John Hickenlooper violated Colorado’s gift ban, independent ethics commission rules

The commission is still deliberating five other complaints about flights on private planes and his attendance at an exclusive conference in Italy

Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper speaks to reporters on Aug. 22, 2019, the day he announced he was running for U.S. Senate.
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper speaks to reporters on Aug. 22, 2019, the day he announced he was running for U.S. Senate. (Photo Credit: Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)

Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper violated the state’s constitutional gift ban by accepting private flights aboard company jets owned by his friends, an ethics panel decided Friday.

The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission decided his flight aboard a plane owned by MDC Holdings, a Colorado-based homebuilder led by top political donor Larry Mizel, and a pair of private dinners related to the USS Colorado celebration in Connecticut amounted to a violation.

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