeting in each of Colorado's 64 counties every year.

It's Routt County's turn today. The Republican senator will hold a town hall meeting at Centennial Hall from 8 to 9 a.m. and will continue on to Moffat County for a 10:30 a.m. town meeting.

Two of the topics that will come up at today's meeting are Allard's role in seeking changes at the U.S. Air Force Academy and the United States' role overseas.

Allard has led the Senate in pushing for reforms to the Air Force Academy after questions rose about how the academy had handled a number of sexual assault allegations at the military institution in Colorado Springs.

Derek Wagner, a spokesman for Allard in Grand Junction, said the issue has come up during other town hall meetings the senator has held.

"It was really on people's mind because of the senator's efforts to get investigators into the academy," Wagner said.

Wagner said the senator will not be surprised by questions on the war in Iraq and the United States' stance on North Korea, Iran and Syria.

Town hall meetings are also a chance for residents to ask questions about Senate legislation that has a significant impact on Northwest Colorado, Wagner said. Allard has co-sponsored a bill for more federal money to combat chronic wasting disease.

Allard also is pushing for full reimbursement of the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program. That program pays local governments for federal lands within their jurisdictions for which the local governments receive no property taxes.

Jim Hansen, who was chairman of the Routt County committee to re-elect Allard last fall, pointed to the senator's stance on federal lands and water rights as particular interest to residents.

Hansen said Allard is in favor of gathering input before changes are made in federal land designation. Allard could also speak about the state's struggle to work with the federal government to address water rights, Hansen said.

In his second term in office, Allard is on the Senate's Armed Services Committee and is chairman of the Strategic Forces Subcommittee. He also sits on the subcommittees on Emerging Threats and Capabilities and Readiness and Management Support. He is a member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee and is the chairman of the Housing and Transportation subcommittee. He also sits on the subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Securities and Investments.