Pat Steadman :: State Senator SD 31

One of the smallest bills I passed this year was HB 1166, but because of the subject matter it garnered a fair amount of attention from the news media.  The bill repealed the defunct criminal prohibition against adultery and another criminal statute punishing sexual immorality.  Now you can see why the media took an interest…

I first sponsored this bill in 2011 as SB 11-244 and Rep. Daniel Kagan was my House sponsor.  It easily passed the Senate but was defeated by a one-vote margin in a House committee.  Rep. Kagan felt bad that the bill died on his watch so he decided to bring it back in the new legislature as HB 13-1166.

Rep. Kagan told me that one of the reasons he wanted to bring it back was because of the clever way it was constructed.  He called it “brilliant.”  The title is “a bill for an act concerning the repeal of certain crimes that include marital status as an element of the offense.”  The title accurately describes what the bill does.  The media attention focused on adultery, and while they accurately described the bill, the ulterior motive behind the bill has been a well kept secret, until now.

In 2010 I sponsored a bill that then-Rep. Steve King started in the House to reform state laws on indecent exposure and public indecency.  HB 10-1334 corrected confusion between these two criminal offenses, one of which is more serious than the other and results in mandatory sex offender registration.  It seems that Rep. King had a constituent who was ticketed for urinating in public somewhere near the vicinity of Coors Field after the conclusion of a baseball game.  I think the gentleman was a beer drinker.  His offense required him to register as a sex offender.  Meanwhile, flashers exposing themselves to others were not being required to register as sex offenders.  The laws were backwards and HB 1334 intended to straighten them out.  It did prove challenging to define the difference between exposing private parts in sinister ways befitting of sex offenders and doing so in stupid ways like college kids streaking across a football field, or urinating in an alley after a baseball game.  The final version of HB 1334 was not perfect, but everyone agrees that we fixed most of the problems.

As I was working on amendments to HB 1334 I noticed a phrase in the public indecency statute that made me suspicious.  The statute outlawed having sexual intercourse in public, and it also outlawed having “deviant sexual intercourse” in public.  I looked for a definition of “deviant sexual intercourse” and could not find one in current law.  Research from the Office of Legislative Legal Services revealed that this had once been a defined term, but the definition was repealed many years ago when Colorado repealed its law criminalizing sodomy.  As I suspected, “deviant sexual intercourse” was code from a bygone era that meant gay sex.  In studying the current definition of “sexual intercourse” it became readily apparent that this term is defined broadly enough to encompass a broad swath of sex acts.  It was not necessary to separately list “deviant sexual intercourse” in the public indecency law because it was already covered by the preceding subparagraph.  So I amended HB 1334 to repeal it.

Learning this history of how state law once referred to sexual intimacy between persons of the same sex made me wonder if there were other places this offensive, undefined term remained in law.  So I did some more research and discovered the crime of “promoting sexual immorality,” section 18-7-208, C.R.S.  It used the same offensive language, which I was now determined to eradicate from the Colorado statutes.  And as I studied that section, I discovered that it applied only to people who were not married to each other and criminalized their private, adult, consensual conduct.  I believe such laws are clearly unconstitutional in light of the US Supreme Court’s decision in Lawrence v. Texas, which overturned sodomy laws and recognized a liberty interest in private, adult sexual conduct.

To make the statute all the more outrageous, it created a crime that only innkeepers or people who furnish rooms for unmarried adults could commit.  This was clearly an example of government intrusion into private matters where government does not belong.  The statute was bizarre, rarely used, unconstitutional, and contained the offensive language I was determined to remove from Colorado statutes.  It needed to be repealed.

Enter the adultery statute.  I had always wanted to repeal this law, but it was never important enough to spend much time thinking about.  Years ago, the Colorado criminal code was recodified.  This is when the sodomy law was repealed, and there were suggestions to repeal the adultery law as well.  A bill was drafted to implement the recodification recommendations, but the repeal of the adultery law became controversial and a compromise was reached to leave a criminal prohibition of adultery on the books but specify no penalty.  Without a penalty the law could never be enforced, but its statement remained.

As I contemplated a bill to repeal the “promoting sexual immorality” statute I realized that it could be combined with a repeal of the adultery law under the common theme of criminal offenses for which an actor’s marital status is an element of the crime, and SB 11-244 was conceived.  I successfully argued the constitutional arguments against both statutes and drove home the idea that government should not be in the business of policing marital vows.  Nor should conduct be legal for some people but prohibited for others based solely on differences in their marital status.  Adults have the right to make their own choices about private, sexual behavior without government interference, whether they’re married or not.  And to keep it private they ought to be able to rent a hotel room.

SB 11-244 passed the Senate on a vote of 25 to 9, but it was defeated in a House committee.  This year, HB 13-1166 passed the House on a vote of 37 to 26 and it passed the Senate 23 to 10.  Governor Hickenlooper signed HB 1166 into law on March 22, 2013 in a private ceremony in his office that I alone attended.  Before he signed the bill I told him this story and what the bill really meant to me.  The phrase “deviant sexual intercourse” has now been eliminated from the Colorado Revised Statutes.

On May 22, 2013, I was honored by the White House as one of ten elected and appointed officials across the country to receive the Harvey Milk Champion of Change Award.  We were invited to the White House to meet one another and share our experiences working to advance LGBT equality.  Stuart Milk, Harvey’s nephew and Executive Director of the Harvey Milk Foundation, was present to congratulate us and offer his perspective on the incredible progress that has been made.  He spoke about his uncle’s motivation to serve in elected office, and he connected each of our individual experiences to the broader movement for equality.  It was a wonderful celebration and I met some amazing people. 

You can read more about the Champions of Change program by clicking here.

The White House Champions of Change Blog features a post about each recipient.  Click here to read my profile.

I sponsored too many bills this year.  I worked myself very hard, and I have a lot to show for it.  I sponsored 64 bills, and 61 of them passed.  More than half of those were JBC bills.  Of the losses, one was a House bill that died in its first committee hearing, so I never saw it.  Two of my Senate bills were defeated, although I killed one myself after negotiating to attach it to another bill.  The other was my executive pay raise bill.  It didn’t fare too well. 

This list contains the Eleven Best of 61 bills I passed this year.  I had lots to choose from, but these stand out.  I hope you like them.

[Click on the Bill # to read the full text of the final bill, or use the Fiscal Note link to read an explanation of how the bill operates and what it will cost to implement.  The Fiscal Note is often much more interesting and enlightening to read than the bill!]

1.  The Long Bill:  SB 230

The Colorado Constitution requires that a balanced budget be passed each year, contained in a single bill, that provides for the funding of the ongoing operation of all three branches of state government.  It takes the Joint Budget Committee close to five months to draft the bill, and it takes a week to move the bill through each chamber of the legislature.  The JBC forms a conference committee at the end to put it back in balance.  This year’s budget spends $20.5 billion on everything from highways and prisons to schools, universities and national guard armories.  Approximately $8 billion of that comes from the general fund, the remaining portions being federal funds and cash funds of various types. 

The budget for fiscal year 2013-14 makes strong investments in education, human services and economic development.  At the request of Gov. Hickenlooper the budget prioritized improvements to our child welfare system and mental health community resources.  The senior homestead exemption was fully funded, and support for senior services such as meals on wheels was increased.  Services for people with developmental disabilities were expanded and waiting lists were reduced or eliminated.   State support for institutions of higher education was increased for the first time in four years.  State employees will receive a pay increase for the first time in as many years as well.  The list goes on and on – read more here.

The Long Bill is the only bill that doesn’t get a Fiscal Note.  It’s way cooler than that; it gets a Narrative.

2.  Drug Offense Sentencing Reforms:  SB 250

This bill has been years in the making.  The Drug Policy Task Force of the Commission on Criminal & Juvenile Justice began talking about a new sentencing grid for drug offenders in 2010, and those talks got serious in 2012 when I introduced SB 12-163 with Sen. Shawn Mitchell.  We ended up turning SB 163 into a directive for the CCJJ’s Drug Policy Task Force to study the reforms and report back by the end of the year, and SB 250 is the result.  Unanimously recommended to the legislature by CCJJ, the reforms in SB 250 go beyond a new sentencing grid.  They continue a transition to a more flexible approach to drug offenses, and one that emphasizes treatment over incarceration for those struggling with addiction.  Savings in the prison budget from sentencing reform allows those resources to be re-directed to community-based drug treatment programs.  Better outcomes, less recidivism, more cost effective use of taxpayer resources.  This is my fourth year sponsoring bills for the Drug Policy Task Force, and Rep. Claire Levy has been my co-sposnor on many of those bills, including this one.

 Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 250

3.  The School Finance Act:  SB 260

After three years of cuts to K-12 education through the insertion of a “negative factor” in the school finance formula, SB 260 reverses the trend and begins the process of restoring cuts.  Unfortunately, we have a long way to go as the “negative factor” has cut over $1 billion from what should have been spent on public education.  A school finance act is passed each year, and SB 260 is the best we’ve seen in a while.  On top of fully funding inflation and growth in student enrollment, the bill provides $40 million toward reducing the “negative factor” and a $20 million increase in support for special education services.   Sen. Evie Hudak chairs the Senate Education Committee and was my co-sponsor on this bill.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 260

4.  Collateral Consequences:  SB 123

I’ve worked on this bill for three years, and I’m very thankful we got it passed this year.  Collateral consequences are the things that happen to a person with a criminal history not because of the sentence they received, but because of all the provisions in civil law that pose barriers, limitations and disqualifiations based on conviction of various crimes.  There are literally thousands of them throughout the law, and every year the legislature enacts more.  SB 123 helps people with criminal records as they reintegrate back into the community or while doing time on probation.  One of the reason people commit new crimes while on probation or after being released is because collateral consequence laws make it difficult for people with records to find housing or employment.  SB 123 seeks to lessen barriers faced by people with records. It makes modest expansions to record sealing laws, allowing petty offenses and municipal ordinance violations to be sealed after three years with a clean record.  It allows judges to waive housing or occupational licensing sanctions when sentencing someone to probation, so they can keep their home or their job.  It requires data collection and analysis to examine the impact of criminal history disqualifications for various occupations and professions, which hopefully will lead to more informed decisions by future legislatures when voting on collateral consequences. 

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 123

5.  Health Care Reform Implementation:  HB 1245 & HB 1115

Okay, so this is two bills, but they really work in tandem to make several good things happen.  HB 1245 sets up sustainable funding sources for the new Colorado Health Benefits Exchange, which begins operations later this year in preparation for the Jan. 1, 2014 start date for many key provisions of the federal health care reform law, including the individual mandate.  The Exchange will receive one-time funds (twice, actually) and authorization for some of the same funding mechanisms used by CoverColorado, which HB 1115 repeals after a phase-out period.  Thanks to ObamaCare, the high-risk individuals insured by CoverColorado will no longer be denied coverage in the commercial market due to pre-existing conditions, so the state-subsidized high-risk pool can be phased-out and it’s funding transitioned to the Exchange, which is where many of CoverColorado’s clients will be buying insurance. 

CoverColorado had been receiving a monthly distribution of interest earned on the state’s Unclaimed Property Fund.  HB 1115 retroactively put a stop to that.  A portion of the savings (the retroactive part) is being transferred to the Exchange, and dental benefits for adults in the Medicaid program (SB 242) are being funded through the future savings.  There’s still money left over which for now will be used to replenish the reserve account on the Unclaimed Property Fund.  Rep. Beth McCann was the House sponsor on both of these bills, and together we devised the plan for how to dovetail the bills and the funding as carefully as possible.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for HB 1245, and Here for HB 1115

6.  Limited Gaming Tax Distributions: SB 133

The Colorado Constitution specifies how portions of the taxes on casino gaming are spent, but a portion is directed to the general fund or to any other fund designated by the General Assembly.  Several programs have been so designated.   In bad years those programs get reduced, and in good years those dollars get restored.  SB 133 increased funding to the tourism promotion fund and other economic development programs, including funding for the arts and film incentives.  This distribution formula will likely be changed again in future, but for now a lot of people were happy to see increased support for our tourism industry and other job creating programs.  My colleague from the Joint Budget Committee Rep. Cheri Gerou sponsored the bill in the House.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 133

7.  Increasing State Reserves:  SB 237

Current law requires the legislature to maintain a 4% reserve in the general fund.  This money saved from year to year provides a cushion in our budget and can be accessed when the economy goes in the tank and tax revenues decline.  Most people agree that 4% is too small a reserve, and we’ve passed laws that will increase our reserves when certain economic indicators trigger the requirement.  SB 237 gets a head start on that process by increasing our reserves to 5% during the current 2012-13 fiscal year.  This was one of Governor Hickenlooper’s requested uses of what he considers to be one-time revenues in the budget.  It’s a fiscally responsible, prudent move and it will help Colorado weather the next economic downturn.  This bill originated in the Joint Budget Committee.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 237

8.  Crimes Against Pregnant Women:  HB 1154

This isn’t the first time this bill has been proposed.  In 2011, Rep. Mark Waller introduced a very similar bill and I was the Senate sponsor.  What appeared to be a carefully crafted compromise quickly fell apart.  Despite our bipartisan efforts the bill became impossible to pass in a divided legislature.  Like so many other issues, this legislation had to wait until 2013 to pass.

HB 1154 fills a gap in our current criminal code where crimes that result in the loss of a pregnancy sometimes escape justice.  The bill creates a comprehensive scheme for all assaults on pregnant women that cause the loss of the pregnancy.  The subject matter isn’t pleasant, and the stories of drunk driving accidents (and worse) with tragic endings are hard to endure.  But somehow the debate invariably becomes about abortion rights.  To avoid that political pitfall HB 1154 carefully defines the criminal acts and makes clear that the woman is the victim of the crime.  Colorado voters have twice rejected fetal personhood laws by overwhelming margains, and HB 1154 respects their wishes in its approach to defining and punishing these crimes.  Rep. Mike Foote was the House sponsor of the bill, where it passed with strong bipartisan support on a vote of 50 to 14, with House Minority Leader Mark Waller voting Yes.  In the Senate the bill passed on a straight party-line vote of 20 to 15. 

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for HB 1154

9.  Sales Tax on Cigarettes:  HB 1144

Once upon a time, cigarettes were exempt from sales tax in Colorado.  But a few years ago the exemption was temporarily suspended as a means of generating additional general fund revenue during the recession.  That suspension was set to expire on June 30, 2013, meaning cigarettes were scheduled to once again become exempt from sales tax.  HB 1144 ends the temporary nature of this tax treatment, making cigarettes permanently subject to state sales tax.

Smokers are paying the sales tax today, and thanks to HB 1144 they’ll still be paying it in July.  But because this revenue was supposed to be ending, we didn’t include it in the revenue estimates used to build the fiscal year 2013-14 budget.  HB 1144 generates “new” revenue, available for appropriation for new legislation passed this year, which wasn’t otherwise funded through the budget process.  HB 1144 made possible lots of important investments in job creation, health care and civil rights.

Had this bill not passed, cigarette taxes in Colorado would have dropped in July.  Cigarette taxes should never go down.  Health care advocates supported HB 1144 because studies have shown taxes to create barriers that prevent young people from starting to smoke.  But smokers won’t notice a difference, because they’re already paying this tax today.  In addition to sales tax, other state and federal taxes apply to cigarettes.  Because HB 1144 was a revenue raising measure it was required to originate in the House of Representatives where Rep. Daniel Kagan was the sponsor.  The two of us sponsored the last temporary suspension bill two years ago, and now we’ll never have to do that again.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for HB 1144

10.  Right to Legal Counsel:  HB 1210

And speaking of Rep. Daniel Kagan, he was also the sponsor of this bill to bring Colorado into compliance with a United States Supreme Court ruling about when the right to legal counsel begins for people accused of crimes.  We agreed to tackle this problem and use revenue from cigarette sales taxes to pay for the court-appointed lawyers for indigent defendants.  The 6th Amendment right to be represented by a lawyer when your liberty is threatened by criminal prosecution is a core part of our Bill of Rights, but Colorado law denied this opportunity in misdemeanor cases.  HB 1210 corrects this problem and provides additional resources to the Public Defender’s office. 

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for HB 1210

11.  Civil Unions:  SB 11

Third times a charm.  The law took effect on May 1, 2013, and already hundreds of committed couples across Colorado have made the trip to their County Clerk’s office to form a legally recognized civil union.  Families are stronger, children are protected, love and commitment are respected and Colorado is a better place than it was a couple of weeks ago.  Special thanks to House Speaker Mark Ferrandino for helping me make this happen.

Click Here for the Fiscal Note for SB 11

On Monday, March 25, 2013, I introduced SB 230 in the Senate.  It’s the biggest bill I’ve ever carried:  hundreds of pages, billions of dollars.  It’s known as the “Long Bill” and it is the product of almost five months of work by the Joint Budget Committee.  The Colorado Constitution requires the state budget to be passed on an annual basis in a single bill, and it is required to be balanced to available revenues.  As chair of the committee it is my responsibility to sponsor and champion the state’s annual budget.

I’ve served on the JBC for three years now, but this year I am the chair and tax revenues are returning to our General Fund.  My first two years on the committee were all about making budget cuts, but this year we’re starting to restore those cuts.  We’ve turned a corner and we’re on the path of economic recovery, and the budget for Fiscal Year 2013-2014 shows it.

I’m proud of our work-product and the budgetary priorities reflected in SB 230.  We’ve assembled a fiscally responsible budget that begins the process of restoring cuts to public education, shoring up the safety net and investing in our people and our economy.  This budget funds the state government we want and deserve: a government that lives within its means but cares about those in need, and one that invests in our future.

Several of Governor Hickenlooper’s key budget initiatives are included in SB 230.  Substantial improvements to our child welfare and mental health systems are included.  Economic development funds targeting rural Colorado will help revitalize struggling communities on the Eastern plains and in Southern Colorado.  Wildfire mitigation funds will help clear beetle-killed pine trees in our mountains and reduce the risk of another year of catastrophic fires.  And increased general fund reserves will better position our state to weather the next economic downturn.

SB 230 is a fiscally responsible budget.  The JBC approved the Governor’s request to build our “rainy day fund” reserves to 5% of general fund appropriations.  On our own initiative, the JBC repaid with interest a loan taken from the Veteran’s Trust Fund that had been used to fund the construction of three new National Guard armories.  We are making our scheduled payment to the Fire & Police Pension Association and prepaying an extra $20 million, saving millions in future interest payments. 

 SB 230 does right by the people of Colorado.  It invests in education, health care, human services and economic development.  For the first time in three years school funding is going up, helping students achieve their full potential.  SB 230 makes new investments in services for seniors such as Meals on Wheels, helping them live independently and avoid reliance on medical assistance programs and costly long-term care.  SB 230 supports veterans, continuing a grant program started last year to provide housing supports and other programs designed to help those who made sacrifices for our country.  SB 230 adds new funding for people with developmental disabilities, reducing the waiting lists for vital services.  Libraries, affordable housing and school-based health centers also are winners in SB 230, each contributing to the strength of our communities.

Finally, SB 230 investments in state infrastructure with over $195 million dedicated to capital construction and controlled maintenance projects.  This money goes directly into our economy, keeping roofers and construction workers busy and employed.  State buildings will be repaired and made more efficient, a lots of new roofs will be installed.  College campuses across Colorado will see new construction and improvements, keeping them competitive and the source of pride.  This year the repairs to the Capitol building’s dome will be funded out of the capital construction budget, rather than relying on grants from the State Historical Fund.  This allows $5 million in State Historical Fund grants to be used for smaller projects across Colorado, sharing the wealth and spurring construction activity far and wide.

Colorado’s economic recovery is outpacing the nation right now, and with the investments SB 230 makes in our state and our future, we hope to keep that recovery on track.  The effects of federal budget cuts due to sequestration may dampen this recovery.  There are indications that some portion of the increased revenue in the FY 2013-14 budget are from capital gains taxes and other non-recurring sources.  We’ve crafted SB 230 to be cautious in this regard, investing in capital construction, loan repayment and increased reserves to make one-time use of these revenues and avoid spending increases that are not sustainable.  A lot of thought went into this budget and I’m very grateful for the hard work my colleagues on the Joint Budget Committee dedicated to this task.  This is a budget Colorado can be proud of.

Click Here to access the narrative document that accompanies the Long Bill.  This narrative is produced by JBC staff and it details the changes SB 230 makes in comparison to the prior year’s budget.  It also contains summary tables and information about other bills that are part of the annual budget package.  It’s a lot to digest — you can see why it takes us five months to produce!

I wrote this small poem for the occasion of the final passage of SB 11, especially for Twitter, and it’s dedicated to Dave: