9EB8AAE5DB05153C87258A590052CD2D Hearing Summary CLICS/CLICS2023A/commsumm.nsf PUBLICBILL SUMMARY For NON-FUNCTIONAL TURFJOINT COMMITTEE COMMITTEE ON WATER RESOURCES AND AGRICULTURE REVIEW COMMITTEEDate Oct 31, 2023 Location SCR 357 Non-functional Turf - Committee Discussion Only 09:04:26 AM Greg Fisher, Denver Water, introduced himself and his presentation. He spoke about the efforts of municipalities to invest in replacing turf grass and limiting grass in new developments. 09:05:16 AM Andy Hill, Denver Water, introduced himself and gave a description of non-functional turf, which is primarily ornamental. He told the committee that non-functional turf is often found in medians and along sidewalks. He spoke about the value of green spaces and does not want these spaces to be lost. He discussed the bill draft that was requested by the committee and testified that it is well balanced. 09:15:43 AM Lindsay Rogers, Western Resource Advocates, introduced herself and her presentation. She spoke about the need to reduce municipal outdoor water demand through the limitation of non-functional turf and the recent policy developments and funding efforts that have focused on this issue. She told the committee about the current Turf Replacement Program status, which is expected to fund up to 50 entities' projects. She discussed potential future policy opportunities. 09:22:13 AM Heather Stauffer, Colorado Municipal League, introduced herself and her presentation. She spoke about efforts by municipalities to remove and reduce the use of turf in Colorado and provided a list of places where turf removal is taking place. She told the committee about partnerships between municipalities and nonprofits to offer water conservation and lawn replacement services. She discussed the future work that can be done to support ongoing efforts. 09:29:31 AM Marshall Brown, Aurora Water, introduced himself. He told the committee about Aurora's developer incentives, but he explained that the development community continued to install non-functional turf. He told them that this is why Aurora banned installation of non-functional turf in new developments. He discussed the need for some local control over non-functional turf. 09:35:18 AM The panel responded to questions from the committee regarding the benefits of some green space in communities, the time it would take to recoup the costs for replacing turf grass, concerns with artificial turf, how other states are approaching non-functional turf, and limiting turf in residential areas.