A state Senate committee unanimously voted to postpone a bill that would have altered the way damages for construction defects in residences are handled.
Senate Bill 246 would have overturned a 2008 Colorado Supreme Court decision holding that pre-judgment interest begins accruing in construction-defect actions on the date the defect is repaired or the property is replaced.
Bill sponsor Sen. John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, considered proposing an amendment to complete a study of the bill but decided against it because it would have cost taxpayers money. “We need to get both groups together and get to the bottom line and bring it back next year,” Morse said. “I regret that homeowners will have to wait another year.”
Opponents have said the bill would have a chilling effect on residential development in Colorado, but supporters, including many home owners, said builders should be financially responsible for shoddy work.
Bill opponent Bob Moody, vice president of government affairs for commercial-real-estate-development association NAIOP Colorado, said he is pleased with the outcome and expects a compromise can be reached.
“This is a subject that needs fixing,” Moody said. “This bill we fundamentally oppose, but the underlying system is broken and needs fixing. If a homeowner has a legitimate defect, he deserves to get it fixed.”
Margaret Jackson: 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com
Senate Bill 246
It would have allowed homeowners who bring legal claims for construction defects against their builders to receive 6 percent interest on collections for a defect from the time they buy the house and 8 percent after the legal process begins.
