Egg prices globally have spiked significantly over the past years, stressing family budgets and limiting access to this valuable source of protein. In our community, this impact is felt all too keenly. It's for this reason that it becomes important for us, the ordinary citizens, to seek alternatives that guarantee our food security while also enhancing our understanding of where our nourishment originates.

Raising Chickens has many benefits for those who raise them, their neighbors, and especially the environment. These benefits include:

• Access to fresh, nutritious food is a fundamental right for every family.
• Raising chickens provides numerous educational and environmental benefits.
• Interaction with animals has documented mental health benefits.
• Backyard chickens contribute to pest control and provide natural fertilizer for gardens.
• Local food production reduces the carbon footprint associated with transporting food over long distances.

Families like mine are keen on starting small-scale poultry keeping, primarily for the chickens' eggs, but most homeowners' associations (HOAs) currently restrict this activity. This practice not only provides a stable supply of fresh, nutritious eggs, contributing to household food security, but it also offers an extraordinary opportunity for our young ones to learn responsibility and form a connection with the food they consume.

Let us make it feasible for property owners to keep chickens on their premises. Many other urban and suburban locations across the United States have already successfully implemented guidelines allowing this, with little to no disruption to their communities. There are measures that can be put in place to ensure that any potential disturbance or public health concerns are addressed.

Governor Polis,
We urge you to consider the positive impact this change would have on our communities and support the legal right for homeowners to raise backyard chickens.