2016 Grand Junction Area Chamber Legislative Trip Participants
The Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee has been hard at work taking action on various pieces of proposed legislation that will impact businesses. Shown below are some of the bills we are following and commenting on:
HB16-1119 – (Thurlow/Hobert)
This bill extends a sales tax exemption that already exists on large aircraft refurbishment projects. Currently the projects have to be finished within 120 days to be eligible for the sales tax exemption. This bill extends the time frame to 30 days past the completion of the work. It allows all aircraft repair companies in the state, Grand Junction’s West Star Aviation in particular, to work on larger, more extensive projects. Currently, West Star employs over 400 people in Grand Junction. This bill will help them continue to grow and create more jobs.
Chamber supports
HB16-1114 – (DelGrosso/Ulibarri)
Repeal Duplicate Reporting Standards
SB16-076 – (Ulibarri/DelGrosso)
Repeal Employment Verification Law
Both bills are identical and repeal Colorado’s Employment Verification Standards, which require filing the CDLE’s Affirmation of Legal Work Status form for each employee and the retention and production of each employee’s Federal I-9 form, subject to penalties of up to $25,000. The state paperwork is duplicative since the I-9 pretty much does the job.
Chamber supports
HB16-1001 – (Danielson & Buckner)
State Contractor Certify Compliance with Equal Pay Laws
A business with more than 50 employees that bids for a government contract must certify compliance with state and federal equal pay standards. Knowingly submitting false information results in contract termination. While most of the bill’s equal pay standards are already covered by state or federal law, the bill adds significant record keeping burdens, requires prime contractors to be responsible for the labor practices of their subcontractors and contains no due process provisions.
Chamber opposes
SB16-067 – (Scheffel/Williams)
This bill creates a property tax exemption for any locally assessed personal property that a broadband provider acquires on or after January 1, 2016 who builds broadband networks capable of providing at least 10 mbps download x 1 mbps upload broadband speeds. It is intended to promote future capital investment to connect unserved customers to high speed internet access. This is a vital infrastructure for retaining and attracting companies to our area.
Chamber supports
Click here to download full version of the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce March 2016 Newsletter.