Date: 01/30/2006

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1078

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Adopt L.001 (Attachment O). The motion passed 9-3
Adopt L.002 (Attachment P). The motion failed 4-8
Refer the bill, as amended, to the Committee on Fi		PASS
FAIL
PASS


06:43 PM -- House Bill 06-1078

Representative Boyd, sponsor, presented the bill regarding annual license fees for retail food establishments. She distributed amendment L.001 (Attachment O). The amendment sets limits on how much license fees can grow year-to-year. She stated the bill allows license fees to be established by rule. Currently, a fee schedule is established in statute. The bill also allows local governments to set their restaurant license fees. Representative Boyd stated the bill allows more local control. She answered questions about Denver's exemption from the bill's provisions. She stated Denver has historically set its own restaurant license fees. Amendment L.002 was distributed to members (Attachment P).

The following persons testified.

06:53 PM -- Peter Meersman, Colorado Restaurant Association, spoke in opposition to the bill. He stated restaurant fees have always been established in statute. The Association is OK paying part of fees but not the full cost of inspections. He stated the average restaurant profit is 3.6 percent. Representative Riesberg suggested that smaller restaurants required greater assistance with following safety standards.

07:20 PM -- Mary Lou Chapman, Rocky Mountain Food Industry, stated her opposition to the bill. She stated the bill would remove an equitable fee system. She described the current statutory fee structure.

07:29 PM -- Mike Dunn, The Bailey Company, stated his opposition to the bill. He stated the bill would result in a cost of $24,000 to his company. He described the variety of oversight approaches among different counties. He answered questions about county health inspectors. Representatives Cloer and Boyd discussed the purpose of the 2005 Referendum C.

07:40 PM -- Bob Sanford, El Paso County Board of Health and Environment, distributed a packet of documents to members (Attachment Q). He discussed small business owners and their involvement in local government decisions.

07:45 PM -- Cathy Corcoran, Jefferson County Department of Health and Environment, discussed the importance of sustaining communities' small businesses. She stated Jeffco currently subsidizes inspections by taking money from other programs. She answered questions about how violations and penalties are handled by Jeffco. Representative Berens discussed the variety of costs paid by businesses, including taxes and utilities charges.

07:55 PM -- Kathy Rennel, Larimer County, discussed local control issues. She stated a restaurant inspection costs over $400. Restaurant fees cover only a portion of that cost. She stated the bill allows local governments greater flexibility in overseeing restaurant operations. She answered questions about the frequency of restaurant inspections.

08:16 PM -- Pat Ratliff, Colorado Counties, Inc. (CCI), stated CCI's Health and Human Services Committee voted unanimously to support for the bill. She described counties' varying approaches to restaurant inspections. She answered questions about why Denver is exempted from the bill's provisions. She answered questions about home-rule municipalities and local control over restaurant inspections.

08:34 PM -- Jeanne Nicholson, CCI Health and Human Services Steering Committee, spoke in support of the bill. She described varying costs of living among different counties.

08:36 PM -- Nancy Severson, City and County of Denver, discussed Denver's restaurant fee schedule. She stated Denver had adopted its fee schedule before the legislature enacted the statutory fee schedule. Denver inspectors oversee over 1100 restaurants. She answered questions about Denver's exemption from the bill's provisions and the bill's impact on Denver's inspection fees.

08:46 PM -- Mark Johnson, Jefferson County Health Department, described local health departments' roles in inspecting restaurants. He discussed inspection fees and varying county approaches to restaurant inspections.


08:54 PM

Representative Cloer described L.002. Members commented on the amendment. Representative Weissmann excused himself from voting on the bill due to a professional conflict of interest. A packet of information was distributed to members (Attachment R).
BILL:HB06-1078
TIME: 08:57:08 PM
MOVED:Cloer
MOTION:Adopt L.002 (Attachment P). The motion failed 4-8-1.
SECONDED:Clapp
VOTE
Berens
No
Clapp
Yes
Cloer
Yes
Green
No
Lundberg
Yes
McGihon
No
Riesberg
No
Soper
No
Stafford
Yes
Sullivan
No
Weissmann
Excused
Frangas
No
Boyd
No
Not Final YES: 4 NO: 8 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL

08:58 PM

Representative Boyd discussed L.001.
BILL:HB06-1078
TIME: 09:00:49 PM
MOVED:Boyd
MOTION:Adopt L.001 (Attachment O). The motion passed 9-3-1.
SECONDED:Green
VOTE
Berens
No
Clapp
No
Cloer
Yes
Green
Yes
Lundberg
Yes
McGihon
Yes
Riesberg
Yes
Soper
Yes
Stafford
No
Sullivan
Yes
Weissmann
Excused
Frangas
Yes
Boyd
Yes
Not Final YES: 9 NO: 3 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


09:02 PM

Members commented on the bill. They discussed the effects of budget shortfalls and issues related to local control.
BILL:HB06-1078
TIME: 09:06:03 PM
MOVED:Boyd
MOTION:Refer the bill, as amended, to the Committee on Finance. The motion passed 7-5-1.
SECONDED:Green
VOTE
Berens
No
Clapp
No
Cloer
No
Green
Yes
Lundberg
No
McGihon
Yes
Riesberg
Yes
Soper
Yes
Stafford
No
Sullivan
Yes
Weissmann
Excused
Frangas
Yes
Boyd
Yes
Final YES: 7 NO: 5 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS