Sine Die! Wednesday, May 9th, the final gavel came down on the second session of the 71st General Assembly. In total, 784 bills were introduced. The Colorado Association of RELATORS® (CAR) tracked 80 bills this year and the Legislative Policy Committee (LPC) took a position on 46 of them. The split legislature this year with Republicans controlling the Senate and Democrats...
House Bill 18-1195: Tax Credit Contributions Organizations Affordable Housing HB18-1195, sponsored by Representative Pabon (D-Denver) and Senator Tate (R-Centennial), provides a state income tax credit for contributions to nonprofit organizations and Housing Authorities engaged in the new construction of affordable housing for homeownership of at least 120% Average Median Income. The donation by an individual or organization must be tied to...
SCR18-004: Congressional Redistricting and SCR18-005: Legislative Redistricting With a 2020 census right around the corner set to give Colorado an eighth Congressional seat, there is a widespread belief among leaders in both parties and from advocates for unaffiliated voters that Colorado's redistricting and reapportionment processes must be reformed to increase the competitveness of legislative and congressional seats. The following Senate Concurrent...
House Bill 18-1199: Aquifer Storage and Recovery Plans HB18-1199, sponsored by Representative Catlin (R-Montrose), and Representative McLachlan (R-Durango), and Senator Coram (R-Montrose), authorizes a person to apply to the Ground Water Commission for approval of an aquifer storage-and-recovery plan. This legislation also requires the Ground Water Commission to promulgate rules governing the application process and the requirements that an aquifer storage-and-recovery...
Senate Bill 18-015: Protecting Homeowners And Deployed Military SB18-015, sponsored by Senator Gardner (R-Colorado Springs), Senator Hill (R-Colorado Springs), Representative D. Williams (R-Colorado Springs), and Representative Liston (R-Colorado Springs), allows a property owner to remove an unauthorized person from a residential property within two court days on a county court motion for temporary mandatory injunction. The rightful property owner is subject...
This week at the legislature - Colorado State Budget Over the past two weeks, legislators have been debating the "long bill," otherwise known as the budget, to fund state government operations. Colorado law requires legislators to balance their budget every year. This year, lawmakers had a $1.3 billion surplus to allocate for the general fund spending priorities and discretionary legislation from introduced...
Senate Bill 18-001: Transportation Infrastructure Funding SB18-001, sponsored by Senator Baumgardner (R-Grandby), Senator Cooke (R-Greeley), and Representative Buck (R-Windsor) is the major transportation funding vehicle this legislative session. Last week a major compromise was reached that would allow for annual funding of transportation up to $250 million a year and it delays this referred measure to the 2019 ballot for Colorado...
Senate Bill 18-015: Protecting Homeowners And Deployed Military SB18-015, sponsored by Senator Gardner (R-Colorado Springs), Senator Hill (R-Colorado Springs), Representative D. Williams (R-Colorado Springs), and Representative Liston (R-Colorado Springs), allows for the removal of an unauthorized person from a residential property within 24 hours based on an affidavit from the true property owner. The rightful property owner is subject to the...
House Bill 18-1261: Colorado Arbitration Fairness Act & House Bill 18-1262: Arbitration Services Provider Transparency Act HB18-1261, sponsored by Representative Weissman (D-Aurora), establishes ethical standards for arbitrators, including that an arbitrator must perform their responsibilities without bias. This bill also specifies that any party may challenge in court the neutrality of an arbitrator or an arbitration service provider, and it requires specific...
Senate Bill 18-109: Authorize Audio-Video Communication Notarial Acts SB18-109, sponsored by Senator Gardner (R-Colorado Springs), Representative Garnett (D-Denver), and Representative Wist (R-Centennial) allows notaries public to perform notarial acts using audio-visual communication. The process is called remote notarization and it's similar to a skype or face-time type of interaction where there is audio and video communication between the notary and the...