Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AFFAIRS AND LABOR

Date:02/20/2006
ATTENDANCE
Time:01:30 PM to 06:16 PM
Balmer
X
Borodkin
X
Place:HCR 0107
Butcher
X
Carroll M.
*
This Meeting was called to order by
Coleman
*
Representative Marshall
Knoedler
*
Liston
*
This Report was prepared by
McCluskey
*
Christie Lee
Paccione
X
Penry
X
Welker
X
Cerbo
*
Marshall
X
X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call
Bills Addressed: Action Taken:
HB06-1329
HB06-1316
HB06-1280
HB06-1321
HB06-1251
HB06-1327
HB06-1245
HB06-1291		Amended, Laid Over
Amended, Laid Over
Amended, Referred to Appropriations
Referred to the Committee of the Whole
Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole
Referred to Appropriations
Postponed Indefinitely
Referred to the Committee of the Whole


01:31 PM -- House Bill 06-1329

Representative Harvey, prime sponsor, explained House Bill 1329. He stated that the bill clarifies that judges may elect to become members of the state defined contribution plan, rather than the Public Employees' Retirement Association (PERA).

01:36 PM -- Colorado Court of Appeals Judge James S. Casebolt, representing the Public Employees' Retirement Association, testified in opposition to the bill. He talked about a previous analysis and rejection of the same idea that occurred few years ago. He stated that when it has been brought up in the past, judges do not want to become members of the state defined contribution plan. Mr. Casebolt stated that the defined contribution plan as a sole source of retirement is difficult because in Colorado, public employees do not have social security. He added that the defined contribution plan would not ensure retention of judges as PERA does.

01:38 PM

Mr. Casebolt responded to questions about the senior judge program, and why judges should not be allowed to make these decisions on their own. There was committee discussion about the salary of current judges.



01:48 PM -- Sherry Kester, representing the Colorado Judicial Branch, testified in opposition to the bill. She stated that they have similar concerns as Mr. Casebolt. She stated that PERA gives them an incentive to stay and they do not want to see judges retiring any sooner than they already do.
BILL:HB06-1329
TIME: 01:50:02 PM
MOVED:Balmer
MOTION:Moved amendment L.001 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Liston
VOTE
Balmer
Borodkin
Butcher
Carroll M.
Coleman
Knoedler
Liston
McCluskey
Excused
Paccione
Penry
Welker
Cerbo
Marshall
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection

01:51 PM

The chair pulled the bill off the table and stated that the committee would take action on the bill Wednesday, February 22 upon adjournment.

01:51 PM -- House Bill 06-1316

Representative Solano, prime sponsor, returned to the committee for action on House Bill 1316. The bill was previously heard on Monday, February 13, 2006. The chair stated the testimony phase for HB 1316 was closed but that the amendment phase was still open. Representative Solano distributed amendments L.005 (Attachment B), L.007 (Attachment C), L.008 with a fiscal note memo attached (Attachment D), and L.009 (Attachment E). She explained that amendment L.005 clarifies that the amount spent by the employer refers to the amount spent on health care, and changes the amount that the employer can be fined for failing to report the required information from $1,000 to not more than $500. Additionally, the amendment changes the 11 percent requirement to the national average percentage of total wages that nonprofit and for-profit employers spend on health care according to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.


01:56 PM

Representative Balmer distributed a memo showing the amount the state pays for health care as a percentage of its payroll (Attachment F). He pointed out that the state only spends 5.2 percent of total wages on health care whereas House Bill 1316 is asking employers to spend the national average that is currently 11.2 percent. There was discussion of what the national average is based on.
BILL:HB06-1316
TIME: 02:01:46 PM
MOVED:Coleman
MOTION:Moved amendment L.005 (Attachment B). The motion passed on a 7-5 vote.
SECONDED:Paccione
VOTE
Balmer
No
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
No
McCluskey
Excused
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
No
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Not Final YES: 7 NO: 5 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

BILL:HB06-1316
TIME: 02:02:42 PM
MOVED:Coleman
MOTION:Moved amendment L.007 (Attachment C). The amendment would exclude seasonal workers from the bill. The motion passed on a 10-2 vote.
SECONDED:Paccione
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Excused
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Not Final YES: 10 NO: 2 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS
BILL:HB06-1316
TIME: 02:05:16 PM
MOVED:Paccione
MOTION:Moved amendment L.009 (Attachment E). The amendment would allow more time for businesses to adjust to the legislation. The motion passed on a 9-3 vote.
SECONDED:Coleman
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Excused
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
No
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Not Final YES: 9 NO: 3 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS



02:06 PM

Representative Coleman moved, seconded by Representative Paccione, amendment L.008 (Attachment D). There was discussion on the amendment and whether it is the same or different from the previous amendment L.005 that passed. The chair ruled that amendment L.008 is a settled question.

02:10:56 PM

Representative Paccione moved, seconded by Representative Coleman, to refer House Bill 06-1316, as amended, to the Committee on Finance. The chair took the bill off the table.

02:20 PM -- House Bill 06-1280

Representative McGihon, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 1280 and distributed a handout (Attachment G). There was also a handout from the United States Organizations for Bankruptcy Alternatives distributed to the committee (Attachment H). Representative McGihon explained that the bill is a Uniform Debt-Management Services Act. It would establish the regulation of the debt-management service industry within the Department of Law. The bill would also establish rules of the profession and requires that all debt-management entities register with the Attorney General. Representative McGihon went through the provisions of the bill. There was a request from the committee for clarification of the fee schedule.

02:44 PM -- Laura Udis, representing the Attorney General's Office, answered questions pertaining to the number of complaints the Attorney General's Office has received on debt-management services and excessive fees. Committee discussion followed about the extent of the problem with debt-management services.

02:51 PM -- Sara Allen, representing Consumer Credit Counseling Service, testified on the bill. She stated she has some concerns about certain provisions in the bill. Ms. Allen gave some background about consumer counseling services: how they work, and who they help. She talked about debt service programs and what they are. Ms. Allen spoke about the provision of the bill that talks about the deadlines that must be disclosed. Representative McGihon stated that she would be happy to address her concerns on second reading. There was committee discussion about the provision in the bill that concerns nonprofit and for-profit services.

03:03 PM -- David Emerick, HSBC and Colorado Financial Services Association, testified in support of the bill. He stated that the bill is a good step to have some regulation and oversight over the bad actors in the debt-management service industry.

03:05 PM -- Tami Brown, representing the Association of Settlement Companies, a trade association for the for-profit model of debt-management services, testified in opposition of the bill. She stated that her industry would requests the committee- remove the for-profit services from the bill as Texas had done. Ms. Brown expressed concern with the hefty insurance requirements in the bill. Ms. Brown explained that the fees are higher with for-profit companies because they are not subsidized by the credit card companies, they solely work on behalf of the consumer.

03:15 PM

There was committee discussion about the various charges stipulated in the bill on page 38. Representative Penry asked for Ms. Brown to expand on the Texas model. Ms. Brown discussed Senate bill 1112 that was passed in Texas.


03:23 PM -- John Bergland, representing Money Management International, a group of credit counseling services organizations, testified in support of the bill, with a few concerns. He distributed a handout to the committee (Attachment I) and responded to previous questions. He stated Ms. Ellen touched on many of their concerns. There was a question from the committee about how the nonprofit and for-profit industries should be regulated differently. Representative McGihon stated that she would like to work on some second reading amendments with Mr. Bergland based on the suggestions offered in Attachment I. There was a request from the committee for clarification on settlement fees.

03:36 PM -- Renee Beauregard, representing Consumers United Association, testified in support of the bill.

03:40 PM -- Nancy Burke, representing the Colorado Credit Union League, testified in support of the bill. She stated that credit unions offer credit counseling as well, but if a member goes to a credit counseling service instead, the credit unions would rather they go to an accredited counselor as proposed in the bill.

03:41 PM -- Darrin Sandoval, representing Money Management International, stated that he has nothing to add to previous comments by Mr. Bergland and Ms. Allen, but would be happy to answer any questions.

03:42 PM -- Joanne Kerstetter, representing Money Management International, testified in support of the bill. She expressed her concern with the bill if the Internal Revenue Service were to pull the 501(c)(3) classification.

03:42 PM -- Don Meilke, Commissioner of Uniform State Laws, testified in support of the bill. He distributed a few handouts (Attachment J). He stated this legislation passed in Utah unanimously, and explained that the Texas statute that was discussed earlier by Ms. Brown was not the same as House Bill 1280.
BILL:HB06-1280
TIME: 03:49:39 PM
MOVED:Coleman
MOTION:Moved amendment L.001 (Attachment K). Representative McGihon explained that L.001 amends the bill so that the costs and fees are within the same year. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:Carroll M.
VOTE
Balmer
Borodkin
Butcher
Carroll M.
Coleman
Knoedler
Liston
McCluskey
Paccione
Penry
Welker
Cerbo
Marshall
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection



BILL:HB06-1280
TIME: 03:51:01 PM
MOVED:Marshall
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 06-1280, as amended, to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed 11-1.
SECONDED:Coleman
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
Yes
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
Excused
Welker
No
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 1 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

03:53 PM -- House Bill 06-1321

Representative Jahn, prime sponsor, explained that House Bill 1321 simply shortens the period allowed for the completion of sunrise review reports that are prepared by the Department of Regulatory Agencies.


03:56 PM -- Bruce Harrelson, DORA, responded to questions about why the sunrise period needs to be shortened. He stated that the criteria for the sunrise review reports will not change only the time frame in which they must be completed.
BILL:HB06-1321
TIME: 03:59:23 PM
MOVED:Coleman
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 06-1321 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed 11-2.
SECONDED:McCluskey
VOTE
Balmer
No
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
Yes
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 2 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

04:00 PM -- House Bill 06-1251

Representative Green, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 1251 and distributed a handout (Attachment L). She stated that the bill would prohibit price gouging during an emergency. The bill's definition of emergency would include a natural disaster or other circumstances or events declared by federal or state authorities to be an emergency.

04:06 PM

There was committee discussion about the relevance of the legislation to Colorado. Representative Green responded to questions from the committee about the bill's impact on oil and gas providers.

04:16 PM -- Robert Blackwell, representing the Colorado Propane Gas Association, testified in opposition of the bill. He expressed his concerns that the bill may cause Colorado to become disconnected from the commodities market in the surrounding states.


04:20 PM -- Stan Dempsey, representing the Colorado Petroleum Association, and Kris Smith and Mike Ashar, representing Suncor Energy Incorporated, testified together in opposition of the bill. Mr. Smith explained that Suncor owns the two refineries in Colorado and supplies approximately 40 percent of the state's gas and diesel. He stated that if certain changes were made to the legislation, Suncor would be able to support it, but there are some concerns with the bill as it is written now. Those concerns are: the scope of the bill, how it is triggered, its duration, and how it applies. Mr. Smith talked about the scope of the bill and that it applies through the entire chain of distribution and discussed the unintended consequences that come along with that. He stated Suncor would support the legislation at the retail level only. He spoke about Idaho and Utah that have similar legislation that is aimed solely at the retail level.

04:30 PM

He discussed how the trigger works in other states, including limiting the emergency to the state. Representative Green talked about amendment L.008 (Attachment M) that would provide this limitation. She added that she would also like to draft an amendment that would stipulate the end of the emergency and one that would address the retail issue without just making the bill apply to the retail level.

04:36 PM

There was committee discussion about the 10 percent change in price. Mr. Ashar talked about what could cause a 10 percent change in price and he stated that it is not unusual for that to occur even without an emergency.

04:43 PM -- Jan Zavislan, from the Colorado Attorney General's Office, Consumer Protection Section, testified on the bill. He stated that the Attorney General's Office supports price gouging legislation with a clear trigger and a clear definition of price gouging. The Attorney General's Office also wants the statute in the unfair practices act, in order to be able to enforce it easier.


04:47 PM

Committee discussion followed about the trigger of the legislation.
BILL:HB06-1251
TIME: 04:51:33 PM
MOVED:Marshall
MOTION:Moved amendment L.008 (Attachment M). The motion passed 12-1.
SECONDED:Carroll M.
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
Yes
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Not Final YES: 12 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS
BILL:HB06-1251
TIME: 04:54:56 PM
MOVED:Butcher
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 06-1251, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed 7-6.
SECONDED:Borodkin
VOTE
Balmer
No
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
No
McCluskey
No
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
No
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Final YES: 7 NO: 6 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS




04:58 PM -- House Bill 06-1327

Representative Cerbo, prime sponsor, explained House Bill 1327 that would create a pilot program for an alternative base period for unemployment insurance benefits where if a person does not make $2,500 in the base period, then the last four quarters prior to the benefit period would be included. He explained the unemployment insurance process and how benefits are determined. Currently, in order to qualify for unemployment benefits a person must: make at least $2,500 in the first four out of the last five quarters preceding the benefit period, known as the base period. Committee discussion followed about the fiscal note.

05:02 PM

There was committee discussion about the provision of the bill that allows the Division of Employment to accept an affidavit for the quarter immediately preceding the benefit period if the employer cannot produce the information. The committee talked about the quality and reliability of the employee's as opposed to the employer's records.

05:05 PM

Mike Cullen, representing the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), testified on the bill. He explained the process the department uses to determine eligibility for unemployment benefits. He stated that the reason for the lag period is because it takes employers time to report those wages. He explained that the bill would require DOLE to go to the employers and shift to the lag period, or if the employer does not respond in time they would accept an affidavit from the employee of their wages.

05:13 PM -- Chuck Berry, representing the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry, testified in opposition to the bill based on the fiscal note. He stated that unemployment insurance taxes will increase by $0.9 million in FY 2007-08, $2.0 million in FY 2008-09, and $2.4 million in FY 2008-09.

05:15 PM -- Rich Jones, representing the Bell Policy Center, testified in support of the bill. He distributed a handout (Attachment N).

05:18 PM -- Cathy White, representing the Colorado Fiscal Policy Institute, testified in support of the bill. She gave some statistics on the impact of unemployment benefits to low income families. Ms. White stated that the bill addresses very low wage workers and a very small percentage of those workers. She added that the unemployment insurance rules require recipients to be actively seeking a job, and that they must have lost their job though no fault of their own in order to qualify for benefits as well as meet the $2,500 threshold. Ms. White stated that low-income unemployed individuals seek new work quickly since, even with unemployment insurance benefits, there is not sufficient income.

05:25 PM -- Linda Meric, Director, 9 to 5, National Association of Working Women, spoke in support of the bill. She provided a copy of a study which evaluates the impact and cost of implementing an alternative base period (a copy is available on file at the Colorado State Archives). She indicated that Colorado in ranked 50th in the number of unemployed individuals who receive unemployment benefits. She provided statistics on who the recipients of unemployment benefits are.

05:29 PM -- Mike Cullen, Division of Unemployment Insurance, DOLE, returned to the table to make additional comments on the bill and fiscal note, indicating that several computer systems that will require changing due to this bill.



05:32 PM

Representative Cerbo concluded his remarks on HB 1327.
BILL:HB06-1327
TIME: 05:35:09 PM
MOVED:Cerbo
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 06-1327 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed 7-6.
SECONDED:Butcher
VOTE
Balmer
No
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
No
Liston
No
McCluskey
No
Paccione
Yes
Penry
No
Welker
No
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
Yes
Final YES: 7 NO: 6 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS


05:37 PM -- House Bill 06-1245

Representative Borodkin, prime sponsor, stated that House Bill 1245 was not going to achieve the goals she had wanted to achieve with the bill. Therefore, she asked the committee to postpone the bill indefinitely.
BILL:HB06-1245
TIME: 05:38:03 PM
MOVED:Borodkin
MOTION:Moved to postpone House Bill 06-1245 indefinitely. The motion passed on a vote of 12-1.
SECONDED:Butcher
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
Yes
Coleman
Yes
Knoedler
Yes
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
Yes
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
Yes
Marshall
No
Final YES: 12 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

05:39 PM -- House Bill 06-1291

Representative Knoedler, prime sponsor, explained House Bill 1291. He stated that the bill would exclude any person who works for a nonprofit association or corporation involved in youth sporting activities from the definition of employee, for workers' compensation purposes. The person must also earn less than $10,000 a year and be covered under a health insurance plan that is not provided by the association or corporation. Representative Knoedler stated that currently the National Council on Compensation Insurance, Inc. (NCCI) classifies these youth sports coaches as professional athletes because there is no classification for youth sports. He stated that it would take 3 years to change the classification at the national level, so he brought about this legislation in the meantime. Representative Knoedler talked about an amendment he had that would limit the bill to coaches of noncontact sports.

05:44 PM

Representative Carroll brought up the exclusion health plans have for work related injuries. Representative Knoedler responded. There was discussion about the legislation exempting an employee from the definition of employee and workers' compensation and the consequences that can occur from doing that. Representative Knoedler distributed a list of occupations that are also exempt from workers' compensation requirements (Attachment O).


05:52 PM -- Neil O'Toole, representing the Workers' Compensation Education Association, testified in opposition to the bill. He expressed his concerns with the bill and stated that under the bill, if a youth sports coach suffers a serious injury, and loses his or her primary job, then that coach has no coverage. Mr. O'Toole stated that he does agree with Representative Knoedler that a classification change needs to be made by the NCCI for a youth sports coach.

05:58 PM -- Jon DeStefano, representing Colorado Youth Soccer, testified in support of the bill. Mr. DeStefano explained the cost of workers' compensation to the youth sports organizations, and that there are rarely any serious injuries as a youth sports coach. He stated the coaches are coaching, not playing the actual sport with these children.

06:11 PM

There were some concerns about amendment L.001. Representative Knoedler stated that he did not want to offer the amendment as planned but rather would like to fix the amendment and bring it up on second reading.
BILL:HB06-1291
TIME: 06:14:21 PM
MOVED:Knoedler
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 06-1291 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed 9-4.
SECONDED:Paccione
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Borodkin
Yes
Butcher
Yes
Carroll M.
No
Coleman
No
Knoedler
Yes
Liston
Yes
McCluskey
Yes
Paccione
Yes
Penry
Yes
Welker
Yes
Cerbo
No
Marshall
No
Final YES: 9 NO: 4 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

06:16 PM

The committee adjourned.