First Regular Session
              Sixty-ninth General Assembly
                    STATE OF COLORADO
                                                 INTRODUCED
                                                           
                                                           
 LLS NO. 13-0543.01 Kristen Forrestal x4217SENATE BILL 13-141
                   SENATE SPONSORSHIP
 Hill,  Harvey, Lambert, Marble, Balmer, Baumgardner, Brophy, Cadman, Crowder,
 Grantham, King, Lundberg, Renfroe, Roberts, Scheffel
 
                    HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
 (None),
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Senate Committees
 House Committees
 
 
 Education
 
 
 
 State, Veterans, & Military Affairs
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                         A BILL FOR AN ACT
       Concerning public school employees' participation in labor
            organizations.
       
       
                           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.)
       
            The bill allows a public school employee to request that his or her
       employer deduct dues for the benefit of a labor organization from the
       employee's wages. An employer is required to commence or cease making
       the deductions within 30 days after receiving a written request from an
       employee requesting the commencement or cessation of the deductions.
       A labor organization that receives dues from an employee's wages is
       required to make an annual financial disclosure to the employee. An
       employee may join or terminate membership with a labor organization at
       any time.
       
       
       
       Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
            SECTION 1.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 22-61-106 as
       follows:
            22-61-106.  Labor organizations - membership - payment of
       dues - financial disclosure - definitions. (1)  As used in this section:
            (a)  "Employee" means a person employed in a public school
       in the state of Colorado.
            (b)  "Employer" means an institute charter school or a
       school district, as those terms are defined in section 22-30.5-502
       (6) and (10), respectively, that employs an employee.
            (c)  "Labor organization" means a lawful organization
       that is composed of employees and that exists for the purpose of
       dealing with employers concerning grievances, labor disputes,
       wages, rates of pay, hours of employment, or other terms and
       conditions of employment. "Labor organization" includes a
       labor union exempt from taxation pursuant to section 501 (c) (5)
       of the federal "Internal Revenue Code of 1986", as amended, and
       a professional employee association exempt from taxation
       pursuant to section 501 (c) (6) of the federal "Internal Revenue
       Code of 1986", as amended.
            (2) (a)  An employee may direct an employer in writing to
       deduct from the employee's wages a specified sum for dues to be
       paid to any labor organization designated by the employee.
            (b)  An employer shall commence or cease making
       deductions for dues for the benefit of a labor organization from
       the wages of an employee within thirty days after receiving a
       written request from the employee to commence or cease the
       deductions.
            (c)  An employer shall not condition an employee's request
       that the employer cease making deductions upon:
            (I)   The labor organization's receipt of advance notice of
       the request; or
            (II)  The labor organization's prior consent to cessation of
       the deductions.
            (d)  A labor organization that receives dues from an
       employee's wages shall provide annual written financial
       information to each employee that discloses how the dues were
       spent by the labor organization.
            (e)  An employer shall not adopt a policy or enter into an
       agreement with a labor organization that requires the
       employer to withhold an amount to be paid to the labor
       organization from an employee's paycheck unless the
       withholding is subject to written authorization by the employee.
            (3)  An employee may join, or terminate membership in, a
       labor organization at any time. Once an employee has
       terminated his or her membership in a labor organization, the
       membership remains terminated unless the employee actively
       chooses to rejoin the labor organization. An employer or labor
       organization may not place a restriction on the time period in
       which an employee may join or terminate membership in a labor
       organization.
            SECTION 2.  Act subject to petition - effective date -
       applicability. (1)  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, 2013, if adjournment sine die is on May 8,
       2013); 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 2014 and, in such case, will take effect on the
       date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.
            (2)  This act applies to contracts entered into on or after the
       applicable effective date of this act.