Captiol Connection: February 21, 2014
REALTOR® Day is This Wednesday!
We are looking forward to seeing everyone at this year’s REALTOR® Day at the Capitol on Wednesday, February 26th at the McNichols Building and the State Capitol. If you have requested a meeting with your Legislator through registration, we will be sending more details about that on Monday. In addition, we will send reminders to those of you who signed up for Capitol Tours. We still do have a few spots available for the lunch and afternoon program. Registration is $65 and includes lunch and an afternoon program. For more details, or to register today, please click here. At this link, please find information on parking garages in the area. In addition, there is public parking in the Denver Post Building at 1516 Cleveland Place.
SB 17 Limit Use of Ag Water for Lawn Irrigation
CAR OPPOSES SB14-017, Concerning a limitation on the approval of real estate developments that use water rights decreed for agricultural purposes to irrigate lawn grass. This bill prohibits a local government from approving certain land use development permits unless the local government has adopted an enforceable resolution or ordinance that limits the amount of irrigated grass in the development to no more than 15 percent of the total aggregate area of all residential lots. This limit applies when any part of the proposed water supply for the development was changed from agricultural irrigation purposes to municipal or domestic use and the change of use application was filed in water court on or after January 1, 2016. The limit does not apply to irrigation with raw water.
Due to increasing concerns surrounding this bill, the sponsors, this morning during the Senate 2nd Reading, amended the bill to strike this as a requirement and simply study the issue further over the interim. They plan to discuss with stakeholders and experts some of the ramifications surrounding limiting irrigated grass to no more that 15% of all residential lots in new development.
SB 10 Manufactured Home Communities
CAR OPPOSED bill SB14-010, Concerning manufactured home communities, and, in connection therewith, preserving manufactured home communities and mitigating the impacts of relocation resulting from the redevelopment of such communities, was postponed indefinitely in the Senate Committee on Judiciary on Wednesday. The bill would have made numerous changes to the landlord-tenant relationship for manufactured homes and manufactured home communities, including changes in definitions; requirements and procedures in creating, modifying and terminating lease agreements; and procedures subsequent to the sale or redevelopment of manufactured home communities.
We had many concerns with the bill, including its interference with the use of private property and what owners have the right to do with that property. The language specified that the manufactured home community owner must give written notice 24 months in advance of changing the use of the property. There were also aspects of the bill limiting the number of rent increases to once per year, which many in the industry feel is the first step towards rent control.
Transit Alliance Spring 2014 Citizen’s Academy
The Transit Alliance is hosting their annual spring 2014 Citizen’s Academy from March 5, 2014-April 16, 2014. This is a great opportunity to discuss transportation, community development, and sustainability in Colorado. The class is limited to 50 participants, so please get your applications in to take part! More information, as well as the application, can be found here, and the deadline for applying TODAY at 5PM.
Download the REALTOR® Action Center Mobile App
The REALTOR® Action Center mobile app is now available for download for the iPhone and DROID. Simply search for NAR Action Center in your respective app markets. This app is designed to help members Vote, Act and Invest on the go. It will help you increase your state and local Federal Call for Action participation rates, allow members a quick and efficient way to invest in RPAC, and provide you a way to track your REALTOR® Party activities and so much more.
