10 bills that were doomed in Democratic legislature

GOP introduced anyway

BY ELLIOTT WENZLER THE COLORADO SUN

Banning abortion. Restricting transgender athletes’ participation in school sports. Slashing state revenues by cutting the income tax rate.

A wave of bills Republicans are introducing in the Democrat-controlled Colorado legislature reads like a list of hot-button GOP talking points. And that’s not by mistake, even if they have no chance of becoming law.

House Minority Leader Mike Lynch, R-Wellington, said the measures — some of which are highly controversial — are “statement bills” that show Coloradans what Republicans’ priorities are and how they would lead the state if they were in charge.

“I think if we were suddenly to be in the majority, you’d see a whole bunch of really drastic right-wing legislation,” Lynch said. “But I think that’s largely a factor of the fact that we’ve been out of the majority for so long. We’re trying to x these things that have piled up over the last 10 years.” e legislation may only be sponsored by a handful of Republicans, but they re ect on the entire caucus. Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, R-Monument, urged people not to necessarily lump the entire GOP together.

“ e Republican caucus is an in- tellectually diverse caucus. It brings an array of perspectives,” he said. “One or two people have a strong conviction of this speci c nature

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and there may be other perspectives.”

Democrats are running into the same political conundrum, includ- ing when it comes to a bill that would let local governments enact rent control policies and another that would legalize safe-injection sites, where people could use illicit drugs under medical supervision. e governor, whose signature is vital for any bill to become law, has signaled he’s skeptical about both. Democrats introduced them anyway. e day of a committee hearing for several Republican abortion-related bills — including a total ban on the procedure — Democrats said statement bills aren’t new.

Each legislator is permitted to introduce ve bills, and each one must get a hearing. at’s di erent from in Congress, where leadership can shelve legislation they don’t like.

In other words: Democrats are e ectively powerless to stop controversial GOP measures from seeing the light of day.

“It is important that we take them seriously and that they are heard,” said House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon. “We will still honor this institution by making sure that every piece of legislation is heard in committee in a fair way and then our public has a moment to share their voices and perspectives.”

Here are 10 bills introduced by Republicans in the legislature this year that have been rejected by the Democratic majority — and were always likely to meet that fate.

Restricting school sports participation based on biological sex

House Bill 1098: is bill, spon- sored by Reps. Lisa Frizell, Brandi Bradley and Sen. Byron Pelton, would have required that student athletes only participate in sports based on their biological sex at birth. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans A airs Committee on Feb. 13 after an hour and a half of testimony.

Reduction of state income tax rate

House Bill 1063: Introduced by Rep. Scott Bottoms of Colorado Springs, this bill would have reduced the state income tax to 3.5% from 4.4% beginning in the 2024 tax year — slashing the state’s general fund by billions of dollars. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans A airs Committee on Feb. 9 after more than an hour of testimony.

Dissuading enforcement of federal firearms laws

House Bill 1044: From Rep. Ken DeGraaf of Colorado Springs this bill would have created a civil penalty for enforcing federal laws that are deemed to have infringed on the right to bear arms. It was rejected 8-2 along party lines after two hours of testimony Feb. 6 in the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans A airs Committee.

Abortion ban

House Bill 1119: is bill, also brought by Bottoms, would have abolished abortion in Colorado by including any fetus in the de nition of “person” as it relates to things like homicide and assault. e House Health and Insurance Committee heard three hours of testimony and then voted 8-3 along party lines to reject it on Feb. 17.

Voting systems wireless connections

House Bill 1055: is bill from Rep. Rod Bockenfeld of Watkins prohibits the use of voting systems that are capable of establishing a wireless connection beginning in 2024. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans A airs Committee on Feb. 13 after nearly two hours of testimony.

Carbon dioxide as a pollutant

House Bill 1163: Another bill from DeGraaf that would have prohibited state and local governments from classifying carbon dioxide as a pollutant or enforcing regulations on the chemical compound that deem it a pollutant. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House Energy and Environment Committee on Feb. 23 after 45 minutes of testimony.

COVID-19 vaccine requirements for minors

House Bill 1029: A bill that would have prohibited requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for minors, administering vaccinations without guardian consent and discriminating against unvaccinated minors was introduced by Bradley and Sen. Mark Baisley. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House Health and Insurance Committee on Feb. 7 after two and a half hours of testimony.

Immunity for business owners using force

House Bill 1050: Introduced by Rep. Ty Winter of Trinidad, this bill would have expanded immunity of business owners, employees and customers from criminal prosecution and civil liability in a situation in which they use physical force to protect themselves or others against an intruder. It was rejected 8-2 along party lines by the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans A airs Committee on Feb. 6 after about two hours of testimony.

Eliminating caucus and assembly process for primaries

Senate Bill 101: is bill from Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, R-Brighton, and Rep. Mary Brad eld, R-Colorado Springs, would have eliminated the ability of candidates to qualify for primary ballots through the assembly process. It was rejected 4-1 by the Senate State, Veterans, and Military A airs Committee on Feb. 16 after about an hour of testimony.

State fees on retail deliveries is story is from e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support e Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun.com. e Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media. his age can struggle to a ord homes even with the right tools on their side.

House Bill 1166: is bill would have repealed a 27 cent state fee on retail deliveries and was sponsored by House Assistant Minority Leader Rose Pugliese of Colorado Springs and Sen. Perry Will of New Castle. It was rejected 9-4 along party lines by the House Transportation, Housing and Local Government Committee on Feb. 21 after 10 minutes of testimony.

“Last year, when I graduated college, I make a slightly-above-median income for my age, but I wouldn’t be able to a ord a home in the next ve years without external help,” said ayer, 21, who was born and raised in Castle Rock.

Entry-level housing “just isn’t there” in the Denver metro area, especially in Douglas County, ayer said.

“I think the lesson there is that even with good nancial planning and budgeting and nancial literacy, I’m just constrained by the high housing prices and the lack of inventory on the entry-level segment in Douglas County,” ayer said.

What’s ahead e Fed’s raising of rates is a signi cant — if not the primary — factor driving home prices lower, ayer said.

After Colorado’s already-expensive housing market saw prices increase even more steeply during the economic trends of the coronavirus pandemic, the Federal Reserve’s raising of interest rates to battle in ation has pushed prices back down.

Interest rates are the amount a lender charges a borrower for a loan, and when they change, it can a ect mortgage rates but also car loans and credit card debt, which can dampen people’s ability to a ord this year, it’s di cult to say whether home prices will shoot back up, erasing recent gains in a ordability, ayer said.

“Real estate can vary greatly quarter over quarter. I like to think of it more of a year-over-year trend,” ayer said.

For example, if rates were to return to the level seen in December 2021, home prices in Douglas County in spring 2024 could come back to the highs of spring 2022, ayer said.

A caveat, though, is the broader economic conditions that may arrive. If interest rates go down in response to an overall economic downturn, people might not be spending as much as they did in spring 2022, ayer said.

“But we have such a constrained supply, (including) here in Douglas County,” that prices are also propped up by a lack of available homes, ayer noted.

After a decade, some relief

Although the Denver area and Colorado as a whole have recently seen a big price drop, much of the downslide occurred during the fall and winter, when prices tend to drop each year as homebuying typically slows down after the usual price increases of summer or fall.

Comparing this January to last January, the drop in median price of a single-family home in metro Denver is more modest: a 1.4% decrease. Statewide, the median price was at, a 0% change.

Still, even a slight decrease or attening can come as a relief to Coloradans who have watched prices on a seemingly never-ending climb. is year saw the rst January-toJanuary, year-over-year decrease in median sales price in the Denver metro area since 2010 to 2011, when price stayed relatively at, according to the Realtor association.

Even amid the recent trends, ayer says a big downward reset in housing prices isn’t for sure.

“On a scale compared to something like 2008? Probably not, because of the place the Denver metro area is in right now,” ayer said. “It is certainly one of the most desirable places to live in the country … so the e ects of a nationwide or global economic downturn are going to be lessened here because of that inherent supply constraint and that inherent (desire) to be here.”

Some type of downturn is likely imminent because the economy is cyclical, ayer said. But he doesn’t foresee a drop in prices of 20% or more in the next 10 years in the Denver metro area relative to the rest of the world.

“I think a 10% drop over the next decade would be more feasible,” said ayer, noting that even that is not necessarily likely.

What’s more, “it wouldn’t be permanent; it would be cyclical,” he noted.

A ordability an issue in Douglas Douglas County’s housing a ordability is low even compared to the rest of the region, with median housing prices around $100,000 higher than the average in the rest of the metro area, ayer said.

“And while we do have higher income, the problem is for those service jobs and all those support roles,” ayer said. He added: “ ere isn’t housing for entry-level jobs or younger people in the service workforce and in those kind of lower- to middle-income careers.”

He sees a “middle ground” in government policy that would incentivize entry-level housing, such as condos, townhomes and duplexes, so local residents can have a place to live where they work. He thinks that will take shape on the city and county level rather than statewide or nationally.

“As a Realtor, we certainly believe in homeownership in the U.S.,” ayer said, “so providing homeownership opportunity not just to high-income households but also to the low- and medium-income households so they can build wealth.” sta and a 5% increase for administration for the 2023-24 school year. e increases will cost the district $22.5 million next year, which is likely be covered by the in ationary increase in funding from Colorado’s School Finance Act, Kane said. e state legislature has not yet approved next year’s school funding.

Kane acknowledged the district approving raises before knowing how much funding the state will provide is a calculated risk, but one she believes is worth it to provide certainty for sta .

“We know there is some risk, but we feel really con dent that the School Finance Act will increase, certainly su cient to cover the increases we’re proposing,” she said. “By proposing these increases now, we’re making a huge di erence in terms of retention because we’re providing assurance and stability for our employees, so they will know what next year looks like.” e compensation increases being approved so early in the year may also help give the district an edge when recruiting new teachers, Kane said, since other districts have not nalized salary schedules yet.

However, all school districts are expecting in ationary increases in state funding, which means Douglas County will probably not be the only district to raise pay.

“Every school district will receive in ationary funding from the state and every school district will do what we’re doing,” Kane said. “We’re just going to do it faster. It’s all we’ve got …It will not alleviate the need for (a mill levy override). It will not close the gap with other school districts, but it will be a great message to our teachers and to our sta .”

In the Denver metro area, Cherry Creek has already increased teacher pay for next year to $57,000 to start.

Westiminster approved paying teachers a starting salary of $61,000.

Kane said the disparity comes from the di erences in local mill levy overrides. Douglas County’s mill levy amounts to around $1,150 per student, while surrounding districts, including Denver, Littleton and Cherry Creek, get more than twice as much per student from their mill levies.

“It is not because our district chooses not to pay our teachers competitively,” Kane said. “It is purely a funding challenge.”

Board member Elizabeth Hanson described the decision to give raises while still planning to ask voters for a mill levy override in November like “walking on a sword.”

“We need our teachers to hear that we’re doing everything we can to take care of them and we need our community to hear that we need funding,” Hanson said. “ is is a band-aid.”

In addition to salary increases, the district is also planning to o er employees free lunch next year, discounted childcare and improving sta workspaces, on top of shortterm retention strategies approved in January.

Kane said the plan focused on ways to keep existing sta .

“We absolutely need to recruit, but our priority is retaining who we have, so instead of piling all of our resources into making our starting pay $50,000 … we chose to put our resources into the people that we have,” she said.

Multiple teachers spoke at the meeting in favor of the plan and thanked the board for their e orts in supporting sta .

Lucy Squire, teacher and president of the Douglas County Federation, a local teachers union, said the plan shows the district values its sta and is working to be more competitive.

“It’s starting to feel like we’re being paid what we’re worth,” “ ank you again for working with us and for hearing our ideas. We’re moving in the right direction and I’m full of optimism and gratitude.”

Another teacher, Ann Fisher, said her school’s culture, values and sense of belonging keep her working in the district and she doesn’t want to leave, but nancial hurdles make it di cult to stay.

“While thinking of starting a family with my partner in the next year or two, I’m able to breathe a sigh of relief knowing that our district is prioritizing our teachers, sta and communities with compensation increases,” Fisher said. “I’m hopeful that I will not have to make the incredibly hard decision between starting a family and staying at a school that I consider a second home.” e entire board supported the salary increases and praised Kane and sta for their work on the proposal.

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