H_ED_2019A 04/11/2019 01:31:11 PM Committee Summary

Representatives Roberts and Jackson, co-sponsors, presented Senate Bill 19-002, concerning the regulation of student loan servicers. The bill requires student loan servicers to obtain a license from the Administrator of the Uniform Consumer Credit Code in the Department of Law. The bill also establishes the Student Loan Ombudsperson, within the Office of the Attorney General, to provide assistance to student loan borrowers by responding to complaints, analyzing data, and creating education materials and courses. The bill sponsors responded to questions from the committee.

The following people provided testimony:

Nikolai Frant, representing the Office of the Attorney General, responded to questions from the committee regarding the bill.

Kurt Morrison, representing the Office of the Attorney General, stated that the Attorney General supports the bill and answered questions from the committee.

Trey Rogers, representing Educational Credit Management Corporation, testified in opposition to the bill and distributed a copy of his testimony to the committee (Attachment A).

Anna Lee, representing herself, testified in support of the bill.

Charley Olena, New Era Colorado, testified in support of the bill and distributed letters from students to the committee (Attachment B).

Gabrielle Healy, representing herself, testified in support of the bill.

The above three-person panel responded to questions from the committee.

Jennifer Waller, representing Colorado Banker Association, testified in support of the bill.

Mary Marchun, representing Independent Bankers of Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

Ms. Waller and Ms. Marchum responded to questions from the committee.

Ryan Case, American Federation of Teachers, testified in support of the bill.

Representatives Jackson and Roberts made concluding comments on the bill, and committee discussion ensued.

The committee recessed.

The committee came back to order.

Representatives Sirota and Galindo presented House Bill 19-1249, concerning accountability and safety in school contracts. Testimony on the bill was taken on March 28, 2019. The bill sponsors distributed and explained Amendment L.009 (Attachment C), which strikes everything below the amending clause.

Shelby Ross, Office of Legislative Legal Services, responded to questions from the committee regarding the amendment.

The bill sponsors made concluding comments on the bill, and committee discussion ensued.

The committee recessed.

The committee came back to order.

Representatives McLachlan and Valdez, co-sponsors, presented Senate Bill 19-010, concerning professional behavioral health services for schools.  Under current law, the Behavioral Health Care Professional Matching Grant Program, also known as the School Health Professionals Grant Program, provides grants to local education providers (LEP) to increase the presence of school health professionals in schools, provide training for school staff on implementation of substance abuse prevention education, and connect students at risk for substance abuse with available services.  The bill modifies the program to allow grant funding to be used for behavioral health care services, including screenings, counseling, therapy, referrals to community organizations, and training for students and staff of behavioral health issues.  Representative McLachlan distributed a letter in support of the bill (Attachment D) to the committee and responded to committee questions.

Shelby Ross, Office of Legislative Legal Services, answered questions from the committee about the bill.  Representative McLachlan continued to respond to committee questions about which schools are included in the bill.

The following people provided testimony:

Kellan Oliver, representing himself as a student, testified in support of the bill.

Sarah Davidon, representing Mental Health Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

Mindy Vanderford, Crestone Freedom Project, testified in support of the bill.

Nicholas Judd, representing himself, testified in support of the bill.

The above four-person panel answered questions from the committee.

Evie Hudak, representing the Colorado Parent Teacher Association, testified in support of the bill.

Mallory Armstrong, representing National Association of Social Workers, testified in support of the bill.

Shelby Thonas, representing the National Association of Social Workers, testified in support of the bill.

Ann Marie Rossi, representing Be Mindful, testified in support of the bill.

The above four-person panel answered questions from the committee.

Sarah Barnes, representing the Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill.

Valerie Schlect, representing Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition, testified in support of the bill.

The bill sponsors made concluding comments on the bill, and committee discussion ensued.

The committee recessed.

The committee came back to order.

Representatives Exum and Buentello, co-sponsors, presented House Bill 19-1276, concerning the creation of the ninth grade success program in the Colorado Department of Education to provide grants to local education providers.  The bill specifies what the programs must include and what must be included in a grant application.  The bill sponsors distributed Amendments L.001 and L.002 (Attachments E and F) and responded to committee questions.

The following people provided testimony:

Meg Dubray, GOAL Academy, testified in support of the bill.

Acacia Simental, representing Stand for Children, testified in support of the bill.

Eulalia Mateo, representing Stand for Children, testified in support of the bill.

Samantha Nuechterlein, representing Education Reform Now, testified in support of the bill.

Karen Lewis, representing Advance Via Individual Determination (AVID), testified in support of the bill and distributed materials regarding AVID (Attachment G).

Kristen Lockwood, representing AVID, testified in support of the bill.

The above three-person panel answered questions from the committee.

Neisa Lynch, representing Collegiate Prep Academy, testified in support of the bill.

Katie Grace, representing Collegiate Prep Academy, testified in support of the bill.

Krista Spurgin, representing Stand for Children, testified in support of the bill.

The above three-person panel responded to questions from the committee.

Representative Exum explained Amendment L.001, and the bill sponsors answered questions from the committee.

Anna Gerstle, Legislative Council Staff, responded to questions from the committee regarding the amendment.

Representative Buentello explained Amendment L.002, and Ms. Gerstle answered questions from the committee.

The bill sponsors made concluding comments on the bill, and committee discussion ensued.

The committee recessed.

The committee came back to order.

Representatives Cutter and Wilson, co-sponsors, presented Senate Bill 19-189, concerning the continuation of the Concurrent Enrollment Advisory Board. The bill, which is a sunset bill, continues the board, which is scheduled to repeal on July 1, 2019.

Representative Wilson distributed and explained Amendment L.002 (Attachment H).

The bill sponsors made concluding comments on the bill.