The Name of the Game is Compromise
Upcoming Legislative Docket To Mix Oil, Gas & Water
By Rep. Beth McCann
The 2015 legislative session begins January 7. After a long and contentious election season, the Republicans in the state Senate now have a one-seat majority. The Colorado House of Representatives still has a Democratic majority, with a slim three-seat margin.
The name of the game this session will be bipartisan compromise. I am pleased to continue as Chair of the Committee on Health, Insurance and Environment, and am a newly appointed member of the Appropriations Committee. I also sit on the Committee on Legal Services and the Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice. I continue as Chair of the Tony Grampsas Youth Services Board, and as the legislative representative to the Colorado Bar Association.
Economic recovery will continue to be a major focus during this session with bills expected to increase workforce development, stimulate job creation, address equality in pay and concerns about family and medical leave. The issue of TABOR refunds, particularly as they concern marijuana taxes, is a challenging situation, which we will be discussing as state revenues continue to increase.
Pushing the hot button
A number of hot button issues will be sure to garner considerable debate on the floor of both chambers.
The Oil and Gas Task Force appointed by Governor Hickenlooper to address land use conflicts between oil and gas development and Front Range communities is expected to deliver its recommendations in February. The recommendations can only become legislative action if two-thirds of the task force members are in agreement.
The governor has already received a draft of the Colorado Water Plan, which will be discussed over the coming year.
The state’s mayors, including Denver Mayor Hancock, are calling for reform of the construction defects laws that allow homeowners to sue condo developers for poor construction. The mayors argue that the law inhibits the construction of affordable condominium housing, which makes up only two percent of new housing in Colorado versus 25 percent of the new housing stock in other states. Homeowners do not want their ability to redress construction wrongs to be curtailed. I expect to see significant legislation on this issue.
Marijuana and more
Recreational and medical marijuana will continue to occupy legislators’ time with a series of bills to deal with labeling of marijuana edibles, mandatory registration of caregivers to monitor the total number of patients, and potentially a limit on the total number of patients per caregiver.
Governor Hickenlooper has asked the legislature for $8.2 million annually to hire 130 new child protection workers. While a step in the right direction, this is only a fraction of the 650 workers called for in a recent child welfare work load study.
Finally, we will most certainly be considering a “death with dignity” bill modeled on the Oregon statute. Such a law, if passed, would give terminally patients the option to work with their physicians to end their own lives at a time and in a manner of their own choosing.
Bills to come
This fall I worked to draft a number of bills that I will introduce for consideration in the new legislative session.
I hope to make Driving Under the Influence a felony for those who are repeatedly charged with the offense. We must be more forceful in our efforts to get chronic repeat offenders off the road. A juvenile petty ticket bill will offer law enforcement an intermediate tool in managing low-level juvenile offenders. A petty ticket could be issued to juveniles whose offenses require more serious intervention than a lecture and release, but do not warrant a charge and adjudication.
Another bill I am working on would give tenants the same amount of time to file a counterclaim when a landlord sues them as a landlord currently has to sue a tenant.
I continue to work on the complicated issue of home foreclosure. One bill would allow electronic sales of homes, and another bill will simplify the language that the Public Trustees send out when they get notice of a foreclosure. I am also working on a bill involving tax credits for renewable energy companies that reinvest in Colorado.
Door is always open
Another bill will establish a maternal mortality review committee to study the causes of death of pregnant women and of women who die within a year of giving birth. I will carry a bill that codifies the existing Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Committee. I will also seek to codify the “9 to 25 Commission,” which is working to identify gaps and duplications in our services for young people between the ages of 9 and 25. The commission will eventually make recommendations on how to better deliver these important services. I will also introduce a resolution supporting the efforts to ban the sale of recently traded ivory in Colorado.
I am looking forward to a busy legislative session and am deeply grateful to be returning to the statehouse on your behalf. My door is always open. If you have comments, suggestions, or questions please get in touch with me via email at beth@bethmccann.org or by phone at 303-866-2959. During the session I hold Town Hall meetings on current policy issues, if you have a suggestion for a Town Hall topic or an interesting speaker I would love to hear from you. Happy New Year!
Beth McCann represents District 8, which includes much of Park Hill, in the Colorado House of Representatives.