The Colorado Legislature went back to work today, with its newly constituted Democratic majority. There is a joint session set for today on the state's budget crisis. More than 100 bills were introduced, including one that makes it a crime for a person who knows they have AIDS to have sex. (I wonder if that means all sex or "unprotected sex" and how the bill defines "sex.") Another would not allow minor drivers to have passengers who are also minors until they have been licensed for six months. To fix the budget crisis, Governor Owens wants Coloradans to give back $500 million of their tax surplus refunds . He also wants a permanent tax cut. The new speaker of the House, Andrew Romanoff, has this plan to address crisis:

Romanoff wants legislators to ask voters in November to give up a portion of their tax refunds over the next two years in return for a permanent reduction in the state tax rate from 4.63 percent to 4.5 percent.

Owens' State of the State address is set for Thursday.