In response to housing shortages throughout the state, Colorado legislators are proposing policy changes relating to affordable housing.  House Bill 25-1169 (“HB25-1169”) is one of the most significant bills proposed to date. Titled “Housing Developments on Faith and Educational Land,” this proposed legislation aims to allow for affordable multifamily development on properties owned by faith-based…

Is a business temporarily closed by order of the government entitled to compensation? Two groups of plaintiffs have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court hoping not just for a “yes” but an overhaul of a half-century of regulatory takings doctrine. The United States Constitution prohibits the government from “taking” property without payment of compensation. That creates…

On February 27, 2025, FinCEN published guidance related to the Corporate Transparency Act (the “CTA”) taking the position that it would not “issue any fines or penalties or take any other enforcement actions against any companies based on any failure to file or update beneficial ownership information reports pursuant to the Corporate Transparency Act by…

On March 4th, President Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada, the United States’ two largest trading partners.  Two days later, those tariffs were largely lifted as President Trump signed separate executive orders granting relief to goods from Mexico and Canada covered by the United-States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (an agreement signed…

More cars on the road means higher carbon emissions, and studies have found that more road actually results in more cars. In an effort to reduce greenhouse gases, Governor Polis passed a bill in 2021 that, in part, tied transportation funding approvals to agencies’ emissions targets. As a result, the Colorado Department of Transportation has…

The Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) seeks to limit the use of shell entities to hide illicit activities and to increase transparency in corporate ownership by collecting identification information of the individuals that organize and own entities. While the CTA is generally applicable to all industries, it has a disproportionate impact on the commercial real estate…

In our December 2022 Otten Johnson Alert, we reported that the City of Denver planned to evaluate buildings in the downtown area that might be suitable for converting potentially underused office space to much needed residential space. The City recently completed its study, identifying a total of twenty-two buildings that it considered good…