Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON STATE, VETERANS, & MILITARY AFFAIRS

Date:04/20/2015
ATTENDANCE
Time:01:32 PM to 05:26 PM
Foote
X
Humphrey
X
Place:LSB A
Lontine
X
Neville P.
X
This Meeting was called to order by
Primavera
X
Representative Ryden
Tate
X
Thurlow
X
This Report was prepared by
Tyler
X
Jessika Shipley
Willett
X
Salazar
X
Ryden
X
X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call
Bills Addressed: Action Taken:
HB15-1057
SB15-069
HB15-1330
HB15-1331		Amended, Referred to Legislative Council
Postponed Indefinitely
Referred to Legislative Council
Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole


01:32 PM -- HB15-1057

Representatives Court and DelGrosso returned to the committee to discuss House Bill 15-1057. The bill was originally heard on March 25, 2015. Representative Tyler distributed and explained amendment L.014 (Attachment A). The sponsors commented about their positions on the amendment.

15HouseState0420AttachA.pdf15HouseState0420AttachA.pdf


















BILL:HB15-1057
TIME: 01:44:35 PM
MOVED:Tyler
MOTION:Adopt amendment L.014 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Salazar
VOTE
Foote
Humphrey
Lontine
Neville P.
Primavera
Tate
Thurlow
Tyler
Willett
Salazar
Ryden
YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

































01:46 PM

Representatives DelGrosso and Court wrapped up their presentation of the bill and asked for a favorable recommendation.
BILL:HB15-1057
TIME: 01:48:37 PM
MOVED:Thurlow
MOTION:Refer House Bill 15-1057, as amended, to the Committee on Legislative Council. The motion passed on a vote of 6-5.
SECONDED:Neville P.
VOTE
Foote
No
Humphrey
Yes
Lontine
No
Neville P.
Yes
Primavera
No
Tate
Yes
Thurlow
Yes
Tyler
Yes
Willett
Yes
Salazar
No
Ryden
No
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


01:49 PM -- SB15-069

The committee took a brief recess.


01:58 PM

The committee reconvened and began witness testimony on Senate Bill 15-069 without a presentation by the bill sponsor. The bill modifies provisions of Colorado statute related to legal recourse for employment discrimination. The bill also repeals a requirement that the Colorado Civil Rights Division (CCRD) form a volunteer working group of employer and employee representatives.

The bill reverses certain changes to state employment law enacted by House Bill 13-1136, which took effect January 1, 2015. Specifically, the bill repeals and reenacts provisions of state law related to remedies for employment discrimination.










Under current law, any employee who proves to the CCRD or, as applicable, the State Personnel Board (personnel board) that workplace discrimination on the basis of disability, race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, age, national origin, or ancestry occurred may seek equitable relief (e.g., reinstatement) or an award of back pay and prospective earnings. In cases of intentional discrimination, and subject to certain limits, the law permits an employee who has prevailed at the CCRD or personnel board to pursue compensatory and punitive damages in state court. The present bill eliminates the option to pursue damages in court and limits remedies awarded by the CCRD to certain equitable remedies, removing prospective earnings from CCRD remedies.

A conforming amendment repeals the authority for the Risk Management Fund in the Department of Personnel and Administration (DPA) to be used for payment of compensatory damages to state employees.

01:59 PM -- Patti Kurgan, representing herself, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Kurgan discussed the burden of current law on small businesses. She provided examples of frivolous lawsuits filed against employers.
02:04 PM -- Jennifer McPherson, representing the CCRD, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. McPherson spoke about jurisdictional limitations, federal anti-discrimination laws, remedies available to individuals filing discrimination claims, and the implementation of HB 13-1136. She responded to questions from the committee about the number of civil rights discrimination claims filed since January 1, 2015.


02:11 PM

The committee continued to discuss existing civil rights cases in Colorado.

02:15 PM -- Merrily Archer, representing herself, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Archer spoke about her professional background in civil rights law. She discussed the effectiveness of civil rights enforcement actions in Colorado. She commented about the new cases filed with the CCRD since January 1, 2015. She responded to questions from the committee.

02:28 PM -- Barry Roseman, representing the Plaintiff Employment Lawyers' Association, testified in opposition to the bill. Mr. Roseman discussed his background in the area of employment law. He expressed his opinion that the effect of current law on small Colorado businesses will be minimal. He responded to questions from the committee about civil rights cases in Colorado.


02:38 PM

The committee continued to discuss civil rights cases with Mr. Roseman.

02:44 PM -- Erin Bennett, representing 9 to 5, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Bennett discussed calls to the 9 to 5 help line about workplace discrimination. She spoke about remedies and recourse for individuals who face harassment and discrimination. She provided an example of such an individual. She responded to questions from the committee.

02:49 PM -- Clayton Wire, representing the Colorado Trial Lawyers' Association, testified in opposition to the bill. Mr. Wire spoke about one of his clients and her experience with sexual harassment. He discussed the remedies available to his client under current law.








02:52 PM -- Kristen Jefferson, representing the Bell Policy Center, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Jefferson distributed and read a written statement (Attachment B).

15HouseState0420AttachB.pdf15HouseState0420AttachB.pdf
BILL:SB15-069
TIME: 03:06:06 PM
MOVED:Ryden
MOTION:Lay over Senate Bill 15-069 until June 1, 2015, which has the effect of postponing the bill indefinitely. The motion passed on a vote of 9-2.
SECONDED:Salazar
VOTE
Foote
Yes
Humphrey
No
Lontine
Yes
Neville P.
No
Primavera
Yes
Tate
Yes
Thurlow
Yes
Tyler
Yes
Willett
Yes
Salazar
Yes
Ryden
Yes
Final YES: 9 NO: 2 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


03:08 PM -- HB15-1330

The committee took a brief recess.


03:14 PM

The committee returned to order. Representative Foote, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 15-1330. Beginning January 1, 2017, this bill requires Legislative Council staff (LCS) to include an estimate of the social cost of carbon in the fiscal note for certain electricity generation measures. The bill specifies that the social cost of carbon consists of:









The bill defines "electricity generation measures" as any bill or concurrent resolution expected to cause a significant increase or decrease in the generation of electricity from a renewable or nonrenewable source by or on behalf of a qualifying retail utility subject to Colorado's renewable energy standard. The bill requires executive agencies to cooperate and share relevant information with LCS to support the preparation of these social cost of carbon estimates.

03:20 PM

Representative Foote responded to questions from the committee.

03:30 PM -- Marc Carey, representing LCS, came to the table to respond to committee questions about the fiscal note, economic modeling, and the effect of the bill on legislative staff.


03:38 PM

Discussion about economic modeling continued.

03:41 PM -- Dianna Orf, representing the Colorado Mining Association and the Associated Governments of Northwest Colorado, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Orf expressed skepticism that LCS can apply computer models effectively to accurately predict the social cost of carbon. She responded to questions from the committee.


03:50 PM

Discussion about economic modeling continued.

03:53 PM -- Eric Patterson, representing himself, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Patterson spoke about economic effects of climate change.

03:57 PM -- Frank Swain, representing Conservation Colorado, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Swain expressed his opinion that the bill represents a necessary and appropriate step to measuring the detrimental effects of carbon emissions. He indicated that such measuring meant is required if the state has any chance of tackling the problem of climate change.

04:00 PM -- Will Tour, representing Southwest Energy Efficiency Project, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Tour stated that the best decisions are made when decision makers have the most information. He spoke about the direct impacts of climate change. He responded to questions from the committee.

BILL:HB15-1330
TIME: 04:07:50 PM
MOVED:Foote
MOTION:Refer House Bill 15-1330 to the Committee on Legislative Council. The motion passed on a vote of 6-5.
SECONDED:Salazar
VOTE
Foote
Yes
Humphrey
No
Lontine
Yes
Neville P.
No
Primavera
Yes
Tate
No
Thurlow
No
Tyler
Yes
Willett
No
Salazar
Yes
Ryden
Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


04:08 PM -- HB15-1331

Representative Tyler, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 15-1331. Under the bill, the director of the Colorado Division of Labor cannot exempt any salaried employees classified as administrative, executive, supervisor, or professional and who earn less than three times the weekly salary of a worker being paid the state minimum wage from Colorado's regulatory overtime requirements.

U.S. Department of Labor regulations require that all employees earning less than $455 per week ($11.38 per hour), or $23,600 per year, be automatically entitled to receive overtime pay. Employees earning more than that amount and meeting certain job duty tests are exempt from overtime requirements. However, if a state's law is more inclusive or generous to the employee than federal law, the state law will apply.

The bill requires that a salaried employee who meets one of the job duty classifications and earns a weekly pay between $455.60 ($11.39 per hour) and $987.60 ($24.69 per hour) must be entitled to receive overtime pay. Because the Colorado state minimum wage automatically adjusts for inflation, the top end of the range will change with inflation each year.














04:13 PM

Representative Tyler distributed and discussed several productivity and hourly earnings charts (Attachment C). He responded to questions from the committee.

15HouseState0420AttachC.pdf15HouseState0420AttachC.pdf

04:28 PM

Discussion continued with Representative Tyler about the bill.

04:35 PM -- Sonia Riggs, representing the Colorado Restaurant Association and the Colorado Hotel and Lodging Association, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Riggs discussed the economic effect of the bill on the hospitality industry. She stated that many small businesses do not have the ability to absorb increased costs. She expressed her opinion that the bill would lead to businesses eliminating salaried positions and replacing them with part-time, hourly employees. She responded to questions from the committee.

04:45 PM -- Leah Curtsinger, representing the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, the Colorado Competitive Council, the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, and the Colorado Women's Chamber of Commerce, testified in opposition to the bill. Ms. Curtsinger distributed and discussed a fact sheet about the bill (Attachment D). She expressed her opinion that the committee should wait to pass the bill at a later time. She responded to questions from the committee.

15HouseState0420AttachD.pdf15HouseState0420AttachD.pdf

04:59 PM -- Carey Mott, representing himself, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Mott discussed the economic benefits of the bill for workers and suggested amendments that would help the bill create new jobs.

05:03 PM -- Phil Hayes, representing the Colorado AFL-CIO, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Hayes provided a number of statistics about the earning power of the middle class in the United States. He spoke about increases in productivity, the median wage, and growing the economy. He stated that overtime salary thresholds have not been adjusted for inflation since the 1970s. He responded to questions from the committee.

05:07 PM -- Lauren Martens, representing the Service Employees International Union, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Martens distributed and discussed a chart addressing gross domestic product growth disconnect from household income (Attachment E). He spoke about the types of jobs that are exempt from being paid overtime. He attempted to refute the argument posed by opposition witnesses that the bill will hurt the individuals it is intended to help. He expressed his opinion that the bill will stimulate the economy by giving the middle class more spending power.

15HouseState0420AttachE.pdf15HouseState0420AttachE.pdf







05:13 PM -- Linda Meric, representing 9 to 5, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Meric reiterated Mr. Hayes' testimony and expressed her opinion that the bill will help the middle class. She spoke about the number of Coloradans who are eligible for overtime pay.

05:16 PM -- Chaer Robert, representing the Colorado Center on Law and Policy, testified in support of the bill. Ms. Robert read the written testimony of Casey O'Donnell (Attachment F).

15HouseState0420AttachF.pdf15HouseState0420AttachF.pdf
BILL:HB15-1331
TIME: 05:22:01 PM
MOVED:Tyler
MOTION:Adopt amendment L.001 (Attachment G). The motion passed without objection.
15HouseState0420AttachG.pdf15HouseState0420AttachG.pdf
SECONDED:Salazar
VOTE
Foote
Humphrey
Lontine
Neville P.
Primavera
Tate
Thurlow
Tyler
Willett
Salazar
Ryden
YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection




















05:22 PM

Representative Tyler wrapped up his presentation of the bill and asked for a favorable recommendation.
BILL:HB15-1331
TIME: 05:25:19 PM
MOVED:Tyler
MOTION:Refer House Bill 15-1331, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a vote of 6-5.
SECONDED:Salazar
VOTE
Foote
Yes
Humphrey
No
Lontine
Yes
Neville P.
No
Primavera
Yes
Tate
No
Thurlow
No
Tyler
Yes
Willett
No
Salazar
Yes
Ryden
Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


05:26 PM

The committee adjourned.