There was the time Rep. Larry Don Suckla, R-Cortez, got in trouble at the state Capitol in Denver for wearing his cowboy hat.
Signs posted on public hearing room doors throughout the building list rules of decorum that everyone, including legislators, must follow in public areas. In the House chamber, where Suckla and other lawmakers sit, “No hats” is one of them.
During a recent interview, Suckla laughed as he recalled walking into the chamber with his hat on and having a polite discussion with the sergeant-at-arms, who watches the door and enforces the rules. He reached up to touch his black cowboy hat as he leaned back in his office chair. Rules for public areas do not extend to private spaces.
“This place has a lot of rules,” Suckla said.
The rancher and former auctioneer has plenty of stories about life in the legislature, including one about crawling across the House chamber floor. Legislators are not allowed to stand after voting, and Suckla said he had to crawl to talk with someone on the other side of the aisle.
From there, Suckla shifted the conversation to his horse, Butter, whom he calls his most prized possession. Butter came from a sale barn in Delta, Suckla said, gesturing to a framed photo of the horse. He added that Butter came from the Weimer Ranch in Nucla.
Ryan Weimer, of Weimer Hunting Camp, knows exactly what Suckla is talking about.
Suckla used to auction cattle herds of 15,000 to 20,000 head in a weekend, including cattle from the Weimer Ranch, Weimer said. He added that he is a fourth-generation rancher whose family began ranching in the region in the 1890s.
“He did us a great job. It was great to see him get in office, but we quit using him because he has bigger fish to fry,” Weimer said.
Suckla said one of those “fish” at the legislature is getting Republican lawmakers to work together more effectively. Another is addressing water issues tied to the Colorado River Compact.
“We have a split Republican Party across the state. … I would like to see them come together and work as one instead of fighting each other,” Suckla said.
Working together on issues such as water storage would benefit the state, he said. The Colorado River Compact “is in serious trouble.”
Colorado officials need to store more water to “have a cushion” during scarce water years, Suckla said, suggesting more than one million acre-feet of water flows out of Colorado that could remain in the state if additional storage were available. As a general guideline, water managers often say an acre-foot of water can serve two households of four people each. It is a measure of water one foot deep across an acre, a calculation farmers often use when estimating crop yields in the arid West.
The Colorado River Compact governs water allocations among seven states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.
Before joining the legislature, Suckla served as a county commissioner in Montezuma County from 2013 to 2021. He earned top statewide county commissioner honors in 2017 from fellow commissioners. In 2024, he won a Republican legislative primary by three votes and went on to defeat Democrat Kathleen Curry in the general election with 54.6% of the vote.
Being a county commissioner and an auctioneer are not the only things Suckla is known for. He has also owned a logging company, a mine and a gravel pit. He said he has worked in a food truck and in real estate.
“I’m pro-farm and ranch. I’m pro-rural Colorado,” Suckla said.
Suckla focuses on issues affecting rural Colorado, including gun rights and the Second Amendment.
His family owns a ranch and lives in Cortez. Colorado House District 58 includes Dolores, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Montrose, Ouray and San Miguel counties, along with parts of Delta and Montezuma counties.
