Highlights from the Legislature on Friday:
— The Senate began debate on a package of 13 bills that would suspend or eliminate 13 tax credits and exemptions.
— The House killed a bill (House Bill 1159) that would have required a water judge in cross-division transfers of water to protect the users in the water division from which the water is being transferred.
— The House Transportation & Energy Committee backed a measure (House Bill 1001) that would require large utility companies to generate nearly one-third of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. The bill, one of the top priorities this year for Gov. Bill Ritter. It now goes to the House Appropriations Committee.
New Bills
— Reduce foreclosure sale dates from 125 days to as low as 40 days if the property has been abandoned (House Bill 1249).
— Bar the sale of personal care products that contain cancer-causing chemicals (House Bill 1248).
— Create an income tax credit to provide incentives to Colorado businesses to rehire laid-off workers (Senate Bill 133).
— Require high school students to get a passing score on an assessment before being allowed to graduate (House Bill 1254).
— Create scholarship programs for green jobs for schooling in environmentally friendly growth industries (House Bill 1262).
— Make it a crime to harm unborn children (House Bill 1261).
— Provide incentives for state employees who provide cost-saving suggestions (House Bill 1264).
— Require the Legislative Audit Committee to create a task force to review executive branch departments and identify redundancies, abuse, fraud and potential cost savings (Senate Bill 164).
— Require stores to redeem gift cards for cash if the balance is $5 or less (Senate Bill 155).
— Protect mobile home owners from eviction so they don’t lose their equity (Senate Bill 156).
— Exempt low-income cell-phone users from paying a surcharge for emergency calls (Senate Bill 135).
