HB Support HB Oppose HB Support HB Oppose

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Principles of Liberty

Weekly Report

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HB 16-1013 Sch Dist Crime Insurance In Lieu Of Bonds Support

Current law requires the secretary, assistant secretary, treasurer, and assistant treasurer of a school board and any person authorized by the board to be the custodian of money of the school district to obtain a surety bond before taking office. Additionally, a school board is required to obtain and pay for a surety bond for any person who is likely to have custody of $50 or more of school district money. This bill allows school districts to purchase crime insurance instead of surety bonds. Choice is good.

This legislation supports the principles of: Free Markets

Fiscal Responsibility

HB 16-1014 SOS Business Intelligence Center Oppose

This bill creates the business intelligence center program within the department of state. The purpose of the program is to provide resources and access to “public business and economic data” collected by state agencies. The business intelligence center advisory board is created in the department to assist the department in the operation of the program. This bill is based on the idea that the role of government is to be a purveyor of data for businesses and the general public. While this could be useful data, collecting, packaging and giving away data is not the role of government. There is a cost to all of us as taxpayers. (We look forward to seeing the fiscal note on this one.) We’d rather see the government focus on executing its proper roles and not on providing business services for “free”.

This legislation opposes the principles of: Limited Government

HB 16-1025 Renewal Property Casualty Insurance Support

Multiple insurance companies that are owned or controlled by one entity are considered a group. This bill expands the definition of “renewal” or “to renew” when used with an automobile insurance policy to clarify that a policy that replaces an expired policy, may be issued by another admitted company within the same insurance group, rather than necessarily the issuer of the original policy. This bill codifies a current practice of insurance groups. Anything that makes it the slightest bit easier to do business in Colorado is a good thing.

This legislation supports the principles of: Limited Government

HB 16-1039 Interstate 70 Motor Vehicle Traction Equipment Oppose

Here we go again. A reading of Colorado Revised Statute 42-4-106 (5) makes it clear that there are already laws on the books for the Department of Transportation to restrict travel, require chains, etc. Current law also spells out the enhanced penalties that are applied when someone doesn’t obey said restrictions and jams up traffic. This bill requires certain snow tires, equipment, etc. over stretches of I25 when “icy or snow-packed conditions are present”, as well as carrying “appropriate traction equipment if icy or snow-packed conditions are not present”, and use

““appropriate traction equipment if icy or snow-packed conditions are present.” More nanny-state from government knows best.

This legislation opposes the principles of: Personal Responsibility

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HB 16-1041 Repeal Bonding Requirement Marijuana Businesses Support

Under current law, licensed medical marijuana businesses and retail marijuana establishments must procure and file a $5,000 surety bond with the Department of Revenue. Retail marijuana cultivation facilities are required to post a surety bond equal to two months of their anticipated tax liability. Since bonds for medical marijuana businesses and retail marijuana establishments are unavailable in the current marketplace (probably due to being illegal federally) this bonding requirement places an unreasonable burden on the ability of these businesses to carry out their business. This bill repeals the bonding requirement.

This legislation supports the principles of: Free Markets

Limited Government

HB 16-1051 Forms To Transfer Vehicle Ownership Upon Death Support

This bill requires the Department of Revenue to create and provide a beneficiary designation form that allows a vehicle owner or joint vehicle owners to arrange a transfer of vehicle ownership to a named beneficiary upon owner’s or owners’ death. Upon death of the owner or last surviving joint owner, the beneficiary presents the notarized form, as well as proof of death and the auto title transfer fee to DOR to request a new title of vehicle ownership in his or her name. This type of transfer allows you to avoid Probate. This bill will make it easier for people to manage their property rights with less government intrusion.

This legislation supports the principles of: Property Rights

Limited Government

HB 16-1065 Income Tax Credit For Home Health Care Oppose

This bill creates an income tax credit to qualifying seniors over 75 for various costs of home modifications, home health care services, and durable and telehealth equipment related to home health care. Having gone through such costs for immediate family, we’re all too familiar with these costs, but we don’t believe that the state is responsible for subsidizing these private costs.

HB 16-1073 Electrical Industry Safety And Training Act Oppose

Under current law, an applicant seeking renewal of a license to be a journeyman electrician, a master electrician, or a residential wireman must demonstrate competency through an assessment performed by a private company in compliance with state electrical board (board) rules. This bill increases the requirements and also requires that inspections by towns, cities, counties, or a qualified state institution of higher education must include a contemporaneous review to ensure compliance with the new licensure requirements.

This legislation opposes the principles of: Free Markets

Limited Government

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Under current law, a “head of a family” is allowed to brew beer for family use without obtaining a liquor license. This bill deletes the terminology “head of a family” and “family use” and replaces it with “adult” and “personal use”. An incremental gain in libation liberty. That’s two bills by Lebsock & Holbert – one on marijuana and one on home brewing. Are they starting a “Party Caucus”?

This legislation supports the principles of: Individual Liberty

Property Rights Limited Government

SB 16-001 Unlimited Mil Retirement Benefit Tax Deduction Oppose

Currently, a military retiree who is 55-64 years old may deduct up to $20,000 of their military retirement benefits from their federal taxable income, and a person who is 65 years old or older may deduct up to $24,000. Since the deduction is made from federal taxable income, and federal taxable income is used to calculate Colorado state income tax, that deduction carries over as a deduction for state income subject to tax. This bill would eliminate the limit for military income and allow a military retiree to claim a state income tax deduction for the entire amount of their military income. Instead of playing favorites for select constituents to score political points, how about reducing taxes for everyone? Oh, by the way, the fiscal note cost shows an average $24 million hit per year.

This legislation opposes the principles of: Fiscal Responsibility

Equal Protection / Rule of Law

SB 16-010 Off-highway Vehicle Powersports Dealer Purchase Support

Current law requires an owner to obtain a certificate of title before selling an off-highway vehicle. This bill exempts the sale to a dealer of an off-highway vehicle that has never been titled and was sold either in a jurisdiction that does not issue titles to off-highway vehicles or in Colorado before off-highway vehicles were titled. If a dealer purchases an off-highway vehicle without a certificate of title the dealer must do some due diligence to check to see if the vehicle is stolen, etc. While we’re not super excited about all of the requirements on the dealer, overall the bill does provide a way for a property owner to sell his property to a dealer without having to first obtain a certificate of title.

This legislation supports the principles of: Property Rights

Limited Government

SB 16-011 Terminate Use Of FASTER Fee Revenue For Transit Support

Under current law, $15 million per year of revenue from FASTER fees is used for transit-related projects such as bike and pedestrian lanes, and to provide grants to local governments for local transit projects. This bill repeals these requirements, so that the revenue must be used only for road safety projects. At a time when our roads are such a hot topic, and the structure and operation of FASTER is questionable, perhaps it makes sense to at least narrow the scope of priorities and prioritize spending.

This legislation supports the principles of: Limited Government

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SB 16-016 Modifications To The SCFD Oppose

This bill authorizes the legislature to put a question on the ballot about whether or not citizens want to continue to authorize the current tax in the Denver Metro area that goes toward “scientific and cultural facilities” such as the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, the Denver Art Museum, the Denver Zoological Gardens, the Denver Botanical Gardens, and the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, etc. It is not the role of government to take tax dollars in order to subsidize scientific and cultural institutions. In doing a word search for “education” in the CO Constitution, 42 instances of the word Appeared. We did not see any instance that seemed to grant the

legislature authority to tax Coloradans for Museums, etc. This legislation opposes the principles of:

Limited Government Fiscal Responsibility

SB 16-045 Add To Financial Literary Standards For Schools Oppose

This bill requires that the state board include academic standards for the knowledge and skills necessary to understand the financing of higher education or other career-related postsecondary education, and for retirement planning. So the state would mandate everyone be indoctrinated in student loan debt, because, we just assume that we need to keep inflating that student debt bubble. How about getting the basics of critical thinking, math and literacy down so that we don’t have such ridiculous remediation rates for those who do go to college?

Limited Government

SB 16-079 Align Secondary and Postsecondary CTE Initiatives Oppose

The bill directs the commissioner of education to ensure that the department of education aligns the postsecondary and workforce readiness programs and initiatives that it implements with the model plans of study created by the community college system. The bill requires the department, in collaboration with the community college system, to create and make available informational materials that explain the alignment of the state academic standards, the state high school graduation guidelines, and the postsecondary and workforce initiatives and programs that the department implements with the model plans of study and the career pathways. Basically, this is a continuation of prior bills that POL opposed that relate to the state’s desire to centrally plan our economy because it knows best what jobs are going to be in demand, which jobs will pay the best, etc.