All three of Summit's state legislators are back in Denver this week and preparing to fight for education funding and economic development heading into the 2012 session.

Following the reapportionment process last year, Summit County will be shifted from Sen. Jeanne Nicholson's (D — Blackhawk) Senate District 16 into Jean White's (R —Hayden) Senate District 8 following the election in November. Rep. Millie Hamner (D — Dillon) will continue to represent Summit in the newly formed House District 61.

Following the start of the 120-day legislative session Wednesday, all three women are gearing up for an intense four months and preparing to handle some of the challenges ahead.

The state faces another quarter-billion dollar budget shortfall this year, but Summit's lawmakers are united across political lines in their hope to avoid further cuts to education.

“I don't want to see any more cuts to K-12 public education,” said Hamner, the former Summit School District superintendent. “Even in Summit County where the voters have passed every funding opportunity allowable, we still see the district talking about budget reductions.”

Nicholson and White echoed the sentiment, pinning their hopes on Gov. John Hickenlooper's budget proposal, which, with positive state revenue forecasts, pours more than $200 million back into the reduced education budget. The proposal must be vetted and approved by the Legislature before it can be enacted.

Despite a common interest in education funding, the lawmakers split along party lines on the issue of renewing a property tax break for seniors, which costs the state $100 million. White said she would support restoring the suspended tax exemption, while Hamner and Nicholson said they couldn't do so while education funding is still in jeopardy.

“Unfortunately I don't think that we can restore the Homestead benefit to seniors this year, although I would love to do that,” Nicholson said. “I want to help the seniors, but I think that it's more critical to protect public education.”

Three people, two parties

If White wins the Senate District 8 seat in November, it will be the first time in more than 10 years Summit will be represented by a Republican in the state Senate. But White says she's interested in protecting small business, not party politics and is already looking to work with Democratic legislators on important issues.

“I feel like I can work across the aisle very well in the interest of good public policy,” White said. “We need to get people back to work and we need to improve the economic vitality of our state and our regions, and it shouldn't be a partisan issue.”

True to her word so far, White has partnered with Hamner to introduce a bill that, if passed, would create 14 regional economic development councils statewide by July 1.

The councils, which would be part of the Office of Economic Development, will be modeled after existing organizations like the Northwest Colorado Council of Governments, but will not replace those bodies where they already exist.

“This is the next phase in the governor's plan that he embarked on last year,” Hamner said. “In places in the state where these groups already exist, we wouldn't be re-creating them. I think the governor's hope is that if these councils are in place around the state there will be a mechanism for communication … around efforts to boost the economy and create jobs.”

Both remain key priorities for all three legislators in 2012. Nicholson is also carrying an economic bill this year which, if passed, would extend the freedom and authority of local improvement districts.

But Summit's three representatives may not vote together on some of the hot-button social issues expected to arise at the statehouse again this year.

White previously voted against a bill that would make students who graduate from Colorado high schools eligible for in-state tuition rates at Colorado universities regardless of their immigration status. She declined to comment on whether she would support that bill this year.

Both Hamner and Nicholson voiced strong support for the in-state tuition legislation.

But Hamner also supported immigration enforcement legislation last year.

“There were times when I didn't vote with the party,” Hamner said.

White doesn't always vote with her party either. She backed a civil unions bill that died last year.

The bill has been reintroduced in the Senate, and White said she would support it again.