Press Release- Jan 02, 2007
FOR RELEASE:
TUESDAY, JAN. 2, 2007
GOV. RITTER NOMINATES RICO MUNN FOR CABINET POST
Gov.-elect Bill Ritter today named successful trial attorney and state Board of Education member Rico Munn as executive director of the Department of Regulatory Agencies.
"As a member of the Colorado Board of Education, Rico Munn has repeatedly demonstrated his commitment to our children and our future," Ritter said. "I know he'll bring the same type of energy to his new assignment as the chief protector of the public interest." The Department of Regulatory Agencies regulates businesses and individuals, including banks, utilities, insurance companies, doctors, electricians and accountants. It protects Coloradans from fraudulent business practices and unsafe products. It also is designed to identify and help eliminate unnecessary limitations on economic development. The department is home to the Divisions of Banking, Insurance and Real Estate and the Public Utilities Commission.
Munn's nomination requires state Senate confirmation. He plans to resign his seat on the Board of Education at the panel's next meeting.
"One of the most important functions of government is to protect the people," said Munn, an attorney who specializes in complex and corporate litigation. "Add to that the goal of allowing businesses to grow, thrive and develop, and you very quickly see that DORA has a tremendous responsibility to the people of Colorado. I"m humbled that Gov.-elect Ritter and Lt. Gov.-elect O'Brien have asked me to lead this organization."
Munn has represented the 1st Congressional District on the Colorado Board of Education since 2003. The board provides constitutional oversight for Colorado's K-12 public education system, which serves more than 700,000 students across the state.
Munn is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Denver's Sturm College of Law, where he teaches trial practice. He joined the law firm Baker and Hostetler in 1996 and became a partner in 2005. Also that year, the Denver Business Journal recognized him as one of Denver's "40 Under 40" business and community leaders. 5280 Magazine recognized him as a "Colorado Super Lawyer" in 2006.
Munn earned his law degree from DU in 1996 as a Chancellor's Scholar. During his last semester, he was a judicial intern for Colorado Supreme Court Justice Gregory K. Scott. Munn earned his bachelor's degree from Midland Lutheran College in Nebraska in 1993.