2008 legislative session
In the 2008 session of the General Assembly, Morse sat on the Joint Budget Committee and chaired the Senate Appropriations Committee. He also sat on a special ethics panel investigating possible conflicts of interest for Colorado State Fair engineering contracts received by Sen. Abel Tapia.
Among the legislation sponsored by Morse during the 2008 legislative session were a bill to increase drivers license fees to fund trauma care and require $5000 of trauma care to be covered in car insurance policies, and a bill to increase marriage license fees to fund Court Appointed Special Advocate programs.
Another of Morse's bills, to establish a database of school security practices for use by Colorado schools and create the Colorado School Safety Resource Center to help school districts with safety plans, was passed by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Ritter.
Morse was also the Senate sponsor of successful legislation encouraging judges to consider restorative justice as part of juvenile sentencing. He also sponsored legislation to grant public hospitals taxing authority so that they can satisfy the federal definition of a "public hospital" and qualify for federal funding.
During the session, Morse was the lone legislator to vote in committee in favor of a proposal to require the use of paper ballot in all 2008 Colorado elections. As a member of the Joint Budget Committee, Morse was also a prominent voice supporting Democratic Party priorities in the state 2008-09 state budget, arguing in favor of increased spending on education and health care.
In July 2008, Morse publicly called for an investigation of 4th Judicial District DA John Newsome amid reports that Newsome inappropriately used taxpayer money to pay for over $500 in expenses surrounding a trip to a college football game. Newsome, who faced a challenger in the Republican primary for the district attorney's position, denied wrongdoing and alleged that Morse's accusations were "politics of personal destruction." Both the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the Colorado Attorney General's office launched investigations into Newsome's conduct.
During the 2008 election, Morse was an outspoken critic of El Paso County Clerk and Recorder Bob Balink, whom he accused of implementing a "12-point strategy" to disenfranchise voters including improperly interpreting rules regarding voter registration for students at Colorado College. Balink's office denied any improper conduct.
Following the 2008 general election, Morse was nominated for the posts of Senate President Pro-Tem and Senate Assistant Majority Leader, but lost the caucus' vote for each post to Sen. Betty Boyd and Sen. Lois Tochtrop, respectively.
In December, Morse was named Outstanding Public Official in the Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado's 2008 Advancing Equality Awards.
