May 23, 2013

DENVER—Rep. Don Coram’s efforts to fight and reduce the risk of wildfire continue to see success, as the Governor signed Senate Bill 270 into law earlier this morning. The bipartisan bill, also sponsored by Rep. Randy Fischer, D-Fort Collins, modifies the way the state funds Colorado’s Wildfire Emergency Response Fund.

Senate Bill 270 streamlines WERF payments to keep the fund solvent when the outbreak of wildfire is deemed imminent. By allowing the Governor to transfer funds from the Disaster Emergency Fund into WERF, Colorado can avoid situations like last year, when firefighting efforts across the state severely drained the fund and prompted lawmakers to issue a supplemental appropriation to keep it solvent.

“With all the snowfall and moisture we’ve seen this late in spring, it’s easy to forget how vulnerable our state is to wildfire,” remarked Coram, R-Montrose. “The summer heat is on its way, and we need to be sure we stand on solid financial footing to combat the danger of wildfire whenever and wherever it ignites.”

Expenditures from WERF play a crucial role during the outbreak of wildfire, typically paying for the first aerial tankers to arrive on scene, helicopter firefighting operations or wildfire hand crews.

Senate Bill 270 is the second of three bills Coram sponsored that protect Colorado from the danger of wildfire. Last week, the Governor signed Senate Bill 269, which creates a grant program to reduce the risk of wildfire. His third bill, Senate Bill 273, reduces forest fuel biomass.

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DENVER—Almost twenty years ago, Nathan Dunlap brutally murdered four people and callously shot another victim at a Chuck E. Cheese’s in Aurora. The mass murderer was convicted by a Colorado jury and sentenced to death. The courts have repeatedly upheld Dunlap’s conviction and sentencing, including a unanimous decision made by the Colorado Supreme Court in 1999.

Today, Gov. John Hickenlooper granted a temporary reprieve to Dunlap and announced he would unlikely visit the issue again. House Minority Leader Mark Waller released the following statement in response to the Governor’s decision:

“I am incredibly disappointed with the Governor’s decision to grant a temporary reprieve to Nathan Dunlap. It’s a failure in leadership that is illustrative of the Governor’s unwillingness to make the difficult decisions Coloradans expect him to make.

“Time and time again, the courts have upheld Dunlap’s conviction and sentencing by a jury of Coloradans. Voters in Colorado have already spoken on this issue, and they expressed their support of capital punishment as an appropriate sentencing option in Colorado.

“The Governor’s executive order strips victims and their families of the justice they deserve. For twenty years, victims’ families have worked within our legal system to see justice delivered. The Governor’s reprieve does a disservice not only to the victims’ families, but also to the jurors who convicted Dunlap and to the people of Colorado.”

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DENVER—A bipartisan bill sponsored by state Reps. Ray Scott, R-Grand Junction, and Millie Hamner, D-Dillon, to help the Western Slope was signed into law over the weekend. House Bill 1252 protects a major economic thoroughfare by funding the installation of a fire suppression system in the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnels, which span across the Continental Divide. The bill also creates the Petroleum Cleanup and Redevelopment Fund to clean up contaminated brownfields in Colorado.

“Almost 30,000 vehicles per day, or $800,000 worth of commerce per hour travel through the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnels,” Scott said. “Installing a fire suppression system in the tunnels is a prudent decision that protects one of our state’s largest economic arteries.”

House Bill 1252 makes a one-time $5 million transfer from the petroleum cleanup fund to install the fire suppression system, which would engage upon the event of a rollover or other type of accident.

“Without the fire suppression system, damages to the tunnels from an accident could cost more than $2 billion to fix,” Scott added.

The Petroleum Cleanup and Redevelopment Fund Scott’s bill establishes will be funded by a combination of civil penalties collected from petroleum tank violations, donations and interest. Cleaning up Colorado’s scattered contaminated petroleum sites makes the land suitable to being repurposed and redeveloped.

“Brownfield sites hurt both the environment and our economy, but this bill gives us the opportunity to turn that around,” said Scott, R-Grand Junction. “It is the fiscally-sound and environmentally-responsible choice to make.”

The Governor signed HB 1252 at bill signing ceremony outside the Eisenhower-Johnson Tunnels on Saturday, May 18.

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DENVER—Today, state Rep. Don Coram’s bill to help prevent catastrophic wildfires was signed into law. Senate Bill 269 creates the Wildfire Risk Reduction Grant Program.

“Colorado and particularly rural Colorado, cannot afford to see the high levels of destruction wrought by wildfires in years past,” said Coram, R-Montrose. “This session was tough on rural Colorado, but this is one measure that protects us as well as urban-wildland interfaces.”

Since 2002, more than 38,000 damaging wildfires occurred in Colorado, and in 2011, there were 4,300 wildfires reported. Last year, more than 5,000 wildfires occurred including the High Park Wildfire, the Lower North Fork Wildfire and the Waldo Canyon Wildfire.

Senate Bill 269 creates a grant program to fund projects that reduce hazardous forest fuels. Up to 25 percent of the grant funds will go to providing neighborhood slash piles and community equipment. This bill also instructs the department to monitor grant recipients compliance with the program and measure the grant program’s effectiveness.

“Poor forest health combined with drought conditions create a recipe for disaster,” Coram continued. “The better prepared we are, the better off we will be.”

Senate Bill 269 works in conjunction with Senate Bill 270, which helps fund the Wildfire Emergency Response Fund. Senate Bill 270 authorizes the Governor to order the transfer of funds from the Disaster Emergency Fund into the WERF if an emergency is imminent.

Coram anticipates SB 270 to be signed into law next week.

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May 16, 2013

DENVER—A bipartisan piece of legislation to require additional reporting of elder abuse by certain professionals was signed by the Governor today. State Rep. Amy Stephens, R-Monument, sponsored Senate Bill 111 with Rep. Sue Schafer, D-Wheat Ridge.

“The potential for elder abuse will increase as our population ages,” Stephens said. “This bill works against that trend and helps protect some of our most vulnerable citizens.”

Current law lists members of certain professions as mandatory reporters of abuse for at-risk adults—or individuals 18 years and older who are incapable of communicating or making responsible decisions concerning their well-being. Stephens’ bill extends this same mandatory reporting requirement to certain professionals who observe the exploitation or abuse of a person who is 70 years of age or older.

Specifically, the new law adds physical therapists, emergency medical service providers, chiropractors and clergy members to Colorado’s list of mandatory reporters. It also criminalizes failure to report abuse, making it a class 3 misdemeanor.

Both Stephens and Schafer worked closely with an interim committee on elder abuse as well as the Colorado Attorney General’s office before crafting the bill for the 2013 legislative session.

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DENVER—State Rep. Bob Gardner’s measure to implement the Kelsey Smith Act in Colorado was signed into law yesterday. The measure, House Bill 1308, gives law enforcement the ability to obtain the location of abducted persons through cell phone information.

In 2007, 18-year-old Kelsey Smith was abducted in broad daylight outside a mall in Kansas. She was taken 20 miles across state lines to Missouri where she was raped and killed. It took law enforcement and her family four days to obtain their daughter’s cell phone data from her cellular provider, but within 45 minutes of obtaining Kelsey Smith’s cellular data, law enforcement was able to locate her body.

Kelsey Smith’s death prompted at least 9 states to enact the Kelsey Smith Act to protect victims and prevent abductions.

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DENVER—House Republicans saw the Governor pen his name to two job-creating measures this morning at the Centennial Airport. Lawmakers and stakeholders gathered at the airport to witness House Bill 1080 and House Bill 1287 signed into law. Both of the bipartisan bills offer competitive tax credits to attract new companies to Colorado as well as keep jobs from leaving the state.

Rep. Chris Holbert, R-Parker

House Bill 1080 is a bipartisan bill brought forward by Reps. Chris Holbert, R-Parker, and Tracy Kraft Tharp, D-Broomfield, that expands on a tax credit currently offered to Colorado’s aircraft manufacturers. Before the bill’s signing, Colorado offered a $1,200 tax credit for every new employee hired to aircraft manufacturers. Holbert’s bill extends this tax credit to include firms that provide aircraft maintenance, repair and completion.

“Extending this tax credit should create hundreds of jobs for Coloradans at zero cost to the state,” Holbert said after today’s signing. “Our airports are gateways to national and international commerce. The more we can do to see this industry grow in our state, the more we’ll see our economic recovery accelerate.”

Rep. Brian DelGrosso, R-Loveland

Rep. Brian DelGrosso introduced the other bill signed by the Governor today with Rep. Dianne Primavera, D-Broomfield. Their measure, House Bill 1287, extends Colorado’s Job Growth Incentive Tax Credit through 2024. The performance-based credit provides an income tax credit to businesses that undertake new job creation projects in Colorado, and it is an essential tool Colorado relies on when in direct competition with at least one other state.

“This tax credit is a critical tool we employ to attract new job creating opportunities to our state,” DelGrosso said. “Without extending this tax credit, we put Colorado at serious risk of losing its ability to compete with other nearby, surrounding states.”

To qualify for the tax credit, businesses must create at least 20 new full-time jobs in Colorado during the credit period, which is defined as 60 consecutive months. The average annual wage for the jobs created under the program must also be at least 110 percent of the countywide average where the business is located. The new law also provides a mechanism that makes it easier for rural Colorado to take advantage of the job growth tax incentive program.

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Sponsors introduced the bill after a woman’s German shepherd was recently shot and killed unnecessarily by a police officer.

“This bill provides officers with the training they need to keep themselves and our pets safe,” Coram said. “The ability to recognize animal behaviors is an essential component to making smart and safe decisions during canine encounters.”

Coram’s bill is the first of its kind anywhere in the country. The new training programs it implements will be designed with input from veterinarians and animal behavior specialists. Sheriff’s deputies assigned to courts or jails are exempted from the training, as are code enforcement officers.

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DENVER—With the 2013 legislative session officially at an end, House Republicans took time today to highlight their efforts to create opportunity for Colorado’s students, families and business owners.

“Our friends and neighbors sent us here for a reason, and we haven’t lost sight of that,” House Minority Leader Mark Waller, R-Colorado Springs, said. “For the last 120 days, House Republicans have fought hard for a legislative agenda that fosters growth and success for every Coloradan.”

Waller pointed to several Republican bills that create and protect jobs in Colorado. One bill, House Bill 1206, sponsored by Rep. Brian DelGrosso, R-Loveland, saves jobs in danger of leaving the state by giving local governments the authority to offer economic tax breaks to companies considering moving outside of Colorado. Another bill, House Bill 1165, sponsored by Rep. Jim Wilson of Salida, establishes an advanced manufacturing career pathway to create a skilled labor pool and attract more manufacturing companies to Colorado.

Republicans also sponsored several measures that strengthen Colorado’s education system, like Waller’s bill to create a merit based scholarship fund for Colorado’s best and brightest students—House Bill 1320.

“House Republicans know and understand that a conversation about jobs and the economy can’t start without first taking a hard look our education system,” Waller added. “An investment in our students is an investment in our economy.”

During budget negotiations, Republicans successfully added several key amendments that pay down Colorado’s debt and put the state on solid economic footing, including an amendment that fulfills Colorado’s $146 million debt obligation to the state’s firefighter and police pension fund, saving Colorado more than $26 million in interest payments.

The Republican amendments to the budget represent a rare moment of compromise in a legislative session that was defined by the Democrats’ partisanship and backroom dealings.

A complete list of House Republican legislative session highlights is attached. The document can also be downloaded by clicking here.

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DENVER—A bill sponsored by state Rep. Frank McNulty to eliminate the backlog of untested rape kits in Colorado is on its way to the Governor’s desk after final action was taken by the House today. Rape kits are used in all sexual assault investigations to preserve evidence from victims, but under current law, many kits in Colorado are never tested after they are collected.

McNulty’s measure, House Bill 1020, requires the Department of Public Safety to adopt standards for when evidence collected after a sexual assault is submitted and when it must be analyzed and compared to DNA databases. Consent of the victim is required prior to the release of any evidence.

“Passing this measure will help provide justice for women who have been assaulted,” McNulty said.

 
A 2011 report by the National Institute of Justice showed that in a span of five years, 18 percent of unsolved alleged sexual assault cases contained untested forensic evidence that remained in police custody. In Colorado, thousands of rape kits remain untested across multiple counties, even though the Colorado Bureau of Investigations offers to test the collected evidence free of charge.

In Detroit, Mich., law enforcement recently began testing a stockpile of more than 11,000 untested rape kits. After just 153 kits were tested, law enforcement officials were able to identify at least 20 serial rapists.

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