Second Regular Session Sixty-eighth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO INTRODUCED LLS NO. 12-0558.01 Jason Gelender x4330 HOUSE BILL 12-1056 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Kerr A., SENATE SPONSORSHIP Hodge, House Committees Senate Committees Local Government A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning regional tourism project application requirements under the "Colorado Regional Tourism Act", and, in connection therewith, specifying subjects to be analyzed by a third-party analyst who is required to analyze an application, requiring an applicant to demonstrate that a significant portion of the sales tax revenue to be generated by a project will be attributable to transactions with nonresidents of the state, and requiring the director of the Colorado office of economic development and the Colorado economic development commission to consider input from specified sources when reviewing an application. Bill Summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://www.leg.state.co.us/billsummaries.) Section 1 of the bill: Clarifies the scope of analysis to be conducted by a third-party analyst who is analyzing a regional tourism project application under the "Colorado Regional Tourism Act" (application) by requiring the analyst to: Assess the assumptions used in the application to estimate net new tourism revenues to Colorado; Calculate the total anticipated sales tax increment in the proposed regional tourism zone; Calculate the amount and percentage of the total regional tourism zone sales tax increment that each county or municipality that is part of a multi-party application is eligible to receive; and Assess the probability of the proposed project moving forward without funding from tax increment financing; Requires the Colorado economic development commission to consider the third-party analyst report, the data submitted by the applicant, and comments and testimony received when reviewing an application for approval or disapproval; and Changes the requirement that a significant portion of the sales tax revenue to be generated by a proposed regional tourism project be attributable to transactions with nonresidents of the regional tourism zone to a requirement that a significant portion of the revenue be attributable to transactions with nonresidents of the state. Section 2 of the bill clarifies the extent to which the director of the Colorado office of economic development initially reviews an application for compliance with statutory requirements and requires the director to consider input provided by the director of the Colorado tourism office and counties and municipalities regarding an application. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-46-304, amend (2) (i), (3) introductory portion, and (3) (c) as follows: 24-46-304. Regional tourism project - application - requirements. (2) A local government shall submit an application for a regional tourism project to the Colorado office of economic development in a form and manner to be determined by the commission. The office shall provide the commission with each application received after the director's review pursuant to section 24-46-305. The application shall include, but need not be limited to, the following: (i) Along with the economic analysis submitted with the application, a report by a third-party analyst who is an expert in the field of economic or public financial analysis calculating the percentage of the state sales tax increment revenue that will be dedicated to the regional tourism project to be set by the commission pursuant to section 24-46-305 (3) (d). The third-party analyst may make recommendations as to what amount or percentage of state sales tax increment revenue is needed to fund the project. The applicant shall share its data and reasoning with the third-party analyst, and the analyst shall rely on such data and reasoning as it deems appropriate in the exercise of its independent judgment. An applicant dissatisfied with such the report may revise its application and request report revisions. The reviewing third-party analyst shall be chosen through a request for proposals issued by the office of state planning and budgeting to ensure an independent and thorough analysis, and the third-party analyst shall report to that office. The costs of such report shall be paid by the applicant directly to the third-party analyst. The office of state planning and budgeting shall charge an application fee to the applicant to pay the costs for the third-party analyst to: (I) Assess the assumptions used in the application to estimate net new tourism revenues to Colorado; (II) Calculate the total anticipated sales tax increment in the proposed regional tourism zone; (III) Calculate the amount and percentage of the total regional tourism zone sales tax increment that each county and municipality that is a party to a multi-party application is eligible to receive; and (IV) Assess the probability of the proposed project moving forward without funding from tax increment financing. (3) An application by a local government for designation as a regional tourism project shall be approved by the commission, after consideration of the third-party analyst report, the data submitted by the local government, comments and testimony received, and any other information the commission deems relevant, upon a finding by the majority of the commissioners participating in the review of the application that the application demonstrates that each of the following criteria are materially met: (c) A significant portion of the sales tax revenue generated by the project is reasonably anticipated to be attributable to transactions with nonresidents of the regional tourism zone state; and SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-46-305, amend (1) and (2) (a) as follows: 24-46-305. Regional tourism project approval - director - commission - review. (1) Upon receipt of a local government's application for a regional tourism project, the director or the director's designee shall review the application and shall make an initial determination regarding whether the application has met the criteria for a regional tourism project specified in section 24-46-304 determine whether additional information is needed for the application to be at least generally responsive to the requirements of section 24-46-304, recognizing that the third-party analyst may not deem the information received to be sufficient to analyze. (2) (a) Upon review of each application for completeness, the director shall forward the application to any county or counties where the regional tourism project will be implemented and to municipalities adjacent to where the regional tourism project will be implemented for an opportunity to review the application and submit comments to the commission. The director shall provide such the counties and municipalities with the application at least thirty days prior to the public hearing held pursuant to subsection (3) of this section. The director shall also forward the application to the director of the Colorado tourism office and, after taking into account said director's input, any comments from counties and municipalities, and any other information the director deems relevant regarding the application, shall then forward the application to the commission with a recommendation that the commission approve or deny the application or approve the application with conditions; except that the commission shall not approve any project that, if approved, would likely create a state sales tax revenue dedication of more than fifty million dollars to all regional tourism projects in any given year. SECTION 3. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August 7, 2012, if adjournment sine die is on May 9, 2012); except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2012 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.