Sen. Jack Tate

Tax Expenditure Evaluation Interim Study Committee. Under current law, the sales tax exemption for energy use exempts the sale and purchase of electricity, gas, fuel oil, steam, coal, coke, or nuclear fuel used in processing, manufacturing, mining, refining, irrigation, construction, telegraph, telephone, and radio communication, street and railroad transportation services, and all industrial uses, and newsprint and printer's ink used by newspaper publisher and commercial printers from state sales tax. The bill modifies this sales exemption to only apply when the energy is used by a metered machine.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current law allows the Colorado economic development commission to allow, subject to an annual maximum program amount, certain businesses that make a $100 million strategic capital investment in the state, and subject to the requirements of the specified income tax credits, to treat any of the following income tax credits allowed to the business as either carry forwardable for a 5-year period or transferable: Colorado job growth incentive tax credit; Enterprise zone income tax credit for investment in certain property; Income tax credit for new enterprise zone business employees; and Enterprise zone income tax credit for expenditures for research and experimental activities. This bill extends this program for another 3 years. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Tax Expenditure Evaluation Interim Study Committee. The bill creates the legislative oversight committee concerning tax policy (committee), and the associated task force (task force). The committee is required to consider the policy considerations contained in the tax expenditure evaluations prepared by the state auditor and is responsible for the oversight of the task force. The committee may recommend legislative changes that are treated as bills recommended by an interim legislative committee. The task force is required to study tax policy and develop and propose for committee consideration any modifications to the current system of state and local taxation. The task force is also authorized, upon request by a committee member, to provide evidence-based feedback on the potential benefits or consequences of a legislative or other policy proposal not directly affiliated with or generated by the task force, including any bill or resolution introduced by the general assembly that affects tax policy. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Statutory Revision Committee. The bill clarifies that electrical inspection fees charged by the state electrical board, which are generally based on the actual expense of the inspection, may be doubled if an application for an electrical permit is not filed in advance of the commencement of an electrical installation.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Joint Technology Committee. The bill allows the chief information officer of the office of information technology to hire information technology product managers, designers, engineers, and other staff to support the delivery of citizen-facing digital services and other information technology projects across state government.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill modifies the "Regional Transportation District Act" (Act) as follows: Provides factors for the regional transportation district (district) to consider in making decisions about services, route planning, and rates; Prohibits the district from discriminating against people with disabilities in the provision of transportation services and prohibits discrimination against an individual on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, or national origin in the provision of transportation services. A person who is the subject of a violation of the prohibition can bring a civil suit in state district court. Authorizes the transportation legislation review committee to review the district's compliance with the Act, requires the district to comply with requests for information, and requires the committee to hear public testimony concerning the district's compliance with the prohibitions on discrimination; Adds 2 additional voting board members to be appointed by the governor for 3-year terms, one to represent constituents with disabilities and one with experience in equitable transportation planning; Adds the state treasurer and the executive director of the department of transportation as nonvoting ex-officio members of the board; Establishes contribution limits in the "Fair Campaign Practices Act" for candidates for the board of directors of the district; Requires the board to meet monthly instead of quarterly and to live broadcast its meetings whenever practicable, requires members to be physically present to vote except in the case of a documented medical condition, allows the board to adopt procedures related to the removal of an elected or appointed member, and requires the board to adopt procedures to reduce the compensation of a member who is absent from the member's official duties; Allows the district to provide commercial and retail services at its facilities; Requires the state auditor to conduct audits of the district's pension plans and unfunded pension liability, the district's organization structure and compensation, and the cost-efficiency and effectiveness of the district's competitive vehicular services policies; Provides whistle-blower protections to employees of the district and of entities contracting with the district, includes the district within the scope of the state auditor's fraud hotline, makes the district's directors and certain employees subject to ethics requirements of the state constitution, and clarifies that the district is subject to existing codes of conduct for public employees; and Amends other provisions related to the administration of the district.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill states that generally evidence relating to the discovery of, knowledge about, or potential disclosure of the victim's actual or perceived gender, gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation, including under circumstances in which the victim made an unwanted nonforcible romantic or sexual advance toward the defendant, or if the defendant and victim are or have been involved in an intimate relationship is irrelevant in a criminal case and does not constitute sudden heat of passion in a criminal case. The bill creates a protective hearing if a party claims that such evidence is relevant and wants to use it in a criminal case. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Current law includes an income tax credit for new business facility employees in enterprise zones for income tax years commencing prior to January 1, 2014. That statute, found in section 39-30-105, repealed on December 31, 2019. The income tax credit was replaced in 2013 with a modified income tax credit found in section 39-30-105.1, for tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2014. When the modified income tax credit was enacted, certain conforming amendments for the eventual repeal of section 39-30-105, were not made. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act: Makes corrections to the penalty for a taxpayer's failure to pay the correct amount of sales taxes due or for a taxpayer's failure to account for sales taxes correctly so that the statute reads the way the department of revenue applies the law; Changes the penalty section for use tax collections so that it is the same as for sales tax collections; legislative history makes clear that the legislature has intended these sections to be the same, but over the years bills revising these sections did not successfully align the 2 sections; and Repeals a temporary partial sales tax rate reduction for a new or used commercial truck, truck tractor, tractor, semitrailer, or vehicle used in combination therewith that has a gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 26,000 pounds. While the rate reduction could still be used, it is preempted by a full rate reduction for low-emitting vehicles in another statutory section. Any vehicle that could qualify for the temporary partial rate reduction in a TABOR refund year already qualifies for the full exemption from sales or use tax under the other section, so the partial rate reduction is not used.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under the act, no later than the effective date of the disconnection of a particular tract of land from a municipality, any vested property rights affecting the land that have been established by law prior to the date that are possessed by the owner of the tract are expired or relinquished. The act makes any tract of land that has been disconnected from a municipality, whether by means of an ordinance or a court decree, subject to the applicable county's zoning resolution and map and other land development regulations within 90 days after the effective date of the disconnection. The act specifies that any provision of the county's zoning resolution, zoning map, or zoning plan automatically applying a uniform zoning classification to all land that may be disconnected in the future is void and of no effect as to any particular tract of land. The county may institute the procedure specified in the Colorado Revised Statutes in its zoning resolution or zoning plan, or in its other land development regulations to allow the particular tract of land to obtain the necessary land entitlements at any time after the county receives the notice from the municipality regarding enactment of an ordinance disconnecting the tract from the municipality; except that the act prohibits any such zoning resolution, zoning plan, or other land development action from being enacted and made effective until the tract of land has been disconnected from the municipality. During the 90-day period, or such lesser time as is required to satisfy such requirement, the county may elect not to issue any building or occupancy permit for all or any portion of the land area that is the subject of the disconnection application. The act permits a county to commence the procedure specified in its own subdivision regulations to subdivide the tract of land that is the subject of the disconnection application at any time after the disconnection has been completed and the ordinance has been filed with the county clerk and recorder; except that the act prohibits the county from making a final decision approving the subdivision until zoning affecting the particular tract of land has been enacted. In connection with the disconnection process by court decree for statutory cities and statutory towns, respectively, the act requires any disconnected land to be made subject to the applicable county's zoning resolution and map and other land development regulations within 90 days after the effective date of the disconnection. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)