Central Colorado residents are invited to join a 2022 Legislative Session Wrap Up Virtual Town Hall by Colorado Senator Kerry Donovan, Rep. Dylan Roberts and Rep. Julie McKluskie from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday, May 23.
Register here to get the Zoom link or tune in on Facebook Live here.
The trio of Western Colorado legislators plans to review the major 2022 Session Highlights and will take questions from the town hall audience. Here are some of the highlights with impact for rural counties:
- Strongest investment in K-12 education in over a decade
- Fully-funded preschool starting in 2023
- Property tax savings for every homeowner and business
- The largest single-year investment in affordable housing in Colorado history
- Major reforms and funding for behavioral and mental health services
- Preparing our state for wildfire and bills to protect our land, air, and water
- Over $1billion in fee and tax relief for Coloradans and small businesses
- Support for agriculture, ranchers, and rural Colorado economies
- Helping our EMS professionals and funding our search and rescue teams
- Legislation to make our communities safer from crime, supporting first responders, and addressing the fentanyl crisis
Roughly 650 pieces of legislation were introduced in the Colorado legislature during this session (the 73rd General Assembly). Obviously, not all bills become law. Many get held over, and some die in committee. One of the best ways to determine whether a bill has a chance of becoming law is whether it gets funded by the Finance Committee.
At least five bills that will become law will have a positive impact on our pocketbooks:
- The general assembly delayed a rise in the gas tax, mindful of the staggering price per gallon we are currently paying at the pump.
- SB22-238 lowered the property taxes on at least some of us – both commercial and residential by lowering the assessments on which property taxes are paid.
- HB22- 1416, reduces surprises — it requires county assessors to include an estimate of the property taxes each property owner owes when mailing out notices of property valuation changes.
- The legislature extended a change that allows senior citizens to defer all of the increases in their property taxes until they sell their homes while allowing everyone else to defer any increases of more than four percent.
- Colorado taxpayers are going to get big ($500 per individual) TABOR refunds this year.
As of today, nine bills introduced by Roberts (including five supported by Donovan) have been signed into law (This list provided by our legislative representatives):
SB22-024: Intimidating a Witness Changes
Senators Fields (D) & Cooke (R) | Representatives Roberts (D) & Soper (R)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on March 17
HB22-1099: Cracking Down on Retail Theft
Representatives Carver (R) & Roberts (D) | Senators Woodward (R) & Zenzinger (D)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on March 17
HB22-1073: Funeral Establishment And Crematory Inspection
Representatives Roberts (D) & Soper (R) | Senators Coram (R) & Donovan (D)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on March 21
HB22-1117: Use Of Local Lodging Tax Revenue
Representatives Roberts (D) & Catlin (R) | Senators Coram (R) & Donovan (D)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on March 31
HB22-1092: Loans From Irrigation Districts to Landowners
Representatives Soper (R) & Roberts (D) | Senators Bridges (D) & Coram (R)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on April 12
HB22-1072: Habitat Partnership Program
Representatives Will (R) & Roberts (D)| Senators Donovan (D) & Simpson (R)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on April 21
HB22-1237: Changes to County Court Judges in Western Colorado
Representatives Roberts (D) & Will (R) | Senators Rankin (R) & Donovan (D)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on April 21
HB22-1351: Reduce Road User Charges
Representatives Roberts (D) & McLachlan (D) | Senators Pettersen (R) & Hinrichsen (D)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on May 16
HB22-1301: Controlled Environment Facilities as Agricultural Property
Representatives Roberts (D) & Soper (R) | Senators Donovan (D) & Simpson (R)
✅ Signed into law by Governor Polis on May 20
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