Colorado Bills

The bill prohibits engaging in a nuisance exhibition of motor vehicle exhaust, which is the act of knowingly blowing black smoke through one or more exhaust pipes attached to a motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 14,000 pounds or less in a manner that would harass another driver, a bicyclist, or a pedestrian and obstruct or obscure the view of another driver, a bicyclist, or a pedestrian. A person who violates the prohibition commits a class A traffic infraction, punishable by a fine of $100. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill enacts the 'Regulatory Relief Act of 2017'. The bill includes a legislative declaration about the importance of small businesses to the Colorado economy and acknowledges the difficulty these types of businesses have in complying with state rules that are not known or understood by these businesses. The bill requires a state agency (agency) to give a small business (which is defined in the 'State Administrative Procedure Act' as a business with fewer than 500 employees) a period of time to cure a first-time minor violation of a rule instead of enforcing the rule by imposing a fine. When an agency determines that a small business has committed a minor violation of a rule, instead of imposing a fine, the agency is required to notify the small business in writing of the violation, including the steps to cure the violation, and give the small business 30 business days to cure the violation. Upon a showing of good cause, the business owner may request additional time to cure the violation. If the small business owner fails to cure the minor violation within the stated time period, the agency may impose the fine on the small business. This does not apply in cases where an agency is required by statute to assess a fine for noncompliance. The bill defines 'minor violation' as a violation that includes operational or administrative matters, such as record keeping, retention of data, or filing of reports, and that is enforced by a fine; except that 'minor violation' does not include any matter that places the safety of the public, employees, or others at risk. The bill provides exceptions from the definition of 'minor violation' for certain types of rules or violations and includes an exception for rules adopted by the secretary of state relating to the regulation of lobbyists. Under current law, agencies are required to convene stakeholder groups to give input about proposed rules. The bill amends the stakeholder provision to direct agencies to make diligent attempts to notify and solicit input from representatives of small businesses about proposed rule-making, if the agency's proposed rule-making has a potential negative impact on small businesses. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Each employer in the public employees' retirement association (PERA) contributes a percentage of its total employer payroll to PERA in the form of an employer contribution, an amortization equalization disbursement (AED), and a supplemental amortization equalization disbursement (SAED). A portion of the employer contribution goes to the health care trust fund and the remainder is deposited into the pension trust fund for each division of PERA to pay benefits. The AED and the SAED are to reduce PERA's unfunded liability and amortization period. The bill requires that for the calendar year beginning January 1, 2018, and for each calendar year thereafter, the total of the employer contribution, the AED, and the SAED for any employer will not exceed the total contribution rates for the 2018 calendar year pursuant to current law. The rates are as follows: For the state division, 20.15% of an employer's total payroll; except that, for state troopers, the total is 22.85% of an employer's total payroll; For the school division, 20.15% of an employer's total payroll; For the Denver public schools division, 20.15% of an employer's total payroll; For the local government division, 13.70% of an employer's total payroll; and For the judicial division, 17.36% of an employer's total payroll.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill requires the Colorado office of economic development to establish and maintain an international sister-state relationship program. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The state department of transportation (department), the statewide bridge enterprise, and the high-performance transportation enterprise are currently authorized to solicit proposals and consider unsolicited proposals for public-private initiatives for certain public projects. The bill specifies that the department, the statewide bridge enterprise, and the high-performance transportation enterprise may consider proposals, whether solicited or unsolicited, for a public-private initiative that anticipates using federal moneys only if the proposal includes labor costs for construction that use no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for corresponding work on similar projects in the area set by the United States department of labor as directed by the federal 'Davis-Bacon Act'. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Supplemental appropriations are made to the department of law. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)