House Committee on State, Veterans, & Military Affairs (01/29/2009)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON STATE, VETERANS, & MILITARY AFFAIRS

Date:	01/29/2009	ATTENDANCE

Time:	09:45 AM to 11:25 AM	Casso	X
		Court	X
Place:	HCR 0112	Hullinghorst	X
		Lambert	*
This Meeting was called to order by		Massey	X
	Representative Todd	McCann	*
		Miklosi	X
This Report was prepared by		Murray	X
	Bo Pogue	Nikkel	X
		Labuda	X
		Todd	X
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
HB09-1083 HB09-1088 HB09-1165		Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole Witness Testimony and/or Committee Discussion Only

09:45 AM -- House Bill 09-1083

The committee was called to order. A quorum was present. Representative McFadyen, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 09-1083, concerning the authority of the state to enter into lease-purchase agreements for commercial space for the Department of Personnel in Pueblo County, Colorado. Representative McFadyen briefly explained the effect of the bill. Discussion ensued regarding the bill's merits.

09:49 AM

The following person testified regarding House Bill 09-1083:

09:49 AM -- Mr. Bill Taylor, representing the Department of Personnel and Administration, testified in favor of the bill. Committee members received written copies of Mr. Taylor's testimony (Attachment A). Mr Taylor discussed the benefits of the bill.

09:50 AM

No amendments were offered to the bill.


BILL:	HB09-1083
TIME:	09:50:18 AM
MOVED:	Massey
MOTION:	Moved to refer House Bill 09-1083 to the Committee of the Whole with favorable recommendation. The motion passed on an 11-0 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Labuda
		VOTE
	Casso	Yes
	Court	Yes
	Hullinghorst	Yes
	Lambert	Yes
	Massey	Yes
	McCann	Yes
	Miklosi	Yes
	Murray	Yes
	Nikkel	Yes
	Labuda	Yes
	Todd	Yes

Final YES: 11 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

09:51 AM -- House Bill 09-1088

Representative Balmer, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 09-1088, concerning certification of public benefit nonprofit entities as local public procurement units. Representative Balmer explained the effect of the bill, and discussed the bill's fiscal impact. Representative Balmer responded to questions regarding the number of nonprofit entities that might be certified as a result of the legislation.

09:56 AM

The following persons testified regarding House Bill 09-1088:

09:56 AM -- Ms. Adrienne Benavidez and Mr. John Utterback, representing the Department of Personnel and Administration, testified in favor of the bill. Ms. Benavidez explained the purchasing power benefits that may be realized by nonprofit entities as a result of the bill, and how nonprofits qualify for certification. Ms. Benavidez also discussed the process by which nonprofit entities may be included in price agreements with state agencies and other governmental entities under current law. Ms. Benavidez responded to questions regarding the type of work performed by nonprofits that would be covered by the bulk purchasing agreements under the bill, and the number of nonprofits that are currently participating in the purchasing agreements. Ms. Benavidez responded to further questions regarding the amount of bulk purchasing that takes place under current law, and how much bulk purchasing will increase if House Bill 09-1088 is passed. Discussion ensued regarding the potential economic impacts of the bill, including the impact on the private sector.

10:06 AM

Discussion continued regarding the potential economic impacts of House Bill 09-1088. The discussion included specific reference to the construction sector. Ms. Benavidez provided input regarding the specific types of private sector goods that would be impacted by the bill, and the types of nonprofit entities covered by the legislation.

10:16 AM

Discussion continued regarding the bill's impact on the construction sector, and the types of nonprofit entities covered by House Bill 09-1088. Representative Balmer stressed the optional nature of the bill on the part of nonprofit entities. Discussion followed regarding potential unintended consequences for the private sector, conditions in the bill that restrict the types of nonprofit entities eligible for certification under the bill, and the ability of certain nonprofit entities to unfairly benefit from the bill.

10:27 AM

Discussion returned to the specific types of nonprofit entities that would benefit from the bill, and the work performed by these entities. Ms. Benavidez responded to questions regarding the potential for the Department of Personnel and Administration to produce a report in a year detailing the nonprofit entities that have taken advantage of the bill's provisions. Discussion returned to the number of nonprofits that may take advantage of the bill's provisions.

10:32 AM -- Ms. Mary Anne Harvey, representing the Colorado Nonprofit Association, testified in favor of House Bill 09-1088. Ms. Harvey discussed the economic benefits that may be realized by nonprofits as a result of the bill's passage.

10:33 AM -- Mr. Richard Gonzales, Executive Director of the Department of Personnel and Administration, testified in favor of the bill. Mr. Gonzales discussed his former position as an executive director of a nonprofit organization, and the economic environment in which nonprofits operate. Mr. Gonzales then discussed the potential economic benefits that may be realized by both nonprofits and the private sector.

10:36 AM

No amendments were offered for the bill. Representative Balmer provided closing remarks in favor of House Bill 09-1088.


BILL:	HB09-1088
TIME:	10:38:21 AM
MOVED:	Hullinghorst
MOTION:	Moved to refer House Bill 09-1088 to the Committee of the Whole with favorable recommendation. The motion passed on a 9-2 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Miklosi
		VOTE
	Casso	Yes
	Court	Yes
	Hullinghorst	Yes
	Lambert	No
	Massey	Yes
	McCann	Yes
	Miklosi	Yes
	Murray	Yes
	Nikkel	No
	Labuda	Yes
	Todd	Yes

Final YES: 9 NO: 2 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

10:39 AM -- House Bill 09-1165

Representative Lambert, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 09-1165, concerning the creation of a state database containing information about sole-source contracts to which governmental entities are a party for the purpose of implementing changes to article XXVIII of the State Constitution approved by the voters in the 2008 general election. Representative Lambert provided background on his reasons for sponsoring the bill, and explained the bill's effect. Representative Lambert also explained requirements for creating a government contract database already in place, and the bill's fiscal impact. Discussion ensued regarding requiring the State Internet Portal Authority (SIPA) to manage the database created under the bill, and the process involved in identifying government contractors through the database created under the bill.

10:49 AM

Representative Lambert continued to explain the process involved in establishing and operating the database. Representative Lambert responded to questions regarding methods by which payments may be collected by the state through SIPA.

10:51 AM

The following persons testified regarding House Bill 09-1165:

10:52 AM -- Mr. Richard Gonzales, executive director of the Department of Personnel and Administration, and Ms. Jennifer Okes, also representing the department, testified regarding the bill. Committee members received written copies of Mr. Gonzales' testimony (Attachment B). Mr. Gonzales discussed the database infrastructure already in place to track government contracts, including sole-source contracts as required by Article XXVIII of the State Constitution, and the functions contained in the database. Mr. Gonzales then discussed the fiscal impact of the bill, and the potential for using SIPA to operate the database. Ms. Okes provided further input on the bill's fiscal impact. Discussion ensued regarding the specific costs associated with the database created under the bill.

11:03 AM

Mr. Gonzales provided further clarification regarding the fiscal impact of House Bill 09-1165, the work involved in creating the database, and certain departmental rules that will be required to establish the database. Discussion ensued regarding fees imposed on contractors by the bill to fund the database. Discussion followed regarding the fee structure that may be assessed on contractors to fund the database.

11:14 AM

Discussion ensued regarding the specific types of technology under consideration for the database required by the bill, including search technologies, and the information that will be publicized on the database. Discussion followed regarding the relationship between initiated Amendment 54, passed by the electorate during the 2008 election, and the establishment of the database. Discussion returned to the contract information that will be available for viewing on the database.

11:20 AM -- Mr. Richard Coolidge, representing the Secretary of State, made himself available to answer questions from the committee. Mr. Coolidge provided information on the Department of State's role in integrating the database proposed by House Bill 09-1165 with campaign finance reporting mechanisms already in place.

11:22 AM -- Mr. Chris Ward, Legislative Council Staff, made himself available to answer questions from the committee.

11:22 AM

Representative Lambert discussed the effect of prepared amendment L.001 (Attachment C), and the source of funding for implementing the database created by the bill. Discussion ensued regarding possible courses of action on the bill, since a fiscal note had not been finalized.

11:25 AM

House Bill 09-1165 was laid over until Tuesday, February 3rd. The committee adjourned.