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Arvada Chamber Position: Oppose

Concerning the elimination of a judicially created requirement that a significant number of consumers be harmed before remedies may be available under the “Colorado Consumer Protection Act”.

Rationale: The revivial of a bill from 2023, this bill would remove the Significant Public Impact Test to the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, allowing for any individual to sue a business without having to prove broad based imact and therefore could open up every business, at any time, to individual consumer lawsuits therefore necessitating an oppose position. 

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Arvada Chamber Position: Support

Sales and Use Tax Simplification Task Force. Under current law, the executive director of the department of revenue is authorized to permit taxpayers whose monthly tax collected is less than $300 to make returns and pay taxes at quarterly intervals. The bill increases that threshold to $600 for returns that must be filed on and after January 1, 2025.

The bill also imposes thresholds that home rule cities, towns, and city and counties that collect their own sales and use taxes and do not use the electronic sales and use tax simplification system administered by the department of revenue (SUTS) must adhere to in allowing taxpayers to make returns and pay sales and use taxes. On and after January 1, 2025, a taxpayer must be permitted to make returns and pay sales and use taxes as follows:

Once a year if the taxpayer annually collects less than $2,000;
Quarterly if the taxpayer annually collects between $2,000 and $25,000; and
Monthly if the taxpayer annually collects more than $25,000.

Additionally, the bill requires all local taxing jurisdictions to begin using SUTS by July 1, 2025. Local taxing jurisdictions that do not begin using SUTS by July 1, 2025, will be precluded from participating in the streamlined process for collecting sales and use tax from retailers that have a state standard retail license and either do not have a physical presence within the local taxing jurisdiction or have only incidental presence.

Rationale: With great enthusiasm, we recommend a positon of Support for this bill that seeks to remove red tape by increasing the thresholds at which point businesses need to file sales tax returns on a periodic basis, therefore making it easier for small businesses by cutting red tape and clarifying the process for businesses of all sizes.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Oppose

The bill prohibits an employer from requiring an employee to attend meetings, listen to speech, or view communications concerning religious or political matters. The bill also prohibits an employer from threatening an employee, subjecting an employee to discipline, or discharging an employee on account of the employee’s refusal to attend or participate in an employer-sponsored meeting where the employer communicates religious or political matters or opinions. Certain employer communications are exempt from the prohibition, including communications required by law or that are necessary for an employee to perform the employee’s job duties. The bill creates a private right of action in district court for aggrieved persons who prevail in court seeking payment of front pay, lost wages and compensation, costs, and attorney fees. Each employer is required to post a notice of the employee rights outlined in the bill at the employer’s workplace.

Rationale: This bill, narrow in scope but broad in impact, seeks to prohibit employers from having captive audience meetings, an issue most impactful during efforts to unionize among employees, and also has further implications to communication between employers and employees, taking what is already in statue to a more extreme position.. We recommend an oppose seeing no fruitful amendments or path to work with the legislators to amend.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Support

This bill concerns legal actions based on claim defects in construction projects. This bill attempts to remedy this through three primary components:

1. Opportunity for a builder to remedy a defect prior to a lawsuit and additional dispute resolution options
2. Better definitions of what is a material defect
3. Requires a unit owners’ association to obtain the written consent of at least two-thirds of the owners to pursue a lawsuit

Rationale: This legislation, backed by a coalition of industry experts, presents a major opportunity to make meaningful changes to current Construction Defect legislation and litigation in several ways. First, creating a right to repair remedy for developers and homebuilders to fix issues in lieu of cash payouts and lengthy court cases, increase awareness of HOA/condo owners to an increased majority who must vote to enter into litigation, and put new limits on claims of technical code violations or infractions without monetary damages or need for repairs to help making housing more affordable and less litigious. We strongly support this bill.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Oppose

Requires that a subcontractor that receives a written demand for payment forward a copy of the written demand for payment to the general contractor within 3 business days after receipt;

Specifies that a general contractor and a subcontractor that is a direct employer of an employee are jointly and severally liable for all debts owed based on a wage claim or investigation that are incurred by the subcontractor acting under, by, or for the general contractor; and

Allows a general contractor to require the following information from each subcontractor acting under, by, or for the general contractor: Pay data; Contact information; and An affidavit attesting to whether the subcontractor has participated in a civil or administrative proceeding within the last 5 years and, if so, the outcome of the proceeding.

Rationale: With significant concerns about the application of this law to other industries, we recommend a swift position of Oppose on this bill that would make a General Contractor in the construction industry liable for wage theft claims against a subcontractor.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Support

The bill requires a court to award reasonable attorney fees to a prevailing defendant in an action for judicial review of a local land use decision, except for an action brought by the land use applicant before the governmental entity. Filing an action for judicial review of a local land use decision does not affect the validity of the local land use decision. The bill authorizes a governmental entity and the public to rely on the local land use decision in good faith for all purposes until the action for judicial review is resolved.

Rationale: Rule 106 lawsuits can be lengthy in time and costly to the city councils and county commissioners who have rendered a land use decision that is being challenged by a third party in this way. We support this legislation as it permits the government entity, if they prevail in the court case, to recoup reasonable attorney cost. This bill is a step to push back against the litigious nature of opposition to land use cases and this pro-growth measure could have a positive impact on building more affordable housing.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Support

The bill expands the affordable housing tax credit by increasing the credit amounts that the Colorado housing and finance authority (authority) may allocate to qualified taxpayers by the following amounts:

• $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2024;
• $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2025;
• $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2026;
• $16,000,000 for credits allocated in 2027;
• $16,000,000 for credits allocated in 2028;
• $16,000,000 for credits allocated in 2029;
• $10,000,000 for credits allocated in 2030; and
• $10,000,000 for credits allocated in 2031.

The bill also accelerates the credit by requiring that a qualified taxpayer claim 70% of the total amount of the credit awarded by the authority in the first year of the credit period and claim 6% of the total amount of the credit awarded by the authority in each of the second through sixth years of the credit period.

Rationale: This new bill, an effort to expand a current tax credit aimed at incentivising developers and builders for more affordable housing, a tool most often used by CHFA. In theory, this bill is one the KAPS council can get behind, and we recommend a support position in alignment with the BOLD initiative goals. However, we also recognize the funding mechanism for this bill will be via a reduction in TABOR refunds to taxpayers, which caused some concern among members and is recognized as a conversation that needs to be had outside of this one bill.

CLICK TO READ BILL | FACT SHEET

Arvada Chamber Position: Support

The bill authorizes the department of education to commission a financial study (study) with an independent contractor to analyze the costs to provide students the opportunity to obtain college credits, industry credentials, and work-based learning experiences. The study must also include an analysis on the effects of consolidating certain postsecondary and workforce readiness programs, including costs and opportunities for savings to the state and school districts, district charter schools, institute charter schools, and boards of cooperative services (local education providers). The bill requires the office to submit an interim report on January 15, 2025, and an annual report on education and workforce readiness beginning April 15, 2026, and each April 15 thereafter, to the general assembly, the state board of education, and the governor summarizing the education and workforce outcomes and postsecondary and workforce programs using the data system.

Rationale: Coming out as the first in a series of bills from the Governor’s Office, we support the efforts of the 1215 task force to make recommendations on how to improve and streamline efforts to improve workforce readiness. By looking at what is working, and needs to be replicated across the state, we feel positive that this 1-year study is prudent to produce the needed roadmap for future changes to increase efficiencies in the current system.

CLICK TO READ BILL | FACT SHEET

Arvada Chamber Position: Support

To maximize investments flowing into Colorado and meet the workforce needs of the next decade,
HB24-1365 will accomplish three main goals:

• Continue the critical and ongoing work of Opportunity Now through a
  one-time general fund investment of $3.8M. By investing an additional round of
  funding into the Opportunity Now program, with a focus on infrastructure and building
  trades, Colorado makes an important investment in the workforce needed to build more
  housing now and meet our clean energy goals in Colorado.
• Expand the Opportunity Now program’s scope of resources by leveraging
  $15M in refundable tax credits to support workforce development. Eligible
  training programs will help train Coloradans to meet increased occupational demand
  from federal investment including the IIJA, IRA, and CHIPS. This refundable tax credit
  will support qualified applicants in increasing their training capacity and capabilities so
  that Colorado has the workforce needed to respond to federal investments as they break
  ground and achieve statewide priorities.
• Establish the Regional Talent Summit grant program to continue Colorado’s
  locally-driven workforce development innovation. Supported by a one-time $200K grant
  program, these summits will allow for industry, business associations, community-based
  organizations, talent development practitioners, local workforce centers, local education
  providers, institutions of higher education, and state agencies to identify the unique
  regional workforce and resource needs across Colorado

Rationale: We support this $4 million dollar investment to the current state gran program in workforce development for careers in the building trades and construction, and also that provides tax credits to programs for workforce training and development and also sets up regional workforce summits for industry, business community, and higher education to convene about workforce development across the state. While it carries a hefty price tag, we hope this bill will make it through appropriations for all the support it can give to developing a talent pipeline.

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Arvada Chamber Position: Support

For income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, but before January 1, 2035, section 1 of the bill creates a refundable state income tax credit (tax credit) that an employer may claim if the employer employs an apprentice for at least 6 months during an income tax year and either has a registered apprenticeship program or is an employer-partner of a registered apprenticeship program. The amount of the tax credit is up to $6,300 for 6 months of employment plus up to $1,050 for each consecutive additional month of employment, for a maximum of up to $12,600 per apprentice per income tax year. An employer may not claim a credit for:

• More than 10 apprentices per income tax year;
• The same apprentice for more than 24 consecutive months; and
• An apprentice for months when the apprentice did not receive wages from the employer.

Rationale: As a part of the Governor’s Workforce package of bills, we offer support for this bill as it aligns with the Chamber’s investment in workforce development in sectors outside of construction with apprenticeship programs. The bill offers tax credits and support for workforce training facilities and creates regional workforce summits across the state, including more local input in decision-making.