H_BUS_2016A 03/24/2016 01:43:47 PM Committee Summary

01:44 PM -- HB 16-1048



Representative Primavera introduced House Bill 16-1048. The bill as introduced, recommended by the Interim Committee to Study Vocational Rehabilitative Services for the Blind, removes the exemption for property owned, leased or occupied by higher education institutions or the state fair authority for priority to persons who are blind and licensed vendors to operate vending facilities through the Business Enterprise Program (BEP). The bill also expands the scope of the program so that persons who are blind may also operate businesses other than vending facilities on state property. Lastly, the bill also makes conforming amendments to comply with federal law.



Representative Primavera provided the committee with copies of a Legislative Council Staff memo (Attachment A), amendment L.001 (Attachment B), amendment L.002 (Attachment C), and amendment L.003 (Attachment D).



160324 AttachA.pdf160324 AttachB.pdf160324 AttachC.pdf160324 AttachD.pdf



Representative Primavera responded to questions from the committee.



01:53 PM -- Scott LaBarre, National Federation of the Blind of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. Mr. LaBarre responded to questions from the committee.











02:03 PM -- Dan Whalen, Colorado Business Enterprise Program, testified in support of the bill.



02:05 PM -- Gary Nelson, representing himself, spoke about his experience as an operator in the Business Enterprise Program and testified in support of the bill.



02:08 PM -- Dan Burke, National Federation of the Blind of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Burke responded to questions from the committee.



02:12 PM -- Rich Schweigert, Colorado State University, responded to questions from the committee.



02:15 PM -- Pat Teegarden, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, responded to questions from the committee.

02:19 PM



Representative Primavera made closing remarks on the bill.

02:23 PM



The committee took a brief recess.



02:26 PM



The committee reconvened.



02:26 PM -- SB 16-058



Representative K. Becker introduced Senate Bill 16-058. The reengrossed bill modifies the "Colorado Cottage Foods Act," which allows homemade food producers to sell certain food products directly to consumers. Current law divides the tyes of products that may be sold by producers into two tiers and specifies the foods that comprise each tier. The bill eliminates the tiered system and the State Board of Health's authority to make rules governing the production of tier two foods, which currently consist of pickled vegetables. The bill expands the type of foods that may be sold by producers under the Cottage Foods Act to include other nonpotentially hazardous foods and encourages a producer to take a food safety course.





The bill also expands the provisions of the Custom Processing of Meat Animals Act, which regulates the slaughter and processing of certain animals for human consumption, to include the processing of poultry, and exempts producers who raise and slaughter up to 1,000 poultry each calendar year from the provisions of the act. Poultry producers exempted from the Custom Processing of Meat Animals Act must continue to comply with the acts requirements related to record keeping and labeling. In order to qualify for the exemption, the producer must not buy or sell poultry products other than those produced on the producer's own farm, the poultry must be properly labeled, be healthy when slaughtered, be slaughtered under sanitary practices, and can only be sold in Colorado.



02:29 PM -- Brent Boydson, Colorado Farm Bureau, testified on the bill from a neutral position. Mr. Boydson responded to questions from the committee.



02:35 PM -- Representative Becker read the written testimony of JM Fay in support of the bill.



02:38 PM -- Alan Lewis, Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, testified in support of the bill. Mr. Lewis responded to questions from the committee.



02:48 PM -- Kate Kavanaugh, Western Daughters Butcher Shoppe, testified in support of the bill.



02:53 PM -- Bill Midcap, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, testified in support of the bill.



The committee received a copy of written testimony from the Western Colorado Congress (Attachment E).



160324 AttachE.pdf

160324 AttachF.pdf





02:56 PM



Representative Becker made closing remarks on the bill.

03:00 PM



The committee adjourned.