Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Date:03/02/2006
ATTENDANCE
Time:01:41 PM to 04:05 PM
Boyd
X
Clapp
*
Place:HCR 0112
Decker
X
Gardner
X
This Meeting was called to order by
Hefley
*
Representative Carroll T.
Jahn
*
Judd
X
This Report was prepared by
McGihon
*
Jessika Shipley
Witwer
X
Carroll M.
X
Carroll T.
X
X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call
Bills Addressed: Action Taken:
HB06-1305
HB06-1296
HB06-1350
HB06-1347		Postponed Indefinitely
Amended, Referred to Finance
Laid Over
Amended, Referred to Finance


01:42 PM -- House Bill 06-1305

Representative Penry, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1305 concerning the certificate of review required for bringing a civil action for professional negligence. The bill specifies that the filing of a certificate of review concerning the consultation by the plaintiff's attorney with an expert witness is a jurisdictional prerequisite to maintaining a professional negligence action. It specifies that the failure to file such a certificate will result in the dismissal of the action with prejudice. The bill also clarifies the term "good cause" for the purposes of extending the time within which a plaintiff may file the certificate. Representative Penry explained prepared amendments L.001 through L.004 (Attachments A-D).

01:50 PM -- Natalie Brown, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, spoke in opposition to the bill. Ms. Brown stated that the bill is unnecessary because Colorado currently has a very stringent certificate of review statute. She expressed concerns about shortening the length of time allowed by the bill for filing all relevant documents. She believes the current amount of time is barely adequate to gather records. Ms. Brown stated that judicial discretion to make a ruling is very important and this bill limits that discretion in a detrimental manner.

01:57 PM -- Elizabeth Stars, Colorado Bar Association, spoke in opposition to the bill. Ms. Stars has jurisdictional concerns with the bill. She thinks jurisdictional issues should be decided by the court and are not something the legislature should control.







02:01 PM -- Byrum Lee, attorney, spoke in support of the bill if it is amended. Mr. Lee thought the original bill was overreaching and could potentially cause unnecessary litigation. He believes the amendments address limitations in the current law, including overbroad discretion for ruling on certificates of review. Mr. Lee feels that the amended bill provides protection for all parties.


02:05 PM

Representative Penry addressed the issue of a good cause exemption in the bill, which should mitigate concerns about an overly short timeline.

02:06 PM -- Richard Weed, American Council of Engineering Companies Colorado, spoke in support of the bill if it is amended. Mr. Weed reiterated the testimony of the previous witness. He provided a list of reasons for opposition to the bill unless it is amended (Attachment E).

02:08 PM -- James Holmes, Colorado Medical Society, spoke in support of the bill. Dr. Holmes expressed his frustration, as a surgeon, with the lengthy time period allowed for civil actions. He stated that these cases are emotionally and financially taxing on those involved.

02:10 PM -- Ted Clark, COPIC Corporation, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Clark provided a chart to the committee detailed the amount of money spent on lawsuits that were dismissed (Attachment F). He discussed the issue of defensive medicine.

02:12 PM -- George Dikeou, COPIC Corporation, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Dikeou discussed the issue of access to the judicial system.

02:14 PM -- Tony Gagliardi, National Federation Independent Business, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Gagliardi discussed the affordability of health care coverage for business owners. He stated that medical malpractice claims contribute to driving up health care premiums.


























02:18 PM

Representative Penry wrapped up his presentation of the bill and further explained each of the prepared amendments.
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:19:09 PM
MOVED:Witwer
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.001 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Decker
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:19:22 PM
MOVED:Witwer
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.002 (Attachment B). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Decker
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:19:57 PM
MOVED:Witwer
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.003 (Attachment C). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Decker
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:20:58 PM
MOVED:Witwer
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.004 (Attachment D). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Decker
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:23:31 PM
MOVED:Witwer
MOTION:Refer House Bill 06-1305 to the Committee of the Whole, as amended, with a favorable recommendation. The motion failed on a vote of 4-6, with one excused.
SECONDED:Gardner
VOTE
Boyd
No
Clapp
Excused
Decker
Yes
Gardner
Yes
Hefley
Yes
Jahn
No
Judd
No
McGihon
No
Witwer
Yes
Carroll M.
No
Carroll T.
No
Not Final YES: 4 NO: 6 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL
BILL:HB06-1305
TIME: 02:29:24 PM
MOVED:McGihon
MOTION:Moved to postpone House Bill 06-1305 indefinitely. The motion passed on a vote of 6-4, with one excused.
SECONDED:Judd
VOTE
Boyd
Yes
Clapp
Excused
Decker
No
Gardner
No
Hefley
No
Jahn
Yes
Judd
Yes
McGihon
Yes
Witwer
No
Carroll M.
Yes
Carroll T.
Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 4 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS










02:40 PM -- House Bill 06-1296

Representative Penry, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1296 for action only.
BILL:HB06-1296
TIME: 02:41:11 PM
MOVED:McGihon
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.009 (Attachment G). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Boyd
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1296
TIME: 02:42:35 PM
MOVED:McGihon
MOTION:Refer House Bill 06-1296, as amended, to the Committee on Finance. The motion passed on a vote of 8-1, with 2 excused.
SECONDED:Decker
VOTE
Boyd
Yes
Clapp
Yes
Decker
Yes
Gardner
Yes
Hefley
Excused
Jahn
Excused
Judd
Yes
McGihon
Yes
Witwer
Yes
Carroll M.
No
Carroll T.
Yes
Final YES: 8 NO: 1 EXC: 2 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS








02:45 PM -- House Bill 06-1350

Representative Paccione, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1350 concerning the creation of a misdemeanor for taking a child without authority. The bill makes it a class 1 misdemeanor for a person to take a child under 18 years of age by making a false representation as the person's authority to take the child. Representative Paccione distributed an explanation of the differences between unlawful taking of a child and existing crimes (Attachment H).

02:48 PM -- Daniel Ginzberg, citizen, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Ginzberg spoke about his experience with his child being taken from school by an individual who did not have authority to do so. He believes that this bill would give police a tool to help protect children from potential predators. Mr. Ginzberg responded to questions from the committee regarding the need for this bill.


02:55 PM

The committee had a lengthy discussion regarding the potential crime of unlawful taking of a child and the difference between that and kidnapping.


03:15 PM

The committee continued their discussion of the definition of the unlawful taking of a child and how it could confuse the issue of internet luring of a child, which is created by House Bill 06-1011.


03:19 PM

The committee took a brief recess to work on an amendment.


03:24 PM

The committee decided to take the bill off the table.


03:25 PM -- House Bill 06-1347

Representative McGihon, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1347 concerning the creation of the Identity Theft and Financial Fraud Deterrence Act. The bill creates the Identity Theft and Financial Fraud Deterrence Board and a task force to provide statewide support to law enforcement agencies in addressing identity theft and financial fraud crimes. It also directs the board to make policy decisions for the task force and states that the board consists of 7 members, 4 of whom are appointed by the governor. The bill requires the task force to provide the board with a comprehensive plan for addressing issues concerning identity theft and fraudulent fraud crime. The legislation would sunset in five years.










03:32 PM -- Don Childers, Colorado Bankers Association, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Childers views identity theft as a pervasive problem for consumers and retailers. It is something that affects large numbers of individuals and is damaging to the banking industry. Fraud is the number one priority for the Colorado Bankers Association. Mr. Childers envisions this task force as a working unit that produces results about identity theft and how best to investigate and prosecute it. He responded to questions from the committee regarding fees that will fund the task force. Mr. Childers listed several groups that support the creation of a task force. He wrapped up by pointing out that this is a self-funding program.

03:42 PM -- Don Quick, District Attorney for 17th Judicial District, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Quick discussed three main points. First, the identity theft rings that are working Colorado are very large. Second, methamphetamine and identity theft are intimately entwined and a collaborative effort is a positive idea. Finally, identity theft is something that eventually affects everyone in Colorado.

03:45 PM -- Scott Storey, District Attorney for the 1st Judicial District, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Storey discussed the interaction of this bill with House Bill 06-1326. The combination would create a statute that will target identity thieves and provide law enforcement with tools and resources to address the problem. Mr. Storey discussed the collaboration between police departments and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

03:49 PM -- Bob Brown, Complex Crimes Unit of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Brown spoke about the pervasiveness of identity theft crimes in regards to gaming in Colorado. He provided details of several identity theft rings that worked in western Colorado and the losses incurred because of those rings.

03:53 PM -- Cameron Graham, AARP, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Graham discussed the vulnerable elderly population that is affected by the crime of identity theft. He provided details of his personal experience with identity theft and financial fraud.

03:59 PM -- John Stoffel, Alliance for Retired Americans, spoke in favor of the bill. Mr. Stoffel reiterated the testimony of prior witnesses with regards to protection of vulnerable populations.

04:02 PM -- Rex Wilmouth, COPIRG, spoke in favor of the bill. Mr. Wilmouth raised the issue addressing identity theft before a crime actually occurs.





















BILL:HB06-1347
TIME: 04:04:44 PM
MOVED:McGihon
MOTION:Moved prepared amendment L.001 (Attachment I). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Judd
VOTE
Boyd
Clapp
Decker
Gardner
Hefley
Jahn
Judd
McGihon
Witwer
Carroll M.
Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection
BILL:HB06-1347
TIME: 04:07:16 PM
MOVED:McGihon
MOTION:Refer House Bill 06-1347, as amended, to the Committee on Finance with a favorable recommendation. The motion passed on a vote of 11-0.
SECONDED:Witwer
VOTE
Boyd
Yes
Clapp
Yes
Decker
Yes
Gardner
Yes
Hefley
Yes
Jahn
Yes
Judd
Yes
McGihon
Yes
Witwer
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Carroll T.
Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


04:05 PM

The committee adjourned.