in 2008, penry was part of a bi-partisan effort involving gov. bill ritter, rep. frank mcnulty, and the colorado public employees retirement association (pera) board to divest public pension funds from companies with ties to iran. penry also sponsored legislation to strengthen colorado's education standards to better equip students to compete in a highly competitive global economic environment, and he initiated and negotiated a bi-partisan bill to invest growing federal mineral lease revenues into colorado's colleges and universities. penry was a principal supporter of 2008's amendment 52, which would have directed mineral severance tax revenue away from water conservation projects to road building, but which failed at the polls.