Highlights from the Legislature on Monday.
— The House approved and sent to the Senate on a 63-0 vote a bill allowing Secretary of State Mike Coffman to retest and recertify the electronic voting equipment he disqualified last month.
— The House approved and sent to the Senate on a 63-0 vote a measure (House Bill 1048) reducing the size of the state seal after lawmakers learned that no one makes dies the size of the original anymore.
— Legislators took their session to the Internet and a local television, hoping Coloradans want to know more about how the Legislature works. House Speaker Andrew Romanoff, D-Denver, called it “Colorado Open House. It’s on the Internet at coloradochannel.net when the Legislature is in session and on Comcast Digital Cable Channel 165.
— The Senate Business, Labor & Technology Committee backed the appointment of environmentalist Matt Baker, a Democrat, and regulatory attorney James Tarpey, a Republican, to the Public Utilities Commission. The committee voted 5-2 in favor of Baker and 6-1 for Tarpey. The full Senate will vote on the nominations.
New Bills Introduced
— Bar state agencies from buying compost unless the company complies with all permits and regulations.
— Provide unemployment insurance for a spouse who relocates with a member of the active military.
— Require dogs and cats be sterilized before being released from an animal shelter or pet animal rescue.
— Require police to arrest a person if they believe the person has a forged driver’s license or permit and bar illegal immigrants from driving.
— Double the number of Colorado State Patrol officers in immigration enforcement from 24 to 48.
— Bar state employees from selecting a union to be the exclusive representative of all state employees.
— Require all employers to verify that new hires are not illegal immigrants.
— Require police to confiscate any cigarettes or tobacco products possessed by a minor.
