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February 22, 2023 SB 23-111
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
Fiscal Note
Drafting Number:
Prime Sponsors:
LLS 23-0483
Sen. Rodriguez
Rep. Woodrow
Date:
Bill Status:
Fiscal Analyst:
February 22, 2023
Senate Local Government
Anna Gerstle | 303-866-4375
anna.gerstle@coleg.gov
Bill Topic: PUBLIC EMPLOYEES' WORKPLACE PROTECTION
Summary of
Fiscal Impact:
☒ State Revenue
☒ State Expenditure
☐ State Transfer
☐ TABOR Refund
☒ Local Government
☒ Statutory Public Entity
The bill establishes certain rights for public employees and associated enforcement
procedures. The bill increases state revenue and expenditures, and potentially
increases costs for certain local governments and statutory public entities, on an
ongoing basis.
Appropriation
Summary:
For FY 2023-24, the bill requires an appropriation of $457,239 to the Colorado
Department of Labor and Employment.
Fiscal Note
Status:
The fiscal note reflects the introduced bill.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts Under SB 23-111
Budget Year
FY 2023-24
Out Year
FY 2024-25
Revenue - -
Expenditures Cash Funds $457,239 $440,468
Centrally Appropriated $75,195 $80,342
Total Expenditures $532,434 $520,810
Total FTE 4.2 FTE 4.5 FTE
Transfers - -
Other Budget Impacts - -
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February 22, 2023 SB 23-111
Summary of Legislation
The bill specifies that public employees have the right to:
discuss or express views on workplace issues and employee rights and representation;
engage in protected, concerted activity for the purposes of mutual aid or protection;
participate in the political process while off-duty without discrimination, intimidation, or
retaliation;
speak with members of the public employer’s governing body about conditions of employment;
and
form or join, or refrain from participating in, an employee organization.
A public employer must not discriminate against an employee for engaging the in rights listed above,
interfere with the administration of an employee organization, or discriminate against an employee
who has joined an employee organization or has filed a complaint related to the bill.
Definition of public employer. Under the bill, a public employer includes the following:
a municipality or a city and county;
a county with a population of less than 7,500;
a district, business improvement district, or special district that is a political subdivision of the
state, a county, or municipality;
the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind;
a state institution of higher education;
the Office of the State Public Defender;
the University of Colorado Hospital Authority and Denver Health and Hospital Authority;
Joint Budget Committee Staff (JBC), Legislative Council Staff (LCS), and the staff of the Chief Clerk
of the House of Representatives and Senate Services Staff;
majority and minority caucus staff for the House of Representatives and the Senate;
a Board of Cooperative Services (BOCES); and
firefighters.
It does not include a political subdivision of the state that operates a mass transportation system. The
bill specifies that the State Board of Education may not waive the bill’s provisions for a charter school,
or an innovation school, zone, or district.
Enforcement. An aggrieved party must file a claim for a violation within six months of knowing
about the violation. The Division of Labor Standards and Statistics (DLSS) in the Colorado Department
of Labor and Employment (CDLE) is charged with enforcing the rights under the bill and adjudicating
unfair labor practices. A party may appeal CDLE’s decision to the Colorado Court of Appeals, whose
review must be limited to whether CDLE exceeded its jurisdiction or abused its discretion.
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February 22, 2023 SB 23-111
Assumptions
The fiscal note assumes that the bill does not require public employers to negotiate or collectively
bargain with employee organizations. It also assumes that the bill does not apply to state executive
branch agencies and employees or any public entity not listed in the bill. If collective bargaining is
required and state executive branch employees are covered, costs will be higher than estimated.
State Revenue
The bill increases state revenue to the Wage Theft Enforcement Fund from any fines collected. Overall,
any revenue is expected to be minimal, as the Colorado Wage Act encourages the DLSS to waive most
fines assessed against employers if the employer complies with the law, and DLSS has never levied a
fine for an unfair labor practice. Any revenue from court filing fees is also expected to be minimal.
State Expenditures
The bill increases state expenditures in CDLE by $532,434 in FY 2023-24 and $520,810 in FY 2024-25,
paid from the Employment Support Fund. It also increases workload for Judicial Department, and
potentially costs for the Legislative Department, institutions of higher education, Department of
Education, and Office of the State Public Defender. Expenditures are shown in Table 2 and detailed
below.
Table 2
Expenditures Under SB 23-111
FY 2023-24 FY 2024-25
Department of Labor
Personal Services $344,009 $363,687
Operating Expenses $19,780 $17,282
Capital Outlay Costs $33,350 -
Legal Services $57,100 $57,100
Travel Costs $3,000 $2,400
Centrally Appropriated Costs
1
$75,195 $80,342
FTE – Personal Services 3.9 FTE 4.2 FTE
FTE – Legal Services 0.3 FTE 0.3 FTE
Total $532,434 $520,810
Total FTE 4.2 FTE 4.5 FTE
1
Centrally appropriated costs are not included in the bill's appropriation.
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February 22, 2023 SB 23-111
Department of Labor. CDLE requires 3.9 FTE in FY 2023-24 and 4.2 FTE in subsequent years to handle
complaints filed under the bill. The fiscal note assumes one complaint for every 3,800 employees, for
a total of 75 complaints per year, and that each complaint will require work from a compliance
investigator and an administrative law judge. A supervisor and program staff also will handle
management of all complaints, outreach, questions and rulemaking. Standard capital outlay costs,
operating expenses including software licenses, and staff travel costs are also required. Staff costs in
the first year are prorated for a September 1, 2023, start date.
Department of Law. The bill requires 540 hours of legal services for rulemaking and general counsel
for CDLE. Legal services are provided by the Department of Law at a rate of $105.74 per hour; the
required hours equate to 0.3 FTE.
In addition, the Department of Law may incur additional costs to provide legal counsel for institutions
of higher educations, due to the number of employees across institutions that are covered by the bill.
The exact cost cannot be estimated, as it depends on where institution complaints may occur, and the
associated workload. As a result, any additional legal services hours for institutions of higher
education will be requested through the annual budget process.
Department of Personnel and Administration. Because the Department of Personnel and
Administration (DPA) manages the employee benefit plans for institutions of higher education,
legislative staff, the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind, and the Office of the State Public
Defender, the DPA may have workload and costs to the extent that state agencies covered by the bill
choose to engage with employee organizations acting on behalf of employees. The fiscal note assumes
that state agencies are not required to engage with employer organizations; as a result, the costs are
assumed to be accomplished within current appropriations. Any additional resources needed will be
requested through the annual budget process.
Specified state agencies. The bill increases costs by an indeterminate amount for any state entity
included as a public employer in the bill to respond to complaints. This includes state institutions of
higher education; LCS, OLLS, and House and Senate staff in the Legislative Department; the Colorado
School for the Deaf and the Blind in the Department of Education; and the Office of the State Public
Defender. The fiscal note assumes that this workload will not require a change in appropriations and
that any additional resources needed will be requested through the annual budget process.
Judicial Department. The bill increases workload in the trial courts in the Judicial Department by a
minimal amount to handle any appeals of CDLE decisions. No change in appropriations is required.
Centrally appropriated costs. Pursuant to a Joint Budget Committee policy, certain costs associated
with this bill are addressed through the annual budget process and centrally appropriated in the Long
Bill or supplemental appropriations bills, rather than in this bill. These costs, which include employee
insurance and supplemental employee retirement payments, are shown in Table 2.
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February 22, 2023 SB 23-111
Local Government and Statutory Public Entity
Similar to the state agency impacts listed above, the bill increases costs for municipalities, counties
with a population of 7,500 or less, special districts, and the Denver Health and Hospital Authority to
respond to any complaints filed for violations of the bill’s provisions. Cost will vary among each public
employer depending on the number of complaints received.
Effective Date
The bill takes effect 90 days following adjournment of the General Assembly sine die, assuming no
referendum petition is filed.
State Appropriations
For FY 2023-24, the bill requires an appropriation of $457,239 from the Employment Support Fund to
the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, and 3.9 FTE. Of that amount, $57,100 is
reappropriated to the Department of Law, with an additional 0.3 FTE.
Departmental Difference
The CDLE requests General Fund be used to enforce the bill’s labor standards. The federal
Department of Labor has determined that certain spending from the Employer Support Fund is not
in compliance with federal law. Until the fund is back into compliance, the CDLE prefers not to make
additional expenditures from this fund. The fiscal note assumes that these administrative costs
constitute allowable uses of funds in the Employer Support Fund.
State and Local Government Contacts
Counties Education Higher Education
Joint Budget Committee Staff Judicial Labor
Law Legislative Council Staff Legislative Legal Services
Personnel Public Defender School Districts
Special Districts
The revenue and expenditure impacts in this fiscal note represent changes from current law under the bill for each
fiscal year. For additional information about fiscal notes, please visit: leg.colorado.gov/fiscalnotes.