Date: 01/14/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB09-1014

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON FINANCE

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Refer House Bill 09-1014 to the Committee of the WPASS



11:10 AM -- House Bill 09-1014 - Concerning Conservation Easement Fees

Representative Judd, prime sponsor, explained the provisions of the bill. He began by discussing the conservation easement tax credit and role of the Division of Real Estate in terms of appraisers who value easements for donation purposes. He closed by saying that House Bill 09-1014 gives the division the flexibility its needs to adjust the costs tied to the appraisal fee.

The following persons testified:

11:19 AM -- Ms. Erin Toll, Colorado Division of Real Estate, responded to committee questions regarding the fee change in the bill. The maximum fee that may be imposed by the division upon an appraiser in connection with submitting a conservation easement appraisal is $600 per appraisal. Similarly, the maximum fee that may be imposed on an applicant for a qualified conservation easement certificate is $5,810. These fees cover a three-year period and are established by statute. This bill eliminates the cap on both of these fees and allows for an annual fee, to be set by the division.

The committee discussed the role of the division and questioned what the fee would pay for. Ms. Toll responded saying the fees would cover the costs of the division and the Conservation Easement Oversight Commission in reviewing appraisals of conservation easements and certifying entities that hold conservation easements. Ms. Toll mentioned that initially, the division estimated that the number of problematic easements would be around 75 per year. Last year, the division investigated three appraisers who overvalued 300 conservation easements. These investigations have resulted in the state not paying out an additional $100 million in tax credits that otherwise would have been paid out. Ms. Toll closed by saying that the bill will give the division more flexibility in the oversight function of the program.

11:43 AM -- Ms. Jill Ozarski, Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts, testified in support of the bill.

11:47 AM -- Mr. Daniel Pike, Colorado Open Lands, testified in support of the bill.


11:52 AM

After a brief committee discussion, the bill was placed on the table for action and no amendments were offered.

BILL:HB09-1014
TIME: 11:53:41 AM
MOVED:Judd
MOTION:Refer House Bill 09-1014 to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed on a 11-0 vote.
SECONDED:Benefield
VOTE
Apuan
Yes
Benefield
Yes
Gerou
Yes
Kefalas
Yes
Kerr A.
Yes
Lambert
Yes
Roberts
Yes
Summers
Yes
Swalm
Yes
Frangas
Yes
Judd
Yes
Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS



11:55 AM

Adjourn.