Andy Biggs Condemns Colorado Business Regulations As Nearly 100 Companies Leave

Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ) condemned Colorado's restrictive business laws on social media after CBS News reported that nearly 100 businesses fled the state to escape regulations.

A CBS article detailed how over 200 Colorado business leaders wrote a letter to Governor Jared Polis (D-CO), Senator John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and other officials, urging the repeal of numerous business regulations that are driving businesses and job creators away, with 98 leaving the state since 2019.

"We are going to be hurting Colorodans not just now, but the next generation, the next generation after that," said Zayo Group CEO Dan Caruso. "And we just want to course correct."

Colorado is the sixth-most-regulated state in the Union, and 45% of its regulations are cited as duplicative or redundant.

As a result, Gov. Polis stated that he is supportive of reviewing and repealing onerous regulations that are stifling business growth in the state.

Nevertheless, Rep. Biggs unfavorably compared Colorado to California in a post on X, writing, "As laboratories of democracy, states have critical decisions to make when it comes to business."

He lists two options: the first is "promote policies that encourage freedom & growth," and the second is "regulate business to stifle opportunities."

"Colorado, like California, has chosen the latter approach," Rep. Biggs concluded.

In March, the Arizona congressman celebrated the reversal of a Biden-era air pollution regulation placed on Maricopa County, Arizona, which similarly stifled economic growth in the area.

The Biden-era Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) noted that the air pollution affecting Maricopa County was not caused by residents, yet implemented it anyway.

With the Trump Administration reversing it, Biggs celebrated by saying, "The decision by the EPA is a win for common sense, sound science, and the people of Arizona."

"For years, bureaucrats in Washington ignored the reality that the overwhelming majority of Maricopa County's air pollution comes from natural sources or international transport," he continued. "Imposing stricter local regulations would have done nothing to meaningfully improve air quality while crushing economic growth in one of the fastest-growing regions in the country."