Senate Committee on Finance (03/21/2006)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON FINANCE

Date:	03/21/2006	ATTENDANCE

Time:	02:04 PM to 03:10 PM	Brophy	X
		Shaffer	*
Place:	SCR 354	Taylor	E
		Teck	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Tupa	X
	Senator Sandoval	Veiga	X
		Sandoval	X
This Report was prepared by
	Jason Schrock
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB06-1018 HB06-1339 HB06-1354		Referred to Appropriations Referred to Appropriations Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole

02:05 PM -- House Bill 06-1018

Senator Sandoval, chair, called the meeting to order. Senator Hagedorn, prime sponsor, explained the provisions of HB 06-1018 which, beginning with FY 2006-07, increases funding to the Older Coloradans Cash Fund from receipts collected from the state sales and use tax from $2.0 million to $3.0 million annually. He indicated that the bill qualifies under the Referendum C and HB 05-1350 spending requirements because the bill increases funding for health care. The committee discussed the fiscal impacts of the bill to the SB 97-1 diversion.

The following persons testified on the bill:

02:11 PM -- Mr. Thomas Swanson, AARP, testified in support of the bill. He distributed a survey of AARP members on the issue of long-term care (Attachment A). He indicated that 80 percent of AARP members thought it was important to have access to long term care, 70 percent were concerned about the costs of long-term care, and 80 percent supported increased services under the Older Coloradans Act. He explained how home- and community-based services were cost effective for long-term care services. He also stated that more money was necessary for the Older Coloradans Act than was being provided for by the bill, but he recognized that the state has fiscal restraints.

02:13 PM -- Ms. Fern Osborne, Older Americans Coalition, testified in support of the bill and discussed why the additional funding provided by the bill is important.

02:17 PM -- Mr. Mike Drake, Colorado Senior Lobby, testified in support of the bill.

02:17 PM -- Ms. Sue Bozinovski, representing the state's 16 area agencies on aging, spoke in support of the bill and discussed why the funds were critical to older Coloradans. She discussed some of the programs and services that are provided funding through the Older Coloradans Act, such as meals on meals, in home services, rides to medical appointments, and medical assistance. She indicated that the Act is underfunded and that in-home services are preferred by older Coloradans and are less costly to the state.


BILL:	HB06-1018
TIME:	02:22:49 PM
MOVED:	Veiga
MOTION:	Motion to refer HB 06-1018 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a 4 - 1 vote.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	No
	Shaffer	Excused
	Taylor	Excused
	Teck	Yes
	Tupa	Yes
	Veiga	Yes
	Sandoval	Yes
Final YES: 4 NO: 1 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:26 PM -- House Bill 06-1339

Senator Spence, prime sponsor, explained the provisions of HB 06-1339 which establishes a new "Denver Broncos" special license plate that would be available to applicants who pay an additional one-time fee of $25 and can show proof that a $30 donation was made to the Denver Broncos Charities or a successor organization. She indicated that there are already at least 10,000 people who have committed to purchasing the plates. She explained that Invesco Field and the Denver Broncos have already been helpful for charities. She stated that state citizens want to show pride in the Denver Broncos and its charities.

Senator Sandoval discussed how special license plates have a standard format. Senator Tupa questioned the process creating special license plates and whether special license plates have to first be approved by the Transportation Legislative Review Committee (TLRC). Senator Spence indicated that the Denver Broncos special license plate was undergoing the appropriate process and that special license plates did not have to go through the TLRC.

02:33 PM -- Ms. Diane Reimer, Department of Revenue, indicated that there is no defined requirement in statute for special license plates to go through the TLRC, but at one time there was a mechanism in which special license plates went through the TLRC.

02:37 PM -- Mr. Derek Thomas, Director of Marketing, Denver Broncos, spoke in support of the bill. A pamphlet on the Denver Broncos Charities was distributed to the committee (Attachment B). He indicated that the bill represented a way for people to support the Denver Broncos and its charities. He stated that all administrative costs for the Denver Broncos charities are paid by the Denver Broncos and that the charities have raised more than $23 million for the youth in Colorado since its inception.


BILL:	HB06-1339
TIME:	02:41:52 PM
MOVED:	Veiga
MOTION:	Motion to refer HB 06-1339 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a 4 - 2 vote.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Shaffer	Yes
	Taylor	Excused
	Teck	No
	Tupa	No
	Veiga	Yes
	Sandoval	Yes
Final YES: 4 NO: 2 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:43 PM -- House Bill 06-1354

Senator Teck, prime sponsor, explained the provisions and purpose of HB 06-1354 which amends the existing income tax credit for conservation easement donations to 50 percent of the value of the donated easement, with a maximum amount, or cap, of $375,000 for the credit. This cap on the tax credit takes effect with a donation of $750,000. Thus, a donation above $750,000 receives the maximum $375,000 tax credit.

The following people testified on the bill:

02:45 PM -- Mr. Larry Kueter, Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts, spoke in favor of the bill. He provided background on the conservation easement credit program and stated that the bill would change the credit so that it would have a one-tier structure than a two-tier structure. He explained that the change was intended to be revenue neutral. He explained there were two reasons for the change. First, the current structure of the credit could be problematic under the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) guidelines for federal charitable law, and second, the change would remove the incentive to donate smaller land areas to qualify for the full amount of the credit. Thus, the state would get larger conservation easements for the credit. He discussed whether the change was fair for smaller landowners.

02:53 PM -- Mr. Kris Larsen, Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts, spoke in favor of the bill. He read a letter from Mr. Steven Acquafresca, Land Protection Specialist, in support of the bill (Attachment C). He also discussed the benefits of the conservation easement tax credit program, indicating that the program was primarily for conservation protection. A summary of the bill from the Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts was distributed to the committee (Attachment D).

02:55 PM -- Ms. Lynn Sherrod, Colorado Cattleman's Association and the Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust, spoke in favor of bill. She indicated that because of the donations of ranchers, there is a quarter million acres preserved in Colorado and that the donations also help secure rural economies by preserving open space. She discussed how the bill provides incentives for larger landowners to practice conservation.

03:00 PM -- Ms. K Lynn Cameron, Board of Larimer County Commissioners, spoke in support of the bill. She explained that the tax credit has benefitted both landowners and citizens who want open space and that the bill will encourage larger donations for conservation easements and eliminate the IRS's concerns regarding the program's current structure. The bill will also treat large and small landowners equally and make the tax credit program more simple to implement. She indicated that the Colorado Open Space Alliance also supported the bill.

03:03 PM -- Ms. Garin Bray, Colorado Farm Bureau, spoke in opposition to the bill because of the Bureau's concerns that it would be harmful for smaller landowners. She indicated that she was working with the bill sponsors to come to an agreement and acknowledged the importance of conservation.

Senator Brophy asked about the IRS's concerns regarding current structure of the tax credit program.

03:05 PM -- Mr. Richard Giardini, Department of Revenue, discussed the purpose of amendment L.001 (Attachment E). He indicated that the amendment would clarify the use of the credit for joint tenancy and tenancy in common taxpayers who claim the credit. The amendment would cause these taxpayers to be treated the same as any other group-ownership taxpayers. Thus, the credit would be limited to one credit per donation.

Senator Teck closed by stating that the original intent of the tax credit was for the conservation of land. However, due to the increasing value of land, individuals have been only donating small portions of land to claim the credit which does not help with conservation. He indicated that the bill would make the program more aligned with the original intent of the program.


BILL:	HB06-1354
TIME:	03:09:22 PM
MOVED:	Teck
MOTION:	Motion to adopt L.001 (Attachment E). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy
	Shaffer	Excused
	Taylor	Excused
	Teck
	Tupa
	Veiga
	Sandoval
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB06-1354
TIME:	03:09:43 PM
MOVED:	Teck
MOTION:	Motion to refer HB 06-1354, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 5 - 0 vote.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Shaffer	Excused
	Taylor	Excused
	Teck	Yes
	Tupa	Yes
	Veiga	Yes
	Sandoval	Yes
Final YES: 5 NO: 0 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:10 PM

The committee recessed.