Highlights from the Legislature on Tuesday:
— The House State, Veterans & Military Affairs Committee approved a bill that would require companies that hire people to circulate initiative petitions to be licensed in Colorado. House Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver, says concerns were raised in recent elections about the use of paid petition circulators, some from out of state. The bill (House Bill 1326) also would require that circulators be trained so they can comply with petition laws. The bill now goes to Appropriations.
— The House approved Senate Bill 36, which cracks down on bootleg recordings, and sent it back to the Senate for consideration of amendments. Selling pirated recordings currently is a misdemeanor. The bill would also make it a crime to transport such recordings. Violators caught with 100 or fewer recordings would be fined at least $100; those with 100 or more would be fined at least $1,000. Prosecutors could also ask a judge for permission to destroy the recordings and confiscate the recording equipment.
— Senate Democrats talked about the possibility of taking millions of dollars from the state’s workers’ compensation insurer to help plug a $786 million shortfall in next year’s budget. Senate Majority Leader Brandon Shaffer said he was also working on a proposal to study the effects of selling the profitable Pinnacol Assurance or bringing it back under state control.
— The Senate voted 32-0 to pass a measure (Senate Bill 37) that would save businesses about $10 million a year by getting rid of a surcharge they must pay on their workers’ compensation insurance to support two related state funds. Lawmakers have taken money from the funds to balance the budget following the 2001 recession and during the current recession. Businesses have continued to pay the surcharge on their premiums to increase those funds to pay for future possible claims. The bill now heads to the House.
