Colorado Senate leaders said they would approve an ethics investigation next session into Democratic State Senator Sonya Jaquez Lewis’ treatment of legislative aides, and are removing her from serving on any Senate committees when lawmakers return to the Capitol in January.
Jaquez Lewis represents parts of Boulder County, including Longmont and Lafayette, in Senate District 17. She has sat on the Senate’s Health & Human Services and Local Government & Housing Committees.
Last week Democratic leaders banned Jaquez Lewis from receiving state funds to hire staff, following a recent complaint — reported by the Colorado Sun — that she used campaign funds to pay aides to do personal work.
“The alleged behavior is in direct conflict with our core Democratic values of protecting workers’ rights and uplifting our workforce, and we take these allegations very seriously,” said a statement from outgoing Senate President Steve Fenberg, Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez and Senate President-elect James Coleman announcing her removal from committees.
Because the outgoing Senate president is term limited and the new president won’t be sworn in until January 8, an ethics investigation won’t launch until next year.
“I am deeply sorry for my part of any miscommunication and any action on my part that hurt anyone,” said Jaquez Lewis in a text message to CPR News.
She said she is proactively taking steps to hire what she called a non-partisan, non-political trained management consultant, who she would pay personally or from campaign funds, who her staff can work with and go to when they have issues.
“The path forward from here is to investigate my side and all sides of the story have not been told,” her text added.
She’s a member of the legislature’s LGBTQ caucus and the Colorado Democratic Latino Caucus, and said her legislative record shows that she’s been a champion of workers’ rights and workplace fairness.
The Political Workers Guild of Colorado, which represents legislative aides at the state Capitol, has called for Jaquez Lewis to resign or be removed, and it requested an ethics investigation.
“PWG is making this request because the actions and lack of accountability by Jaquez Lewis have been drastic. Jaquez Lewis has consistently shown that she does not have the ability to manage an office, sit in a leadership role as chair, and show basic respect and decency to staff and her colleagues,” states the organization's letter to Senate leaders Saturday.
Last spring, a former aide told CPR that they wrote to Senate leaders with a list of concerns about what the aide described as a “toxic” workplace in Jaquez Lewis’ office, and pressure to “operate in an untruthful manner.” Senate leaders responded to the complaint by barring Jaquez Lewis from using Democratic Senate staff to assist in hiring her aides, but did not take away her public funding for them.
Legislative leaders previously removed her as chair of the Senate Local Government & Housing Committee and as a main sponsor of a wage theft bill over allegations that she had violated the spirit of the law in her own office, when she wouldn’t sign off on an aide’s paycheck.
While complaints have been swirling, some staff members say Jaquez Lewis has been a good boss.
“I was always treated professionally and respectfully,” said Tara Mastracchio. She worked as a part-time legislative aide last session and at multiple events, including campaign events this summer, which involved set-up like stringing lights and yard work. Mastracchio said she considers the senator a mentor.
Jaquez Lewis was first elected to the legislature in 2018 as a state representative. She was elected to the Senate in 2020 and won a second term in November by a wide margin.
