Constitution proposal dead
A call for a 2008 ballot measure asking citizens to make it harder to change the Colorado Constitution was defeated by a Senate panel Monday.
The proposal from Rep. Al White, R-Winter Park, and Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver, would have required a margin of three-fifths of votes – 60 percent – to change the constitution. The standard now is a simple majority.
The measure passed the House last week 46-16, the first time in four years the proposal made it out of one chamber of the legislature.
Critics said lawmakers should spend the next year holding public forums to gather enough support to pass the measure at the polls.
The Senate Judiciary Committee killed the resolution Monday before it could be heard by the full Senate, which failed to pass a similar measure last year by one vote.
Cyberschool bill advances
The House Education Committee advanced legislation to oversee cyberschools, including creating a state division on online learning.
Senate Bill 215 sets up a four-person online division in the Colorado Department of Education and charges it with creating quality standards for online programs.
The legislation comes after a December state audit criticizing online programs for lax oversight and misspending.
The measure now goes to the Appropriations Committee. It already has passed the Senate.
Amend. 41 proposal dropped
Two senators dropped their proposal to put an Amendment 41 fix on the 2008 ballot.
Senate President pro tem Peter Groff, D-Denver, and Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany, R-Colorado Springs, had introduced a ballot proposal to repeal and re-enact the ethics law.
The proposal was a constitutional rewrite of Amendment 41 to clarify that its ban on gifts applies only to public officials.
Groff said they filed the measure in case it was needed this session. But the governor already has signed a law that sets up an ethics panel to hear Amendment 41 complaints and attempts to clear up confusion over the new law.
Illegal-immigrant bill wins vote
The House passed a bill aimed at making sure illegal immigrants arrested in Colorado stay here long enough to face charges.
House Bill 1040 would close a loophole that allows the dismissal of criminal charges for people who are voluntarily deported, said Rep. Amy Stephens, R-Monument.
Rep. Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs, said the measure would stop deported, illegal immigrants from returning to Colorado with a clean record.
Opponents said it would lead to racial profiling.
The measure needs final approval from the House before going to the Senate.
