Date: 02/28/2012

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB12-1296

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Moved to postpone indefinitely HB 12-1296. The mot
Moved to refer HB 12-1296 to the Committee on Appr		PASS
FAIL



02:08 PM -- House Bill 12-1296

The Committee came back to order. Representative Singer, prime sponsor, described the provisions of House Bill 12-1296 that amends the criminal code by adding the crime of wage theft and distributed a written summary of the bill (Attachment E). He also identified wage theft case in Colorado and responded to questions from the committee about current law concerning theft of wages.

HseJud0228AttachE.pdf

The following persons testified on the bill:

02:41 PM -- Dennis Coombs, representing himself, spoke in support of the bill.

02:44 PM -- Brandt Milstein, Milstein Law Office, spoke in support of the bill and described wage theft cases that he has litigated. He also responded to questions from the committee about the frequency of theft of wages.

02:52 PM -- Stan Garnett, District Attorney for 20th Judicial District, spoke in support of the bill and described current law concerning theft of wages. He also responded to questions from the committee about the frequency of wage theft incidents.

03:09 PM -- Larry Hudson, Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, spoke in opposition to the bill and responded to questions from the committee about current law concerning wage theft.

03:19 PM -- Jeff Weist, Colorado Competitive Council, spoke in opposition to the bill.

03:20 PM -- Peg Ackerman, County Sheriffs of Colorado, spoke in opposition to the bill and responded to questions from the committee about why the County Sheriffs of Colorado opposes the bill.

03:23 PM -- Nick Hoover, Colorado Restaurant Association, spoke in opposition to the bill.


03:24 PM

Representative Singer read a statement from Tom Raynes, Colorado District Attorneys Council, concerning ambiguity in the current wage theft law (Attachment F).

HseJud0228AttachF.pdf

03:25 PM -- Susan Bowcher, Aide to Representative Singer, read a statement from a person who experienced theft of wages related to a cleaning job that she performed.

03:29 PM -- Bob Norris, representing himself, spoke in support of the bill and described wage thefts cases that have been brought to his attention. He also responded to questions from the committee about legal actions taken to address these wage theft instances.

03:36 PM -- Reverend Anne Dunlap, Liberation Community, spoke in support of the bill and described wage thefts cases that have been brought to her attention. She also responded to questions from the committee about legal actions that were taken to recover the lost wages.

03:47 PM -- David Lichtenstein, Plaintiffs Employment Lawyers Association, spoke in support of the bill and described current law concerning wage theft.

03:51 PM -- Rhonda Browstein, Denver University Law, Civil Litigation and Civil Rights Clinics Student Advisor, spoke in support of the law and described current law concerning wage theft. She also responded to questions from the committee about current law concerning theft of wages and theft of wage cases that she has litigated.

03:59 PM -- Margarita Gomez, 9 to 5: National Association of Working Women, spoke in support of the bill and read a statement from a person who experienced theft of her wages for a job that she performed in a restaurant.

04:03 PM -- Jennifer Piper, Champions Painting, LLC., spoke in support of the bill and responded to questions about theft of wages incidents that she has witnessed.

Dave Dixon, Northern Colorado Human Resource Association, submitted a letter of opposition to the bill (Attachment G).

HseJud0228AttachG.pdf


04:06 PM

Representative Singer closed his remarks on the bill and identified other states that have adopted wage theft laws or are considering wage theft legislation. He also responded to prior testimony against the bill.
BILL:HB12-1296
TIME: 04:09:52 PM
MOVED:Ryden
MOTION:Moved to refer HB 12-1296 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion failed on a vote of 5-6.
SECONDED:Kagan
VOTE
DelGrosso
No
Duran
Yes
Kagan
Yes
Lee
Yes
Nikkel
No
Pabon
Yes
Ryden
Yes
Sonnenberg
No
Waller
No
Barker
No
Gardner B.
No
YES: 5 NO: 6 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL


04:10 PM

The committee discussed the bill.
BILL:HB12-1296
TIME: 04:21:40 PM
MOVED:DelGrosso
MOTION:Moved to postpone indefinitely HB 12-1296. The motion passed on a vote of 6-5.
SECONDED:Nikkel
VOTE
DelGrosso
Yes
Duran
No
Kagan
No
Lee
No
Nikkel
Yes
Pabon
No
Ryden
No
Sonnenberg
Yes
Waller
Yes
Barker
Yes
Gardner B.
Yes
YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS