TITLE: CONCERNING THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TO HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE INCIDENTS, AND MAKING AN APPROPRIATION THEREFOR.

Fiscal Impact Summary	FY 1999/2000	FY 2000/2001
State Revenues General Fund
State Expenditures General Fund Cash Fund	$44,660 -$50,965	$40,060 -$50,965
FTE Position Change	0.0FTE	0.0 FTE
Other State Impact: None
Effective Date: Upon the Governor’s signature.
Appropriation Summary for FY 1999-2000: Department of Public Health and Environment - Reduction of 1.0 FTE and $50,968 CF Department of Public Safety - 1.0 FTE and $44,660 GF
Local Government Impact: Colorado Horse Development Authority assessment funds available for cost reimbursement

The reengrossed bill, as amended by the Senate Appropriations Committee, March 19, 1999, and the Senate Agriculture, Livestock, and Natural Resources Committee, March 10, 1999, would clarify who the incident commander is at a hazardous substance incident site. An emergency response authority may provide a response through a mutual aid agreement. The emergency response authority would be identified for local governments if the local government does not make the designation. An authority that lacked personnel, expertise and equipment would be able to request assistance from other public or private entities. The Colorado State Patrol (CSP) would be the emergency response authority for incidents on highways outside of municipal boundaries.

Hazardous substance incidents on private property would have to be reported and the property owner would be the coordinator. The authority to organize a state emergency response team and maintain an emergency response database would be transferred to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) from the Department of Public Health and Environment (DPHE). The provision that would have transferred the requirement for a twenty-four hour public telephone service from DPHE to the CSP was removed by the amendment. DPS would be authorized to form regional emergency response teams. The CSP would have to refer calls that would not involve a hazardous substance to the DPHE. The training duty for hazardous materials would be transferred to the Division of Fire Safety from the Colorado Safety Institute.

The reengrossed bill contains a provision that would create a temporary committee under the Department of Public Safety to make recommendations on the reimbursement costs for hazardous substance incidents. The committee is to serve without compensation or reimbursement of expenses. The committee is to report to the Legislative Audit Committee by September 1, 1999. The Senate Agriculture, Livestock, and Natural Resources Committee report dated March 10, 1999, would allow emergency response authorities to be reimbursed from funds imposed by the Colorado Horse Development Authority assessment.

The amended bill would transfer the authority to organize a state emergency response team and maintain an emergency response database from the DPHE to the DPS. These transferred functions would reduce 1.0 FTE and $50,965 CF from DPHE. The FTE would transfer to the DPS and be General Funds. The net change in FTE would be zero. In order to maintain a statewide database to respond to approximately 2,000 political entities the DPS would require additional resources to maintain a database of more than 20,000 records. The DPS would require the $44,660 General Funds in FY 1999-00. Of that amount, $36,060 would be for personal services, $4,600 would be for capitol outlay, $3,000 for travel, and $1,000 would be for operating. For FY 2000-01 the DPS would require 1.0 FTE and $40,060 GF. Colorado Horse Development Authority assessment funds would be available to reimburse authorities for hazardous incident costs.

This fiscal note implies that the Department of Public Health and Environment would require a reduction of 1.0 FTE and $50,965 Cash Fund and the Department of Public Safety would require an increase of 1.0 FTE and $44,660 General Fund for FY 1999-2000.

Colorado Horse Development Authority assessment funds would be available to reimburse authorities for hazardous incident costs.