Governor John Hickenlooper was in Alamosa on Sunday to sign one of State Representative Donald Valdez’s bills, HB17-1077.

HB17-1077 or “Useful Public Service Cash Fund” enables judicial districts in rural areas to continue utilizing the option of Useful Public Service (UPS), or community service, as a meaningful tool in lieu of more costly measures, such as incarceration. In order to do so, courts and probation offices in rural areas need a cash fund to ensure that community service programs are viable, Valdez explained.

The governor signed the bill at the Alamosa city hall on May 21.