Rice presently works for Lockheed Martin Space Systems and also is a member of the United States Army Reserve.
He was elected to the city council of Glendale, Colorado in 1994 and to the post of mayor in 1996 on a platform of developing a "resident-friendly" community in the Denver enclave.
Other key measures he promoted included the creation of a statewide cold case homicide unit and a reduction in the business personal property tax.
[14] Building upon his work in Baghdad, Rice has also helped coordinate the Baghdad-Denver Region Partnership for Sister Cities International since 2004.
[17] In 2008, Rice was appointed to the Board of Directors for Sister Cities International,[18] and in 2009, he helped sponsor an Iraqi family's relocation to the United States.
In his first legislative campaign, Rice was criticized for his association with Dismas House founder Bob Sylvester, who was found guilty in 2000 of sexually abusing inmates.
[19] Between 1994 and 2003, while in the National Guard and Army Reserve, Rice worked in the private sector as a customer service supervisor and trainer with MCI, JD Edwards, and Wells Fargo Bank.
[21] Rice was also criticized for being absent from Glendale during six months of his term as mayor, while he attended the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth.
[24] In his campaign, Rice outlined his top legislative priorities as public safety, economic security, and quality of life.
[37] Rice worked with fellow military officer and state senator Steve Ward on several pieces of legislation during his first term in the legislature.
[38] Following the 2007 session, Rice and Ward called for Colorado to divest state pension funds from companies doing business in Iran.
[39] Rice was a key player during House debate on a resolution critical of the ongoing War in Iraq; he supported amendments to the resolution to remove specific criticism of the 2007 troop surge, but supported the final compromise version, which called for eventual withdrawal from Iraq and passed on a party-line vote.
Following the regular session, Rice served on the legislature's Police Officers' and Firefighters' Pension Reform Commission[46] and the interim Transportation Legislation Review Committee.
His absence was acknowledged by lawmakers during their opening speeches,[48] his seat was decorated with yellow ribbons, and his children were invited to lead the Pledge of Allegiance on the first day of the session.
Rice re-introduced a bill that had passed the House but failed in the Senate the previous year to raise the business personal property tax exemption, after the measure was endorsed by Gov.
[61] Rice also hoped to sponsor legislation supported by Ritter to raise vehicle registration fees in order to fund road and bridge repairs, but failed to find a suitable cosponsor for the bill.
[64] In March 2008, Rice received the Bridge Builders Award from the Colorado Contractors Association for his work on transportation issues.
[73][74][75] With Republican Rep. Amy Stephens, Rice also sponsored legislation allowing health insurance providers to offer discounts for participation in wellness programs.
[80] Rice also sponsored legislation to create a hybrid public-private health insurance system to cover low-income Colorado residents; this bill passed the Senate and House but was not signed into law by the governor.