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March 20, 2023 SB 23-148
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
Revised Fiscal Note
(replaces fiscal note dated February 17, 2023)
Drafting Number:
Prime Sponsors:
LLS 23-0496
Sen. Cutter
Date:
Bill Status:
Fiscal Analyst:
March 20, 2023
Senate Finance
Clayton Mayfield | 303-866-5851
clayton.mayfield@coleg.gov
Bill Topic: ILLEGAL DRUG LABORATORY PROPERTY & CERTIFICATION
Summary of
Fiscal Impact:
☒ State Revenue
☒ State Expenditure
☐ State Transfer
☒ TABOR Refund
☐ Local Government
☐ Statutory Public Entity
The bill requires the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to inspect
illegal drug laboratory properties to determine competency of certified individuals that
decontaminate such properties and to create a public database of buildings used as
illegal laboratories. Starting in FY 2023-24, state revenue and expenditures are
increased on an ongoing basis.
Appropriation
Summary:
For FY 2023-24, the bill requires an appropriation of $106,798 to the Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment.
Fiscal Note
Status:
This revised fiscal note reflects the introduced bill, as amended by the Senate Local
Government committee.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts Under SB 23-148
Budget Year
FY 2023-24
Out Year
FY 2024-25
Out Year
FY 2025-26
Revenue Cash Funds - $252,879 $232,869
Total Revenue - $252,879 $232,869
Expenditures General Fund $106,798 - -
Cash Funds - $208,044 $188,034
Centrally Appropriated $23,983 $44,835 $44,835
Total Expenditures $130,781 $252,879 $232,869
Total FTE 1.4 FTE 2.5 FTE 2.5 FTE
Transfers - - -
Other Budget
Impacts
General Fund Reserve $16,020 - -
TABOR Refund - $252,879 Not estimated Page 2
March 20, 2023 SB 23-148
Summary of Legislation
The bill requires the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) to inspect
decontaminated illegal drug laboratories for the purpose of determining the competency of certified
persons performing assessments and decontaminations of properties. The department must perform
at least one inspection of each certified entity at least once every three years, require remedial training,
and decertify individuals whose lack of competent performance is willful and likely to be repeated.
The CDPHE is required to establish a fee for such inspections. The department must also create a
public online database of buildings used as illegal methamphetamine drug laboratories. After
five years, a properly decontaminated building is removed from the database.
The bill also requires that:
property owners submit remediation documentation to the CDPHE;
law enforcement agencies and certified industrial hygienists report discovered illegal drug
laboratories to the department; and
residential properties without compliant remediation be deemed uninhabitable.
Background and Assumptions
Under current law, the CDPHE certifies individuals and business assessing and decontaminating
properties used as illegal drug laboratories to produce methamphetamines, and monitors
decontaminations through a reporting system. The most recent data from the CDPHE indicate a total
of about 675 certifications, composed of about 500 individuals and 175 businesses.
The fiscal note assumes 675 is the total population of inspections required by the bill. With required
inspections occurring once every three years, it is assumed that approximately 225 inspections must
occur each year.
State Revenue
The bill increases state revenue by $252,879 in FY 2024-25 and by $232,869 in FY 2025-26 to the Illegal
Drug Laboratory Cash Fund. The increase is to cover expenditures associated with the bill and will
impact individuals and businesses certified to assess or decontaminate illegal drug laboratories.
Fee impact on certified drug laboratory decontaminators. Colorado law requires legislative service
agency review of measures which create or increase any fee collected by a state agency. These fee
amounts are estimates only, actual fees will be set administratively by the CDPHE based on cash fund
balance, program costs, and the number of certifications subject to the fee. The fiscal note assumes fee
collections will begin in FY 2024-25, after the rulemaking process is complete, but the actual timeline
may vary from this estimate. Table 2 below identifies the fee impact of this bill.
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March 20, 2023 SB 23-148
Table 2
Fee Impact on Certified Drug Laboratory Decontaminators
Fiscal Year
Type of
Fee
Certification
Fee
Number
Affected
Total Fee
Impact
FY 2024-25 Inspection Fee $374.64 675 $252,879
FY 2025-26 Inspection Fee $344.99 675 $232,869
State Expenditures
The bill increases state expenditures in the CDPHE by $130,781 in FY 2023-24, $252,879 in FY 2024-25,
and $232,869 in FY 2025-26, paid from the General Fund the first year and the Illegal Drug Laboratory
Cash Fund in future years, as detailed in Table 3 and described below.
Table 3
Expenditures Under SB 23-148
FY 2023-24 FY 2024-25 FY 2025-26
Department of Public Health and Environment
Personal Services $91,433 $184,659 $184,659
Operating Expenses $2,025 $3,375 $3,375
Capital Outlay Costs $13,340 $20,010 -
Centrally Appropriated Costs
1
$23,983 $44,835 $44,835
Total $130,781 $252,879 $232,869
Total FTE 1.4 FTE 2.5 FTE 2.5 FTE
1
Centrally appropriated costs are not included in the bill's appropriation.
Department of Public Health and Environment. The CDPHE requires inspectors and support staff
to perform the inspections and create the online database required by the bill.
Staffing. The CDPHE requires 1.5 FTE Data Managers in FY 2023-24 only to design and
implement the public database required by the bill, and to update an existing database to track
inspections and certifications. Beginning in FY 2024-25, the department requires 2.0 FTE
Environmental Protection Specialists to review documentation, perform site inspections, conduct
sampling as necessary, document the findings, and perform compliance evaluations and potential
enforcement, where applicable; and 0.5 FTE Program Assistant to assist with rulemaking, manage
the database, and provide inspector support. First-year costs are prorated for the General Fund
pay date shift. Standard operating and capital outlay costs are included.
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March 20, 2023 SB 23-148
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.
Other Budget Impacts
General Fund reserve. Under current law, an amount equal to 15 percent of General Fund
appropriations must be set aside in the General Fund statutory reserve. Based on this fiscal note, the
bill is expected to increase the amount of General Fund held in reserve by the amounts shown in
Table 1, decreasing the amount of General Fund available for other purposes.
TABOR refunds. The bill is expected to increase the amount of state revenue required to be refunded
to taxpayers by the amounts shown in the State Revenue section above. This estimate assumes the
December 2022 LCS revenue forecast. A forecast of state revenue subject to TABOR is not available
beyond FY 2024-25. Because TABOR refunds are paid from the General Fund, increased cash fund
revenue will reduce the amount of General Fund available to spend or save.
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 a General Fund appropriation of $106,798 to the Colorado Department
of Public Health and Environment, and 1.4 FTE.
State and Local Government Contacts
Judicial Law Local Affairs
Public Health and Environment Regulatory Agencies
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.