HOUSE BILL 22-1400
BY REPRESENTATIVE(S) McCluskie and Tipper, Duran, Esgar,
Kennedy, Kipp, Lindsay, Titone, Weissman, Woodrow, Garnett, Jodeh,
Valdez D.;
also SENATOR(S) Moreno, Simpson, Zenzinger.
C
ONCERNING MATTERS RELATED TO A PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENT FOR
STATE ENTERPRISES
.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
SECTION 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly
finds and declares that:
(a) Colorado's colleges and universities have been permitted to be
designated as enterprises since 2004, and being designated as an enterprise
gives those institutions flexibility to enhance educational opportunities for
low-income and other under-represented students, as well as increase
overall educational excellence;
(b) In order to maintain enterprise status, a college or university
must not receive more than ten percent of its total annual revenues in grants
from all Colorado state and local governments combined;
NOTE: This bill has been prepared for the signatures of the appropriate legislative
officers and the Governor. To determine whether the Governor has signed the bill
or taken other action on it, please consult the legislative status sheet, the legislative
history, or the Session Laws.
________
Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material added to existing law; dashes
through words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law and such material is not part of
the act. (c) The general assembly supports colleges and universities by
funding capital construction projects, other large-scale projects, and various
other programs, and the amount of that funding contributes to some
institutions, most commonly smaller institutions that serve students from
rural areas, occasionally temporarily losing enterprise status and later
requalifying and being redesignated as enterprises;
(d) Small higher education institutions have often temporarily lost
their enterprise status in the past as a result of state capital grants;
(e) A college or university losing enterprise status for one year does
not have significant implications for the institutions or the state, but an
institution losing its enterprise status for longer than one year may effect the
state because of the impact it has on calculating state revenue limits;
(f) The recent increase in available federal funds related to the
COVID-19 pandemic may result in the state having additional state money
available to allocate to colleges and universities. Because more state money
is available, the general assembly may want to appropriate additional state
money to colleges and universities for capital construction and other
infrastructure upgrades, which may result in institutions, including
community colleges and some four-year institutions, temporarily losing
enterprise status only to requalify for enterprise status at a later date after
the funds are no longer available.
(g) Because of the number of colleges and universities in Colorado
and the frequency with which institutions may temporarily lose enterprise
status only to later requalify as an enterprise, requiring a statewide ballot
question for each institution to be redesignated as an enterprise each time
the institution requalifies, will result in frequent and costly statewide ballot
questions decided by voters who may not live and work near the institution
whose enterprise status is the subject of the ballot question, and may limit
the ability of colleges and universities to provide the best educational
services to Colorado students.
(2) Therefore, the general assembly determines that it is in the best
interest of Colorado students and colleges and universities to permit
institutions that have already qualified for enterprise status and that lose
enterprise status to later qualify and be redesignated as an enterprise without
PAGE 2-HOUSE BILL 22-1400 voter approval in a manner does not limit the voters' authority to approve
new educational enterprises.
SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 23-5-101.5, add (7) as
follows:
23-5-101.5. Enterprise status of auxiliary facilities - definitions.
(7) N
OTWITHSTANDING SECTION 24-77-108, AN AUXILIARY FACILITY, OR
GROUP OF AUXILIARY FACILITIES WITH SIMILAR FUNCTIONS
, THAT IS
MANAGED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER
EDUCATION OR BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE
AURARIA HIGHER
EDUCATION CENTER
, THAT WAS DESIGNATED AS AN ENTERPRISE AS OF
JANUARY 1, 2021, AND THAT SUBSEQUENTLY DISQUALIFIES AS AN
ENTERPRISE
, DOES NOT REQUIRE VOTER APPROVAL IN ORDER TO QUALIFY
AND BE REDESIGNATED AS AN ENTERPRISE
.
SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 23-5-101.7, add (6) as
follows:
23-5-101.7. Enterprise status of institutions of higher education.
(6) N
OTWITHSTANDING SECTION 24-77-108, AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER
EDUCATION
, OR A GROUP OF INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION THAT IS
MANAGED BY A SINGLE GOVERNING BOARD
, THAT WAS DESIGNATED AS AN
ENTERPRISE AS OF
JANUARY 1, 2021, AND THAT SUBSEQUENTLY
DISQUALIFIES AS AN ENTERPRISE
, DOES NOT REQUIRE VOTER APPROVAL IN
ORDER TO QUALIFY AND BE REDESIGNATED AS AN ENTERPRISE
.
SECTION 4. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-77-108, amend (1);
and add (3) as follows:
24-77-108. Creation of a new fee-based Enterprise. In order to
provide transparency and oversight to government mandated fees the People
of the State of Colorado find and declare that:
(1) A
STATE ENTERPRISE QUALIFIED OR CREATED after January 1,
2021, any state enterprise qualified or created,
as defined under Colo.
Const. Art. X, section 20(2)(d), with projected or actual revenue from fees
and surcharges of over SHALL NOT RECEIVE MORE THAN $100,000,000 total
IN REVENUE FROM FEES AND SURCHARGES in its first five fiscal years must
be UNLESS approved at a statewide general election. IF A STATE ENTERPRISE
PAGE 3-HOUSE BILL 22-1400 HAS COLLECTED ONE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS ($100,000,000) IN FEES
AND SURCHARGES WITHIN ITS FIRST FIVE FISCAL YEARS PRIOR TO RECEIVING
VOTER APPROVAL
, THE STATE ENTERPRISE SHALL STOP COLLECTING FEES
AND SURCHARGES
. Ballot titles for enterprises shall begin, "SHALL AN
ENTERPRISE BE CREATED TO COLLECT REVENUE TOTALING
(full dollar collection for first five fiscal years) IN ITS FIRST FIVE
YEARS...?"
(3) F
OR THE PURPOSES OF APPLYING THE REQUIREMENTS OF
SUBSECTIONS
(1) AND (2) OF THIS SECTION:
(a) E
NTERPRISES SERVE PRIMARILY THE SAME PURPOSE WHEN THEY
PROVIDE THE SAME SERVICES IN THE SAME GEOGRAPHIC AREA
; AND
(b) THE FIRST FIVE FISCAL YEARS OF A STATE ENTERPRISE FOR THE
PURPOSE OF CALCULATING THE ONE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLAR AM OUNT SET
FORTH IN SUBSECTION
(1) ARE THE FIRST FIVE STATE FISCAL YEARS SINCE
THE CREATION OR FIRST QUALIFICATION OF THE ENTERPRISE
.
SECTION 5. Safety clause. The general assembly hereby finds,
PAGE 4-HOUSE BILL 22-1400 determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety.
____________________________ ____________________________
Alec Garnett Steve Fenberg
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE PRESIDENT OF
OF REPRESENTATIVES THE SENATE
____________________________ ____________________________
Robin Jones Cindi L. Markwell
CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE SECRETARY OF
OF REPRESENTATIVES THE SENATE
APPROVED________________________________________
(Date and Time)
_________________________________________
Jared S. Polis
GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF COLORADO
PAGE 5-HOUSE BILL 22-1400