About Us

Mission   

CCAT was formed in 2016 as a local coalition of counties and commissioners seeking to influence major policy debates that impact the lives of local communities. In 2023 CCAT completed its transition to an independent state non-profit corporation.

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CCAT members believe that it is imperative for the Colorado General Assembly to hear directly from local leaders who interface daily within their communities and have the pulse of what is needed to promote a strong quality of life for Colorado citizens.

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CCAT provides an additional voice for county and local government interests in statewide policy debates - working alongside and adding to the chorus of strong local government interests active at the statehouse. 

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CCAT is a consensus driven organization, which works to find common ground between counties on pressing issues.  The consensus driven approach is unique and promotes commonality and support for policies that benefit the entire state, versus strictly regional advances.

Guiding Principles

Transportation & Infrastructure

• CCAT supports innovative policies that seek to meeting Colorado's significant transportation and infrastructure
  challenges in sustainable manner which embraces the transition to a more modern cleaner system aimed at
  reducing Greenhouse Gases (GHG) to create the best possible system for moving people, goods, and services.

• CCAT fundamentally believes that the distribution of funding should be done on a statewide basis so that
  benefits are delivered to urban and rural areas alike. CCAT supports targeted investments in multimodal uses
  including bicycle, transit, and pedestrian infrastructure, enhanced transportation options for seniors, and
  transportation demand management infrastructure.

 

Working Families & Economic Vitality

• CCAT seeks to increase economic opportunity and improve equity and self-sufficiency for all Coloradans. To this
  end, CCAT promotes local economic development policies that provide economic security and pathways to
  living-wage careers and enhance community economic vitality, through means such as employment readiness,
  job training, affordable and accessible childcare options, and self-sufficiency programs.

• CCAT firmly believes that a pilar of Colorado's economic development is tied to sustainable and successful
  tourism throughout the state. Many communities are reliant on visitors to access local services including
  lodging, transportation, restaurants and to bolster small businesses.

 

Promote Healthy Communities & Resources

• CCAT is committed to supporting and sustaining healthy communities that strengthen individuals, families and
  positive outcomes for the future. CCAT acknowledges that various social determinants of health impact the
  ability of Coloradans to thrive. To that end CCAT seeks to promotes policies that will ensure the well-being of all
  families, provide access to health care for all including behavioral health care, maintain safe and affordable
  housing, and improve access to effective and efficient public benefits and services that support healthy lives for
  Coloradans.

Environmental Resiliency & Public Lands

• CCAT supports policies to promote environmental resiliency and climate change response through multi-modal
  transportation, appropriate land use practices and development, energy efficiency and renewable energy,
  wildfire mitigation and conservation of resources through agricultural and forestry practices which ensure
  healthy land, water and air quality.

• CCAT supports reasonable regulation of extractive industries to protect air and water quality & access; resiliency, reduce carbon and Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, and reduce public health and safety impacts to residents.

• CCAT promotes policies to manage public lands and natural resources while balancing diverse needs and rights
  of community stakeholders. To that end, CCAT will support legislation to preserve open spaces for recreation
  use, wildlife habitat, and sustainability of our agricultural heritage, and to manage our wildland urban interface
  area for both fire preparedness and forest health.

Local Empowerment, Flexibility, & Responsibility

• CCAT views statewide directives through a lens that allows local and state governments to achieve important
  policy goals. New directives must be created in a collaborative manner that empowers local governments, allows local government the flexibility to meet goals, gives with permissive authority, and adequate financial
  resources.​​

Advancing Equity 

CCAT is committed to ensuring that all Coloradans have equitable access to opportunities and resources. We
support policies that address systemic inequities by promoting inclusive access to essential services and
ensuring diverse representation in decision-making. By valuing all perspectives, we will create thriving and just
communities where every voice shapes our future.

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• Addressing Racial Disparities: CCAT is dedicated to identifying and addressing racial disparities in all
  areas, including health, education, housing, and criminal justice. We support initiatives that specifically
  target the reduction of these disparities and promote equitable outcomes for individuals of all racial
  and ethnic backgrounds.

• Equitable Access and Opportunity: CCAT is committed to ensuring that all Coloradans, regardless of
  race, ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, poverty, language access, educational achievement, age, or disability, documentation status, have equitable access to opportunities and resources. We support policies that address
  systemic inequities that have disproportionately impacted groups, often caused by how systems were
  designed to exclude some Americans from rights or access to safety and stability. We promote inclusive
  access to economic, educational, and social services, enabling all our residents to thrive.

• Diverse and Inclusive Representation: CCAT believes in the importance of diverse representation in
  decision-making processes. We advocate for policies that promote the inclusion of voices in
  government, ensuring that all perspectives are considered in shaping our community's future. We
  support policies that seek to balance current and historical inequalities such as race, ethnicity, gender,
  sexual identity, poverty, language access, educational achievement, age, or disability.

• Inclusive Economic Development: CCAT promotes economic development policies prioritizing equity
  and inclusion, especially for our residents who have been historically excluded from economic security
  via systemic racism, oppression, or exclusion. We support initiatives that provide equitable access to
  business opportunities, workforce development, and financial resources, ensuring that all community
  members can participate fully in Colorado's economic growth.

• Intersectional Equity: CCAT supports policies that build justice for all people who lack equitable
  treatment and believes that equity for anyone is best obtained by pursuing equity for everyone. This is
  true whether it is race, ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, poverty, language access, educational
  achievement, age, or disability, or any other factor or combination of factors that reduces access to
  opportunities and resources.