S_JUD_2022A 05/03/2022 03:24:53 PM Committee Summary

Senator Winter, bill sponsor, presented House Bill 22-1119, concerning civil liability for presenting false claims for payment to the state, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation. 

 

 

Jan Zavislan, representing Department of Law, testified in support of the bill.  He discussed the federal False Claims Act and whistleblower standards.

Jefferey Riester, representing Department of Law, was available to answer committee questions.

Committee members asked questions abou the stakeholder process and reporting requirements. 

Senator Winter distributed and explained Amendment L.008 (Attachment A). 

Senator Winter made closing remarks.

Senator Winter, bill sponsor, presented House Bill 22-1367, concerning updates to employment discrimination laws.  She explained that the bill will cover older and domestic workers. 

Iris Halpern, representing Colorado Women's Bar Association (CWBA), testified in support of the bill.  She discussed the bill's application to domestic workers and others. 

Committee members asked questions about domestic workers and gender. 

 

 

Rachel Ellis, representing Colorado Plaintiff Employment Lawyers Association, testified in support of the bill.  She spoke about the bill's timeline. 

Ms. Kelly McCullough, representing Disability Law Colorado, testified in support of the bill. She discussed reasons for extending the filing timeline.

Ms Jeanette Hensley, representing Colorado Center for Aging, testified in support of the bill.  She discussed age discrimination and the increase of older adults in the work force. 

Committee members asked questions about age discrimination. 

JoyAnn Ruscha, representing Arc Thrift Stores & Colorado Cross Disability Coalition, testified in support of the bill. She discussed age discrimination.

Christine Breen, representing Plaintiff Employment Lawyer's Association, testified in support of the bill.

Senator Winter made closing remarks. 

Senators Winter and Priola, co-prime sponsors, presented House Bill 22-1376, concerning supportive learning environments for K-12 students, and in connection therewith, making an appropriation.  

Committee members asked questions about district-level data points and POST training.  Discussion ensued about disaggregating student identity information.  Further questions were asked about data protection, collection, and security. 

 

 

Mrs. Sarah Hunt, representing Charter Advocacy Coalition, testified to amend the bill. She raised concerns about student privacy access and equity. 

Committee members asked questions about data security and parental consent. 

Ms. Jennifer Levin, representing The Arc of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. She discussed children with disabilities and physical restraints used at schools. 

Ms. Pam Bisceglia, representing Advocacy Denver, testified in support of the bill. She discussed parental complaints about physical restraints.

Ms. Dawn Fritz, representing Parent Teacher Association, testified in support of the bill.

Committee members asked questions to the panel about the use of physical restraints on students. 

Ms. Leslie Colwell, representing Colorado Children's Campaign, testified in support of the bill.

Veronica Bell, representing self, testified in support of the bill.

Benjamin Teevan, representing Stand for Children, testified in support of the bill.  He discussed school resource officers and data collection. 

 

Committee questioning of the witness panel continued.

 

The bill sponsors distributed and explained Amendments L.015 and L. 017 (Attachments B and C). 

Senator Gardner distributed Amendment L.016 (Attchment D).

Members of the committee discussed the amendment.

The committee took a brief recess.

The committee returned to order.

The bill was laid over to later in the calendar.

Senator Gardner, bill sponsor, presented House Bill 22-1386, concerning measures related to competency to proceed, and in, connection therewith, making an appropriation. 

Timothy Lane, representing the Colorado District Attorneys’ Council, was available to answer committee questions.

Mr. James Karbach, representing the Colorado State Public Defender's Office, testified in support of the bill.

Jagruti Shah, representing Colorado Department of Human Services, Office of Behavioral Health, testified in support of the bill.  She explained that the bill adds strategies to decrease the competency restoration waitlist.

Kristin Melton, representing Colorado Department of Human Services, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the competency waitlist.

Senator Hansen made closing remarks.

Senator Cooke, bill sponsor, presented House Bill 22-1063, concerning creation of a jail standards commission to standardize the operation of Colorado jails, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation.   He explained how the bill evolved and discussed the commission, as created in the bill. 

 

 

Senator Gonzales, bill sponsor, presented House Bill 22-1311, concerning measures to reduce justice-involvement for young children, and in connection therewith, focus on prevention and age-appropriate interventions and making an appropriation.  She discussed a strike-below amendment from the House that relocates the study group on this topic to the Department of Human Services (DHS) .   She distributed a document from the Colorado Youth Justice Collaborative (Attachment E). 

 

Ms. Jessica Dotter, representing Colorado District Attorneys' Council, testified in opposition to the bill. She suggested the study group be located in the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice (CCJJ) instead of DHS.

Mrs. Katharina Booth, representing 20th JD District Attorney's Office - Boulder County, testified in opposition to the bill.  She addressed the location of the study group and the related timeline.

Tom Raynes, representing Colorado District Attorneys Council, testified in opposition to the bill. He discussed the benefits of housing the study group in the CCJJ and distributed handout about the CCJJ (Attachment F). 

Committee discussion followed about  the CCJJ, the proposed study group focus, and the time frame to complete the study. 

 

Committee members asked questions about the CCJJ and juveniles. Further discussion ensued about county commissioner opposition to the bill and unfunded mandates.

Senator Gardner distributed Amendment L. 036 which houses the study group in the CCJJ (Attachment G ). 

Ms. Dotter explained the amendment. 

Committee members asked questions about the CCJJ workload and structure. 

 

Discussion ensued about diversion and restorative justice.

Commander Dutch Smith, representing Colorado Association of the Chiefs of Police - Lakewood PD, testified in opposition to the bill. He explained his support for the CCJJ. 

Ms. Dafna Gozani, representing National Center for Youth Law, testified in support of the bill. She discussed the benefits of housing the study group in DHS.

Dr. Carly Muller, representing Colorado Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, testified in support of the bill. She supported the study group in DHS.

Ms. Elise Logemann, representing American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. She emphasized that the bill is crafted to answer questions about 10 to 12 year olds who are not prosecuted. 

Committee discussion followed about committees that are not under CCJJ.  Questions were raised about how to find services for juveniles who are also victims and alternatives to detention. 

 

Ms. Sheri Danz, representing Office of the Child's Representative, testified in support of the bill.  She discussed the youth voice.

Meighen Lovelace, representing Colorado Cross Disability Coalition, testified in support of the bill.

Dr. Grace Cheney, representing Colorado Psychiatric Society & Colorado Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Society, testified in support of the bill.

Mr. Stuart Jenkins, representing Healthier Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

Senator Gardner revisited Amendment  L. 036 about relocating the study group in the CCJJ (Attachment G). 

Senator Gonzales made closing comments. 

The bill sponsors requested that the bill be routed ot the Senate Finance Committee in order to work on an amendment regarding data privacy.

Senator Bridges, bill sponsor, explained House Bill 22-1353, concerning the coordination of state public safety communications, and, in connection therewith, transferring the powers, duties, and functions related to such coordination from the Office of Information Technology to the Department of Public Safety.  

Fire Chief Justin Kirkland, representing Consolidated Communications Network of Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

Chief Information Officer and Executive Director Anthony Neal - Graves, representing Governor's Office of Information Technology, testified in support of the bill.

Director - Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Kevin Klein, representing Colorado Department of Public Safety, testified in support of the bill.

Senator Bridges made closing remarks. 

Senator Fields and Simpson, co-prime sponsors, presented House Bill 22-1240, concerning enhancing mandatory reporting for people requird to report child abuse, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation.  They discussed a task force to make recommendations for mandatory reporters, including instructions and other efficiencies. 

Ms. Jordan Steffen, representing Office of Colorado's Child Protection Ombudsman, testified in support of the bill. infrastructure of the system. many calls with questions about mandatory reporting.

The bill sponsors made closing remarks. 

Senator Lee, bill sponsor, explained House Bill 22-1383, concerning increasing the workforce by removing barriers to employment opportunities for juveniles. 

Elise Logemann, representing ACLU of Colorado, testified in support of the bill.

The bill sponsor made closing comments.