Senate Committee on Education (04/08/2015)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Date:	04/08/2015	ATTENDANCE

Time:	10:04 AM to 10:29 AM	Holbert	X
		Johnston	X
Place:	SCR 354	Kerr	X
		Merrifield	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Neville T.	X
	Senator Hill	Todd	X
		Woods	X
This Report was prepared by		Marble	X
	Rachel Kurtz-Phelan	Hill	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB15-1294 HB15-1295		Referred to the Committee of the Whole - Consent Calendar Referred to the Committee of the Whole - Consent Calendar

10:04 AM -- HB15-1294

Senator Marble, Chair, called the meeting to order. She asked Senators Todd and Hill, co-sponsors, to come to the table to present House Bill 15-1294 which aligns state law regarding in-state tuition classification with the federal "Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014." Senator Todd explained what it means to be classified as an in-state resident student and said that the bill needs to pass by July 1, 2015, in order to be in compliance with federal law. Senator Hill stated that as the needs of the military and those who serve in the military change and increase, state laws also need to change and increase in order to keep up. He stated that the bill is a bipartisan bill to promote good policy for military and families. He talked about the federal funding the state may lose if the bill does not pass. A copy of a handout was distributed to the committee (Attachment A).

15SenateEd0408AttachA.pdf

The following people testified on the bill:

10:09 AM -- Braelin Pantel, representing Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU-Denver), spoke in support of the bill. She talked about the efforts and services provided by MSU-Denver to support returning veterans. She talked about MSU-Denver's Veterans Upward Bound program. She told the committee that the school provides targeted training for faculty so that veterans have a supportive environment in the classroom and on campus. She stated that MSU-Denver will lose $4.3 million in federal dollars if the bill does not pass.

10:12 AM -- John Johnston, representing himself as a veteran and a student at MSU-Denver, spoke in support of the bill. He told the committee about his military background, and spoke about why the bill is important to student veterans. He talked about how the bill will ease the burden he faces during his final year of school and stated that the bill will help keep veterans in Colorado.

10:15 AM -- Gary Force, representing the United Veterans Committee of Colorado, spoke in support of the bill. He provided background information about his organization, and talked about how the bill will benefit veterans in Colorado. He told the committee how similar programs helped him attend college after his military service.

10:17 AM -- Kachina Weaver, representing the Department of Higher Education, spoke in support of the bill. She stated that the bill is bipartisan and was supported unanimously in the House of Representatives. She talked about why is it important to pass the bill in order to align state policy with federal statute.

10:19 AM

There were no more witnesses and Senator Marble closed public testimony. Senator Todd provided closing comments to the bill.


BILL:	HB15-1294
TIME:	10:19:57 AM
MOVED:	Todd
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 15-1294 to the Committee of the Whole with a recommendation that it be placed on the consent calendar. The motion passed on a vote of 9-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Holbert	Yes
	Johnston	Yes
	Kerr	Yes
	Merrifield	Yes
	Neville T.	Yes
	Todd	Yes
	Woods	Yes
	Marble	Yes
	Hill	Yes

Final YES: 9 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

10:20 AM -- HB15-1295

Senator Holbert presented House Bill 15-1295 which concerns inspections conducted by institutions of higher education. He explained that the bill allows schools to continue a practice that has been occurring for the past 30 years and expands the authority already given to other schools in Colorado to the University of Colorado-Denver (CU-Denver). He said that the bill passed out of the House of Representatives unanimously.

The following person testified on the bill:

10:22 AM -- Dave Turnquist, representing CU-Denver, spoke in support of the bill. He stated that the three ways in which CU-Denver will benefit from the passage of the bill are: cost savings, holding projects on campus to high internal standards, and timeliness. He talked about how CU-Denver currently completes its own inspections. Mr. Turnquist answered questions from the committee.

10:27 AM

There were no more witnesses and Senator Hill closed public testimony. Senator Holbert provided closing comments to the bill.


BILL:	HB15-1295
TIME:	10:28:19 AM
MOVED:	Holbert
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 15-1295 to the Committee of the Whole with a recommendation that it be placed on the consent calendar. The motion passed on a vote of 9-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Holbert	Yes
	Johnston	Yes
	Kerr	Yes
	Merrifield	Yes
	Neville T.	Yes
	Todd	Yes
	Woods	Yes
	Marble	Yes
	Hill	Yes

Final YES: 9 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

10:28 AM

The committee adjourned.