House Committee on Judiciary (02/28/2012)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Date:	02/28/2012	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:39 PM to 04:47 PM	DelGrosso	X
		Duran	X
Place:	HCR 0107	Kagan	X
		Lee	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Nikkel	X
	Representative Gardner B.	Pabon	*
		Ryden	X
This Report was prepared by		Sonnenberg	X
	David Beaujon	Waller	X
		Barker	X
		Gardner B.	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB12-1266 HB12-1296 SB12-042 SB12-029		Amended, Referred to Appropriations Postponed Indefinitely Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole

01:40 PM -- House Bill 12-1266

Representative Sonnenberg, prime sponsor, summarized the provision of House Bill 12-1266 concerning the continuation of the licensing of persons who furnish bail for compensation. Testimony on the bill occurred on February 17, 2012. He also distributed Amendment L. 005 (Attachment A) that strikes everything below the enacting clause and Amendment L.006 (Attachment B), Amendment L. 007 (Attachment C), and Amendment L. 008 (Attachment D) which amend L. 005.

01:44 PM

Jerry Payne, Office of Legislative Legal Services, described the provisions of Amendment L. 005, Amendment L.006, Amendment L. 007, and Amendment L. 008.


BILL:	HB12-1266
TIME:	01:48:13 PM
MOVED:	Sonnenberg
MOTION:	Moved Amendment L. 005, as amended. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso
	Duran
	Kagan
	Lee
	Nikkel
	Pabon
	Ryden
	Sonnenberg
	Waller
	Barker
	Gardner B.

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB12-1266
TIME:	01:50:15 PM
MOVED:	Sonnenberg
MOTION:	Moved Amendment L. 008. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso
	Duran
	Kagan
	Lee
	Nikkel
	Pabon	Excused
	Ryden
	Sonnenberg
	Waller
	Barker
	Gardner B.

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB12-1266
TIME:	01:49:01 PM
MOVED:	Sonnenberg
MOTION:	Moved Amendment L. 007. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso
	Duran
	Kagan
	Lee
	Nikkel
	Pabon	Excused
	Ryden
	Sonnenberg
	Waller
	Barker
	Gardner B.

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB12-1266
TIME:	01:48:40 PM
MOVED:	Sonnenberg
MOTION:	Moved Amendment L. 006. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso
	Duran
	Kagan
	Lee
	Nikkel
	Pabon	Excused
	Ryden
	Sonnenberg
	Waller
	Barker
	Gardner B.

YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

01:50 PM

Committee discussion followed about Amendment L. 005, as amended.

02:00 PM

Paula Sisneros, Director of Compliance, Colorado Division of Insurance, responded to questions from the committee about fees paid by bail agents and described the provisions of Amendment L. 005.

02:04 PM

Representative Sonnenberg closed his remarks on HB 12-1296.


BILL:	HB12-1266
TIME:	02:04:54 PM
MOVED:	Sonnenberg
MOTION:	Moved to refer HB 12-1266, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a vote of 11-0.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso	Yes
	Duran	Yes
	Kagan	Yes
	Lee	Yes
	Nikkel	Yes
	Pabon	Yes
	Ryden	Yes
	Sonnenberg	Yes
	Waller	Yes
	Barker	Yes
	Gardner B.	Yes

Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:06 PM

The committee recessed.

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.

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).

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).

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

04:23 PM -- Senate Bill 12-042

Representative Summers, prime sponsor, described the provisions of Senate Bill 042 concerning child support requirements and federal law (Attachment H ). The reengrossed bill brings state child support enforcement into compliance with federal law by requiring the Department of Human Services (DHS) or its agents to locate and secure assets of persons who owe child support in another state when requested by the other state; and the DHS and financial institutions to conduct data matches to identify assets of persons owing child support on a quarterly basis, rather than semiannually.

The following persons testified on the bill:

04:29 PM -- Paula Brown, DHS, explained that the DHS requested the bill and she described the provisions of the bill. She also responded to questions from the committee about the department's process for collecting past-due child support payments.

04:32 PM -- Jim Hayen, Boulder County Department of Housing and Human Services, spoke in support of the bill and described the criteria Boulder County uses when determining whether to use a bank account lien to collect past due child support payments.

04:37 PM

Representative Summers closed his remarks on the bill.


BILL:	SB12-042
TIME:	04:37:46 PM
MOVED:	Ryden
MOTION:	Moved to refer SB 12-042 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 10-0, with 1 excused.
SECONDED:	Duran
		VOTE
	DelGrosso	Excused
	Duran	Yes
	Kagan	Yes
	Lee	Yes
	Nikkel	Yes
	Pabon	Yes
	Ryden	Yes
	Sonnenberg	Yes
	Waller	Yes
	Barker	Yes
	Gardner B.	Yes

Final YES: 10 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

04:40 PM -- Senate Bill 12-029

Representative Gardner, prime sponsor, described the provision of Senate Bill 12- 029, concerning the enactment of 2011 Colorado Revised Statutes (Attachment I). The reengrossed bill, as recommended by the Committee on Legal Services, enacts the softbound volumes of the 2011 Colorado Revised Statutes as the state's positive and statutory laws.

The following person testified on the bill:

04:42 PM -- Jennifer Gilroy, Office of Legislative Legal Service, Revisor of Statutes, explained that the Secretary of the State maintains the official set of statutes.

04:43 PM

Representative Gardner closed his remarks on the bill.


BILL:	SB12-029
TIME:	04:43:47 PM
MOVED:	Gardner B.
MOTION:	Moved to refer SB 12-042 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 11-0.
SECONDED:	Nikkel
		VOTE
	DelGrosso	Yes
	Duran	Yes
	Kagan	Yes
	Lee	Yes
	Nikkel	Yes
	Pabon	Yes
	Ryden	Yes
	Sonnenberg	Yes
	Waller	Yes
	Barker	Yes
	Gardner B.	Yes

Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

04:45 PM

Representative Gardner explained that on Friday, April 6, 2012, the House is unlikely to meet due to Good Friday. If so, he announced that the House Judiciary Committee will not meet on Thursday, April 5, 2012. He also announced that the House Judiciary Committee will not meet on Tuesday, March 6, 2012, to enable committee members to attend their caucuses.

04:47 PM

The committee adjourned.