Residents of Colorado who have long coveted the frequent flyer relationship that United Mileage Plus has forged with Safeway stores, woke up recently to find that Ken Chlouber, a state senator from Leadville, had introduced Senate Bill 81 that seeks to ban grocery store cards because members receive discounts on their purchases that aren’t readily available to those who don’t sign up for the free cards. Apparently Chlouber is convinced that grocery stores sell information from card purchases to sell to other vendors and purposely mark up groceries to make it seem like members are getting a better deal. We can’t speak to the truth about these concerns but messing with the millions of miles that pass through Safeway check-out counters annually is not something that United Mileage Plus members take lightly and it’s hoped that this state senator someday earns enough miles to leave the state alone. In an interview with the state senator, he did concede that he had much to learn about loyalty cards. Considering that Mileage Plus has the highest population penetration of members in the state of Colorado, it’s likely he does have a lot to learn. Apparently he has never visited a 7-11 store.