46 Facts About Ellen Roberts

From 2006 to 2010, Roberts served as the State Representative for House District 59.

Ellen Roberts earned a self-designed undergraduate degree in environmental policy from Cornell University in 1981.

Ellen Roberts moved to Colorado upon graduation and worked as a ranger in Rocky Mountain National Park until 1984.

In 1982, Ellen Roberts married; she and her husband, Rick, have two children: Caitlin and Ben, both of whom have attended Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.

Ellen Roberts worked as an attorney in private practice in Granby and Hot Sulphur Springs, specializing in estate, probate and business law.

Ellen Roberts has focused on health care, constitutional reform, judicial, and financial issues in the state legislature, and, despite being in the minority party, has seen almost all legislation she sponsored signed into law.

Ellen Roberts has carried legislation to strengthen private property rights surrounding oil and gas drilling, and to create a legislative youth advisory council.

Ellen Roberts began to re-enter politics after the death of her father in 1992, first focusing on hospice and health care issues.

Ellen Roberts chaired Healthy 58, a rural health care task force, and in 2001, was appointed to the Task Force to Evaluate Health Care Needs for Colorado, a commission formed by the legislature to study health-care needs in rural Colorado communities.

Ellen Roberts sat on the Sixth Judicial District Nominating Commission, and co-chaired the Durango Citizens Steering Committee for a New Library, a successful effort to push for a new local public library that was eventually built on the site of Mercy Medical Center, the hospital Ellen Roberts had worked to help replace.

Ellen Roberts was a member of the Citizens Health Advisory Council, the High Noon Rotary Club, and sat on the boards of First National Bank and the Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado.

In December 2004, only a month after Larson was elected to his fourth and final term in the state house, Ellen Roberts filed for a 2006 candidacy to seek his seat.

Ellen Roberts was endorsed by Larson, and won the Republican nomination unopposed.

Ellen Roberts instigated a bill, introduced by Larson and eventually signed into law, to require that remains be handled in accordance with the wishes of the deceased.

Ellen Roberts lobbied the legislature, unsuccessfully, for the creation of an interim committee to study palliative care.

Ellen Roberts significantly outraised her opponents, donating over $8,000 to her own campaign, and ultimately winning the November 2006 general election with 52 percent of the vote.

Ellen Roberts was one of the most successful Republican legislators at passing legislation through the Democrat-controlled legislature, and has been identified by media reports and commentators as a "standout" legislator and a potential candidate for higher office.

Ellen Roberts organized bowling outings for legislators during her first year in the legislature.

Ellen Roberts carried legislation which revised Colorado's surface rights laws, requiring oil and gas companies to minimize the impacts of drilling.

Ellen Roberts's only unsuccessful bill was a measure to tighten the rules under which cigar bars could claim exemptions from Colorado's indoor smoking ban.

Ellen Roberts joined with other Republicans to criticize an executive order issued by Governor Bill Ritter allowing collective bargaining with government employee unions as a betrayal of Ritter's promise of bipartisan cooperation on major issues.

Ellen Roberts introduced eight bills during the session, all of which were passed by the legislature.

Ellen Roberts introduced a bill which would grant advanced practice nurses power to sign off on additional medical forms, in response to shortages of doctors in portions of rural Colorado, a measure which garnered support from both nurses' and doctors' associations.

Ellen Roberts was the sponsor of a legislative resolution urging the Federal Communications Commission to support including southwestern Colorado, including portions of her district, within the Denver media market, a resolution she introduced again in 2010.

Ellen Roberts proposed extending the public hearing process as a means of providing additional input on ballot measures, and, in February 2008, was appointed to a six-member legislative panel tasked with developing recommendations for constitutional reform.

Ellen Roberts was ultimately a cosponsor of the panel's proposal to create distinctions in the petition process between constitutional and statutory amendments,; the proposal which was referred by the legislature to voters and appeared on the November 2008 Colorado ballot as Referendum O Roberts campaigned in support of Referendum O during the fall campaign.

Ellen Roberts was one of a few Republicans to back a measure to reform spending requirements in Colorado's state constitution.

Ellen Roberts was nominated by the Republican Party for a second term in the state house; she faced no challengers either in the Republican primary or in the general election.

Ellen Roberts was named to a Republican task force charged with making recommendations on resolving the state's projected budget shortfall.

In 2009, Ellen Roberts sat on the Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice and co-chaired the Colorado Youth Advisory Council.

Ellen Roberts sponsored legislation to make minor adjustment to the statutes concerning the Colorado Youth Advisory Council, legislation to create a regional self-insurance plan within the San Luis Valley, and legislation revising statutes surrounding end-of-life care.

Ellen Roberts was one of only three Republican House members to vote in support of Colorado's 2010 budget, after successfully sponsoring an amendment that removed restrictions on Fort Lewis College's ability to set its own out-of-state tuition rates.

Ellen Roberts had planned to introduce legislation to place a one-year moratorium on new Colorado health insurance mandates with independent Rep.

Ellen Roberts withdrew one of her proposals to continue a pilot program for training of Certified Nursing Assistants, on account of its cost.

Ellen Roberts sponsored a contentious piece of legislation with general election opponent Sen.

In June 2009, Ellen Roberts announced her intention to seek the Colorado State Senate seat held by term-limited Democratic Sen.

Ellen Roberts served on two interim committees, the Water Resources Review Committee and the Legislative Health Benefit Exchange Implementation Review Committee until the end of the 2012 legislative session.

Ellen Roberts is the only Colorado legislator to serve on either of these committees.

Senator Ellen Roberts proposed legislation at the start of session regarding the surety bond required for towing carriers in rural areas.

However, after the bill was killed, public upheaval caused Ellen Roberts to introduce a new bill, this time in the House, which resolved the same issue.

Senator Ellen Roberts was appointed to the National Conference of State Legislatures Budgets and Revenue Committee.

Senator Ellen Roberts was awarded the Legislator of the Year Award for the 2012 legislative session by the Economic Development Council of Colorado.

Ellen Roberts was honored to win the 2012 Legislator of the Year Award from the Colorado Economic Development Council.

Ellen Roberts was appointed to serve on the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.

Ellen Roberts served as Vice Chair of the Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee as well as Chair of the Judiciary Committee.

Senator Ellen Roberts served on the Committee Legal Services, Water Resources Review Committee, Joint Judiciary Committee and the Joint Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.