Date: 02/18/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB09-1208

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AFFAIRS AND LABOR

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Moved to postpone House Bill 09-1208 indefinitely.
Moved to refer House Bill 09-1208 to the Committee		PASS
FAIL



10:49 AM -- House Bill 09-1208

Representative Soper, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 09-1208 concerning the payment of prevailing compensation for workers on public works. This bill requires that contractors and subcontractors on state public works contracts worth more than $100,000 pay prevailing wages and fringe benefits to their workers. Prevailing wages and fringe benefits are defined as the same as those set forth in the federal Davis-Bacon Act.

Contractors and subcontractors must furnish payroll records to the director of the Division of Labor in the Department of Labor and Employment and post the prevailing wages and fringe benefits on the department's website. The director may investigate employers and has jurisdiction in remedying violations. The director must also publish a list of contractors and subcontractors who willfully fail to pay prevailing wages and fringe benefits and debar a contractor or subcontractor for multiple willful failures to pay prevailing wages and fringe benefits. The bill establishes procedures for filing complaints with the Division of Labor or the courts.

Contractors must submit a statement of unpaid prevailing wages and fringe benefits prior to receiving final payment from a state agency. State agencies must withhold any unpaid prevailing wages and fringe benefits and pay them directly to workers. Representative Stephens asked about the fiscal note.

10:57 AM -- Tony Gagliardi, representing the National Federation of Independent Businesses, testified against the bill. He talked about the difficulty small businesses have providing benefits to their employees. Mr. Gagliardi stated that the businesses want to pay a fair wage based on the performance and liability of the worker.

11:06 AM -- Dennis Jakubowski, representing the Associated General Contractors of Colorado, testified against the bill and discussed his concerns. Representative Gagliardi responded to Mr. Jakubowski's concern that they are unclear of the meaning of fringe benefits in the bill and pointed out the definition on page four of the bill. Representative Balmer asked why the market does not create prevailing wages on its own. Mr. Jakubowski said he believes the market can take care of wages.

11:18 AM -- Mark Latimer, representing the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., testified against the bill and distributed a handout (Attachment A). He said prevailing wages hurt minorities and small businesses and talked about the additional paperwork that is required. Mr. Latimer said prevailing wages are not minimum wages, they are good wages, and prevailing wage legislation just further inflates those wages. Mr. Latimer responded to questions from the committee. Representative Liston listed the average wages from the Denver/Aurora and Colorado Springs areas on the second page of the handout.

09HouseBus0218AttachA2.pdf

11:36 AM -- Kevin Bommer, representing the Colorado Municipal League and the Special Districts Association, testified against the bill. He said the league is strongly against the federal prevailing wage laws. Mr. Bommer talked about a position paper that was distributed to the committee last week (Attachment B).

09HouseBus0218AttachB2.pdf

11:41 AM -- Kevin Duncan, an economics professor at Colorado State University in Pueblo, testified in support of the bill. He talked about the effects prevailing wages have on the economy. Mr. Duncan talked about the market and wages. Representative Balmer asked about nonunion contractors and the bidding process. A discussion about contractors that offer health insurance ensued.

11:54 AM -- Denis Berckefeldt, representing the Denver Auditor, testified in support of the bill. He said that requiring prevailing wages have not deterred any contractors from working in the city of Denver and have increased the number of skilled workers. Mr. Berckefeldt discussed certified payrolls and explained that they are web based. He gave an example of the prevailing wage for electricians that work at Denver International Airport which is $39.24 and said that most of the contractors are being paid over the prevailing wage. Representative Rice asked whether those contractors that pay over the prevailing wage eventually increase the prevailing wage. Mr. Berckfeldt said that it would increase if enough contractors offered similar wages. He talked about undocumented workers and the effect of prevailing wages on them and gave an example.

12:11 PM -- Neal Hall, representing the Colorado Building and Construction Trades Council, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Hall mentioned that since President Reagan, the prevailing wage has been different for each county. He said prevailing wages will stimulate the economy by allowing people to spend more money. Representative Priola asked about the Big Dig in Boston and whether it was tied to prevailing wages. Mr. Hall said the project was a labor agreement. Mr. Hall said most prevailing wages are too low and gave the example of the prevailing wage for a carpenter in Pueblo, Colorado which is $12.35.

12:22 PM -- Ted Textor, representing the Teamsters, testified in support of the bill and distributed handout (Attachment C). Mr. Textor commented on the concerns over small businesses.

09HouseBus0218AttachC2.pdf

12:29 PM -- Daniel Owens, representing the Operating Engineers of Colorado - Local 9, testified in support of the bill. He talked about the TREX project and other large projects that came in under budget using prevailing wages.

12:31 PM -- Jeff Clayton, representing the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, responded to a question from the committee regarding the numbers provided in the handout from Mr. Lattimer and whether they came from the department (Attachment A). Mr. Clayton said he would get back to the committee because he has not seen the handout.


12:32 PM

Representative Soper made some closing comments on the bill and the impact prevailing wages will have on the economy.
BILL:HB09-1208
TIME: 12:38:10 PM
MOVED:Soper
MOTION:Moved to refer House Bill 09-1208 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion failed 7-4.
SECONDED:Casso
VOTE
Balmer
No
Bradford
No
Gagliardi
Yes
Liston
No
Priola
No
Ryden
Yes
Scanlan
No
Soper
Yes
Stephens
No
Casso
Yes
Rice
No
Not Final YES: 4 NO: 7 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL


BILL:HB09-1208
TIME: 12:53:45 PM
MOVED:Balmer
MOTION:Moved to postpone House Bill 09-1208 indefinitely. The motion passed 6-5.
SECONDED:Liston
VOTE
Balmer
Yes
Bradford
Yes
Gagliardi
No
Liston
Yes
Priola
Yes
Ryden
No
Scanlan
Yes
Soper
No
Stephens
Yes
Casso
No
Rice
No
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS