Rep. Young is vice chairman of the Public Health Care & Human Services Committee and sits on the Education, Health, Insurance & Environment, and Appropriations committees, as well as the interim Transportation Legislative Review Committee.

In 2012, Rep. Young passed the Innovations in Medicaid Act, which established pilot programs that concentrate on health outcomes rather than the current fee-for-service model to save the state money without sacrificing quality care. In addition, he has sponsored and passed legislation protecting those with developmental disabilities.

Rep. Young also introduced legislation to boost the economy and workforce, including a tech transfer bill to facilitate the transformation of laboratory discoveries into new products for the marketplace, and legislation to integrate basic learning programs with skills training to get more Coloradans back to work.

Before being selected to represent his district’s constituents, he was a senior instructor and adjunct faculty for the Information and Learning Technologies program at the University of Colorado Denver.

A lifelong Coloradan, Rep. Young taught math and technology in the Greeley Weld 6 School District from 1975 to 1999 and later worked a two-year stint as an information architect with iXL, an international Web design firm.

Rep. Young earned his master’s degree in Information and Learning Technologies from UC Denver in 2000 and his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Colorado State University in 1975. As an instructor for UC Denver, Rep. Young designed and delivered online instruction in e-learning for K-12 teachers, corporate trainers and higher education faculty.

Rep. Young’s wife is Dr. Mary Young, a school psychologist. Together, they are active co-guardians of Rep. Young’s developmentally disabled sister, Dorothy Jeanne Young, who lives in a group home and works in a small thrift store.