Since our last newsletter things have gotten a little more interesting. Things are still a little slow because many bills are waiting for the Appropriations Committee. Final revenue projections will be out on Wednesday and Democrats are still saying that bills that bring in revenue that will cause a tax refund due to TABOR limitations will not survive the House. However I can tell you there are exceptions to that. I had an asset collection bill that was a survivor and is now on its way to the Senate.
Both sides of the political parties have left me a little irritated the past couple of weeks. House Democrats killed a bill by Rep. Lois Landgraf that made it a crime to kill a baby that survives a late-term abortion. A witness who survived such a procedure was an excellent witness. I cannot understand how anyone can justify their vote on this. In my five years in the House this is absolutely the most disturbing thing I have encountered.
Not to let Senate Republicans off the hook either. Sen. Ellen Roberts and I had HB 1078 that would have expanded the Teen Dropout Prevention Program in Delta, Mesa and Montrose counties to become a statewide program. The program has been in effect since 1995 when these counties had the highest teen age pregnancy rates in the state. The program does not provide birth control or abortion, but simply uses education to teach young teens to understand the consequences of unprotected sex. Abstinence is encouraged in the education process. Currently there are 393 teens enrolled in the program and there have been only three instances of fathering a child or a pregnancy. This program would also save taxpayers about $1 million in unexpended services that would be spent with a higher pregnancy rate. I really do not know why this bill was killed in the Senate Finance Committee as it had bipartisan support in the House.
Water issues continue to have a lot of activity. The flex water bill in my mind creates a very new water right by requiring just one appearance in Water Court, after which water rights owners could change their use any time. Even though it was a pilot program with a limited number, this is a direct attack on the Prior Appropriation Doctrine. The problem is that those who want to change their use of water have to prove that their actions would cause harm to other water rights. This bill would reverse how water law has been implemented since before Colorado was even a state. I am very thankful for Senate Republicans for killing this bill.
Another bill that has me concerned is an in-stream flow that only applies to the area west of the Continental Divide. This is a new version of a bill that was vetoed by the governor last year. Although better than last year’s version, it is still not something that I can support. Once again, I am confident that it will die in the Senate. These bills that create new water rights are a great concern to me. Another bill that seems to be getting the cart before the horse concerns high ground water on the South Platte. In testimony we heard that not only do they want to pump water to lower the water table, but actually put it to beneficial use. Once again, I am thankful for the Senate Republicans who I think will kill this bill.
Don Coram represents House District 58 in Colorado’s General Assembly. Contact Rep. Coram by phone at (303) 866-2955 or by e-mail at don.coram.house@state.co.us.