The returning Colorado legislature will consider bipartisan legislation to extend the life of the Ray Nixon Power Plant, owned and operated by Colorado Springs Utilities, along with other municipally owned utilities. That’s welcome news.

It’s a needed response to requests from Springs Utilities to keep the coal-fired plant open past its current 2029 closure date — to buy critical time to meet the state’s stringent emissions targets without risking grid reliability.

Nixon has operated since 1980, but it’s slated for retirement as part of a statewide effort to shutter Colorado’s coal plants. The state’s goal is for utilities to meet the Colorado Clean Energy Plan mandate to slash carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2030, compared to 2005 levels.

As The Gazette reported, CEO Travas Deal has warned since last spring that the utility cannot meet the current 2029 deadline. Deal agrees with the transition objectives, but the plan doesn’t allow the necessary flexibility to get the job done responsibly.

Springs Utilities is one of the few municipally owned utilities in the state — and one of the nation’s largest. Although it’s overseen by the Colorado Springs City Council, state standards for greenhouse gas emissions preempt local law. Hence, the call for legislating an exception.

The legislation is being crafted by a bipartisan group of legislators: Democrats Sen. Marc Snyder of Manitou Springs and Rep. Amy Paschal of Colorado Springs as well as House Minority Leader Jarvis Caldwell, also of Colorado Springs, and Senate Minority Leader Cleave Simpson of Alamosa, both Republicans.

It will likely be narrowly tailored, affecting specific plants that need more time and are managed by municipal utilities — not investor-owned companies like Black Hills and Xcel Energy, which are state-regulated.

That sounds like a healthy dose of realism over wishful thinking.

Snyder noted that having local infrastructure ready, including expanded electric transmission, is critical. Otherwise, “we cannot responsibly achieve the next major round of emissions reductions without placing an unacceptable financial burden on customers.”

Therein lies the crux of the matter. The race to shut down coal-fired plants in pursuit of rigid climate targets is recklessly endangering jobs, livelihoods and our ability to generate electricity and heat our homes. Grid stability requires a thoughtful approach and sensible strategy.

If passed, the forthcoming bill would offer more relief for ratepayers eager for reliable and affordable electricity, building on other coal-fired plant extensions in Craig and Pueblo.

If not, the state will force utilities to meet existing mandates without any consideration for reliability or costs to consumers. Everyone would lose.

“If we do nothing, our neighbors could experience an even greater rate hike than the 6.5% per year already approved by the Colorado Springs Utilities Board,” Paschal said. “With this bill, we’re striking a delicate balance between the affordability, reliability and renewability of our utilities in Colorado Springs.”

We agree. The current standards aren’t balanced, a reality made worse by growing electricity demand from growth in the economy and the state’s population over the years, as well as the advent of data centers and quantum computing.

Simply put, extending the Nixon plant’s useful life is common sense. When the utility itself sounds the alarm years in advance — and bipartisan lawmakers answer the call — that should be a flashing warning sign.

We hope the pending legislation is among the first dominoes to fall in a state faced with the need to  reconsider its increasingly untenable statewide emissions mandates. The legislation would provide a much-needed reality check on Colorado’s overall energy trajectory.