I_COYACRev_2019A 07/26/2019 02:02:00 PM Committee Summary

The five Colorado Youth Advisory Council (COYAC) youth representatives - Xavier Ada, Faiza Shaik, Colton Arciniaga, Andrew Schwartz, and Emma Logan - introduced themselves to the committee. The legislative members of the committee introduced themselves.

The chair provided opening remarks to the committee.

Jacob Baus, Office of Legislative Legal Services, introduced himself and legal staff.  He discussed the bill drafting process and deadlines.  He responded to questions from the chair about his office and how it operates.  Senator Court further explained the role of legislative drafting.

Aaron Carpenter, Legislative Council Staff, introduced himself and committee staff and reviewed the committee's charge memo (Attachment A).  He explained the fiscal note process and discussed what fiscal notes look like. Senator Court further discussed the fiscal note process.

Mr. Carpenter responded to a question from Mr. Ada about the time frame for drafting fiscal notes.

Senator Coram, participating by phone, introduced himself to the committee.

Mr. Schwartz and Ms. Logan presented COYAC's first policy recommendation regarding a youth budget. Committee members received a sample youth budget from San Mateo County, California (Attachment A).

Mr. Schwartz explained the benefits of a youth budget tool for citizens and legislators.

Ms. Logan explained that COYAC hopes to work with the General Assembly to develop a youth budget.

Ms. Logan responded to questions from Senator Court about the proposed youth budget and how it would be developed and published.  Discussion continued with Mr. Schwartz regarding how K-12 education funding would be presented.

Senator Court discussed the proposal, suggesting that the budget items be presented in aggregate as a starting point. Mr. Ada suggested that there would also be benefits to spelling out greater specifics in the youth budget, such as mental health programs within K-12 education. Representative McKean noted that because of local control of education, the committee would need to know what categories of spending schools and districts report to the state.

Ms. Logan discussed the possible definitions of "youth," noting that in the sample youth budgets they found, some focused on school-age, others chose those under 18 years old, and others extended the definition up to age 24. Senator Court suggested that K-12 possibly be excluded from the youth budget.

Mr. Schwartz and Ms. Logan responded to the committee's discussion, particularly regarding the inclusion of K-12 education spending.

Representative McKean explained that the budget would need to consider which departments to include and what reporting to require.

Mr. Arciniaga and Ms. Logan discussed the inclusion of rural areas in the budget.

Members of the committee commented about how policy decisions are made and the best places to go for information. Discussion ensued about a two-step process for the panelists' proposal.  Ms. Shaik asked about how money is spent and how important it is to define the term "youth." Discussion continued on this matter. Ms. Logan expressed her opinion that youth should encompass children from birth through the age of 18 to cover the nonvoting population. Ms. Shaik discussed the Colorado 9 to 25 Council and wondered why that age range is important for the council.

Representative McKean provided a summary of the presentation and talked about next steps.

Mr. Arciniaga presented COYAC's second policy recommendation, which would allow any member of the General Assembly to ask for a COYAC youth impact statement for legislation that affects youth.  COYAC would not take a position on bills, but would do research and provide an unbiased analysis of how the bill impacts youth in Colorado.

Representative McKean asked how COYAC would go about determining what bills would be analyzed. He expressed concern that if the analysis is voluntary, that it might not be utilized. He also talked about the importance of using empirical and nonpartisan evidence. Mr. Ariciniaga stated that the entire mission of COYAC is to do empirical research on legislation. Representative Buentello commented about the importance of separating individual perspectives from empirical facts. Mr. Ariciniaga spoke about the intent behind the youth impact statement.

Ms. Logan asked whether a youth impact statement would be more or less effective than youth coming to the Capitol to testify. The members of the committee commented about what is more effective for them. Representative Court asked why a law is necessary to require the legislature to listen to youth. The committee discussed the privilege inherent in being able to come to the Capitol and the disenfranchisement of youth from the legislative process.

Senator Court summarized the discussion about how youth do not feel heard and how that can be changed. Mr. Ariciniaga acknowledged and responded to questions and concerns about his proposal. Representative McKean provided a list of next steps to consider.

Mr. Ada and Ms. Shaik presented COYAC's policy recommendation #3, which looks at other youth advisory councils in state departments. They explained how these councils work and what their missions are. They talked about methodology and highlighted the use of a positive youth development (PYD) approach. They suggested some guidelines for the councils in state departments.

Mr. Ada and Ms. Shaik responded to comments and questions from the committee about what legislation is required to implement this proposal. Discussion continued on this topic. Representative McKean summarized the main points of the discussion and provided some things for the panel to consider with regard to their proposal.

Representative McKean talked about future meetings. A meeting was set for October 18 at 2:00 p.m.