Conservation Colorado Board of Director Barbara Green makes her living giving legal advice to municipalities like Thornton and Erie on oil and gas business. But we recently learned that advice isn’t only bad, but is now conflicted.
The Attorney General’s office recently warned the City of Thornton that its regulations went beyond the state’s authority. The external attorney charged with drafting those regulations is Green. Sources close to the discussions say that while the AG’s letter arrived before the first hearing on the regulations, counsel failed to share the warning shot with elected leaders before their first vote on the regulations. We imagine that Green’s client (the City of Thornton) would be frustrated.
It begs the question whether Green, who now could bill hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars challenging the state, was acting on behalf of the people of Thornton or her environmental lobbying organization? Or maybe just herself?
Look no further than Green fleecing Fort Collins taxpayers with a huge legal bill when the city passed an oil and gas moratorium that the Supreme Court said was illegal. Using that same decision, the COGCC says Green’s latest attempt at writing Thornton’s regulations violates that order for our Supreme Court Justices in a unanimous decision.
As Thornton’s elected leaders reconsider their vote tonight, expect Green to be feeling the heat.