Funds for veterans, fighting wild fires and water sucking weed on governor’s agenda

(Photo: CPR/Megan Verlee)
<p>Gov. John Hickenlooper at the Capitol.</p>
John Hickenlooper end of 2015 session (AP)
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper speaks to members of the media during a news conference inside his office at the state Capitol, in Denver, Thursday, May 7, 2015.

Gov. John Hickenlooper is touring the mountains and the Western Slope this week to sign a number of bills that deal with issues affecting rural Colorado.

Hickenlooper’s travels start off in Durango Tuesday, where he’ll sign a bill for a grant program to fund projects that reduce wildfire risk and another measure to direct more resources to fire crews that employ military veterans.

In Montrose, the governor will approve another new grant program, this one to combat invasive “Phreatophytes” – also known as water-sucking weeds.

On Wednesday, the governor has bill signings in Grand Junction, Rifle, Edwards, Beaver Creek, and Frisco, for legislation covering everything from helping companies to locate in economically distressed counties to studying new traffic control measures for winter driving on I-70.