Colorado Opportunity Caucus Members File Answer to Independent Ethics Complaint with Exculpatory Bombshell: “The entire basis for the complaint is false and we have receipts”
DENVER—Today, attorneys Mark Grueskin and Nate Bruggeman of Recht Kornfeld, PC, filed answers on behalf of 15 Democratic Colorado state legislators to a complaint filed last year with the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission (IEC) by the organization Common Cause Colorado. The responses establish that the complainant jumped to a conclusion (an entirely incorrect one, as borne out by a sworn affidavit from an independent source) based on initial press reports and a total lack of independent investigation.
The complaints revolve around an alleged acceptance of hotel rooms in connection with a retreat held by the Colorado Opportunity Caucus (COC) in October 2025. The Caucus, a 501(c)4 non-profit, is a bicameral group of Democratic legislators focused on issues of affordability and middle class preservation.
Common Cause’s complaint was based on an erroneous assumption that COC spent money from a specific contribution by another non-profit, One Main Street Colorado, on the retreat. As the Caucus has demonstrated with bank records and a sworn statement from the Caucus’s bank, that allegation is false. As a result, the complaint has no foundation.
“We knew from the get-go that we had done nothing wrong,” Colorado Senator and Opportunity Caucus Chair Lindsey Daugherty (D-19) stated. “But if you believe in the rule of law you have to respond seriously even to empty, politically motivated complaints like this.
“While Common Cause used factual and legal shortcuts to launch a media and fundraising tour, the Opportunity Caucus continues to do what we’ve done from day one: Adhere to legal, ethical and traditional standards, under strict attorney guidance, to ensure that everything we do is 100 percent above board. In short,” she added, “the entire basis for the complaint is factually false, and we have receipts.
“If Common Cause were serious about ensuring compliance with state ethics rules, they could have reached out to us for clarification before filing these false complaints. Or they could have withdrawn them after we provided them with proof of their illegitimacy during initial settlement talks,” Daugherty continued. “Instead, they leaked their one-sided story to the press, in violation of the IEC’s confidentiality requirement, and then used the contents of confidential settlement negotiations to bolster their unwarranted complaints with the media, even though the commission hadn’t even considered their position yet.
“We have a message for Common Cause: Next time you have concerns about what our caucus is doing or how we fund our events, ask me or any other member of our caucus. Getting the information first and getting it right is always better than filing a groundless claim, no matter how much publicity and how many fundraising emails it allows you to generate,” she added.
THE FACTS
On Nov. 5, 2025, Common Cause Colorado filed complaints with the IEC, alleging violations of Colorado ethics rules governing gifts to elected members of the Colorado Legislature by corporate entities, by 16 members of the Legislature spanning both houses.
All of the legislators named in the complaints are members of the Colorado Opportunity Caucus.
The complaint asserts that hotel rooms at a legislative retreat hosted by the Caucus were paid for by the independent non-profit One Main Street Colorado, and therefore violated the state’s gift ban.
One of the initial complaints was so outlandish and unfounded that Common Cause had to embarrassingly withdraw it. The representative the complaint was lodged against left the Caucus two months prior to the retreat in question, was not affiliated with the Caucus at the time of the retreat, did not attend the retreat, and had no involvement in the planning or execution of the retreat. This lack of evidence or even basic fact checking is a common thread running through all of the complaints.
Prior to filing the complaint, Common Cause and its agents made no effort to contact the Caucus via any of its members or contracted staff to clarify, verify or understand any of the information asserted falsely in the complaints.
The complaints, based solely on hearsay, allege that One Main Street secured hotel rooms, space, and food for the Caucus in the amount of $25,000 for the Caucus’s October 2025 educational retreat.
In answer to the complaints, and supported by records and sworn testimony, the respondents demonstrate unequivocally that the funds in question were not needed or utilized by the Caucus in connection with the retreat. The Caucus had more than ample cash on hand to cover the total expenses prior to One Main Street’s contribution, which they did.
Voluntarily, and to help Coloradans in need as they headed into the holiday season during a federal government shutdown, the Caucus donated the full amount of the funds in question ($25,000) to a local food bank. This good faith demonstration further assured that the Caucus would in no way benefit from the disputed funds, despite their demonstrated legitimacy.
Within hours of the Nov. 5, 2025 complaints being filed, IEC rules were violated by their public release. IEC Rule 5(F) states that “all complaints and related records shall be kept confidential unless and until a non-frivolous determination is made,” a determination which did not occur until the IEC’s public meeting on Nov. 18, 2025.
Common Cause Colorado’s own leadership has acknowledged the questionable nature and motive behind the Nov. 5, 2025 complaints. Their executive director, Aly Belknap, stated on record that “[r]egardless of the outcome…[b]y filing this, we’ve made a statement.” Their recognition that the complaints could fail when challenged is further revealed by the array of media appearances and fundraising emails based on the complaint that were deployed by Common Cause Colorado and its allies following the filing.
“Our focus is not on this distraction and it never has been,” Daugherty said. “We know we’ve done nothing wrong, and our attention is squarely on what matters: our legislative session that starts next week, and addressing the affordability crisis that is impacting all Coloradans and their families.
“Our answer provides the evidence for complete vindication, and we are calling on Common Cause to withdraw their complaints before wasting any more valuable time, resources and taxpayer dollars,” Daugherty concluded. “The IEC is not a PR and fundraising tool, and Common Cause, as a self-proclaimed arbiter of ethical behavior, should know that better than anyone.”
About the Colorado Opportunity Caucus
The Opportunity Caucus was created in 2025 as a space for like-minded Democratic members from both houses of the Colorado Legislature to meet, study and deliberate on policies impacting everyday Coloradans. The Caucus is focused on affordability issues in an effort to sustain and grow the middle class. Legislators who belong to the caucus include an ER nurse, a high school teacher, an EMT, a volunteer coordinator for a hospital, a farmer/rancher and multiple veterans of the US Armed Forces. Information regarding the caucus can be found online at www.OpportunityCaucus.com.