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July 17, 2024 SB 24-100
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
Final Fiscal Note
Drafting Number:
Prime Sponsors:
LLS 24-0154
Sen. Roberts; Will
Rep. Velasco; Taggart
Date:
Bill Status:
Fiscal Analyst:
July 17, 2024
Signed into Law.
Nina Forbes | 303-866-4785
nina.forbes@coleg.gov
Bill Topic: COMMERCIAL VEHICLE HIGHWAY SAFETY MEASURES
Summary of
Fiscal Impact:
☒ State Revenue
☒ State Expenditure
☐ State Transfer
☐ TABOR Refund
☒ Local Government
☐ Statutory Public Entity
The bill gives the Colorado Department of Transportation the ability to issue closures
and equipment requirements over an expanded area of state highways and
interstates, creates heightened enforcement zones in Glenwood Canyon, creates a
new traffic offense, and requires a feasibility study. The bill increases state and local
expenditures for FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 only and may increase state revenue on
an ongoing basis.
Appropriation
Summary:
For FY 2024-25, the bill requires and includes an appropriation of $31,684 to the
Department of Revenue. No appropriation is required for the Department of
Transportation, as the State Highway Fund is continuously appropriated to the
department.
Fiscal Note
Status:
The final fiscal note reflects the enacted bill.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts Under SB 24-100
Budget Year
FY 2024-25
Out Year
FY 2025-26
Revenue - -
Expenditures DRIVES Cash Fund $31,684 $32,356
State Highway Fund $100,000 -
Total Expenditures $131,684 $32,356
Transfers - -
Other Budget Impacts - -
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July 17, 2024 SB 24-100
Summary of Legislation
The bill makes several changes to the ability of the Department of Transportation (CDOT) to
issue closures or require certain equipment on interstate and state highways and creates new
safety requirements on Interstate 70 (I-70) through Glenwood Canyon.
The bill:
expands the geographic area that the CDOT can close or restrict the use of a highway
without certain equipment for commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight over 16,000
to encompass any portion of I-70 west of milepost 259 (Morrison), Colorado State Highway
9 from milepost 63 to milepost 97 (Frisco to Fairplay), U.S. Route 40 west of milepost 256
(Empire), U.S. Route 50 west of milepost 225 (Salida), U.S. Route 160 west of milepost 304
(Walsenburg), U.S. Route 258 west of milepost 250 (Morrison), and all of U.S. Route 550 from
milepost 0 to 130 from September 1 through May 31;
requires the CDOT’s Freight Mobility and Safety Branch to launch an awareness campaign
around the changes described above;
allows CDOT to establish heightened speed limit enforcement zones when there are safety
concerns related to commercial vehicle drivers exceeding the posted speed limits on public
highways within the Glenwood Canyon I-70 corridor from milepost 116.0 to 131.0 eastbound
and 118.5 to 131.0 westbound. If the department establishes a heightened speed zone, it
must erect signs identifying the heightened speed zone and notifying commercial motor
vehicle drivers of the increased fines associated with speeding in the zone;
subjects commercial motor vehicle drivers who commit speeding violations in the zone to
double the fines and surcharges, unless the fines and surcharges are already doubled due to
the violation occurring in a construction or maintenance zone;
creates the Mountain Highways Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Account, and directs the
State Treasurer to credit the fines collected in the heightened speed zone to the account;
makes it a traffic offense for a commercial vehicle to drive in the furthest left lane on I-70 in
Glenwood Canyon, through Dowd Junction, over Vail Pass, in the Eisenhower-Johnson
Tunnel, on Georgetown Hill, and on Floyd Hill, unless specifically required or authorized to
pass by law;
clarifies that port of entry officers have the same powers as peace officers when enforcing
highway closures and the winter traction device law; and
requires the CDOT’s Freight Mobility and Safety Branch to conduct a study on the feasibility
of funding additional chain-up and chain-down station locations, on the economic and
safety impacts of commercial motor vehicle incidents and closures during inclement weather
events, and on commercial motor vehicle parking locations along I-70. The study may be
funded by the Fuels Impact Reduction Grant Program. The study must be presented during
the 2025 legislative interim to the Transportation Legislation Review committee, the
Transportation Commission, and to each state legislator whose district is wholly or partly
within the Western Slope. Page 3
July 17, 2024 SB 24-100
Background
DRIVES programming. The Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in the Department of Revenue
(DOR) uses its Driver License, Record, Identification and Vehicle Enterprise Solution (DRIVES)
information technology system for all driver license and motor vehicle transactions. The
DRIVES system requires an extensive 18-month upgrade which is scheduled to take place from
July 1, 2024, through March 31, 2026. As a result, the DOR has requested that any new
legislation requiring DRIVES programming have an effective date of April 1, 2026, with
roll-forward spending authority through FY 2026-27, noting that each programming
requirement during the system upgrade period may increase the overall project timeline. Based
on the current effective date in the bill, the fiscal note includes costs for the DRIVES
programming to take place twice in the existing and new system.
Comparable Crime Analysis
Legislative Council Staff is required to include certain information in the fiscal note for any bill
that creates a new crime, changes the classification of an existing crime, or creates a new factual
basis for an existing crime. Using Judicial Department data, the following section outlines crimes
that are comparable to the offense in this bill and discusses assumptions on future rates of
criminal convictions resulting from the bill.
Prior conviction data and assumptions. This bill creates the new offense of driving in the
farthest left lane as a commercial vehicle if there are two or more adjacent lanes of traffic on
I-70 in the specified areas. To form an estimate on the prevalence of this new crime, the fiscal
note analyzed the existing offense of driving in the passing lane of a highway with a speed limit
of 65 miles per hour or more, a traffic infraction, as a comparable crime. From FY 2020-21 to
FY 2022-23, zero offenders have been sentenced and convicted for this existing offense;
therefore, the fiscal note assumes that there will be minimal or no additional case filings or
convictions for the new offense under the bill. Visit leg.colorado.gov/fiscalnotes for more
information about criminal justice costs in fiscal notes.
State Revenue
Based on the assumptions above, this analysis assumes that there will be a minimal impact on
state revenue. Under the bill, traffic offense penalties and court fees, which are subject to
TABOR, may increase by a minimal amount.
The bill doubles speeding penalties for commercial vehicle drivers who speed in in a heightened
speed limit enforcement zone. Table 2 below shows the changes in penalties under the bill.
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July 17, 2024 SB 24-100
Table 2
New Speeding Penalties for Commercial Vehicles Under SB 24-100
Speeding Violation Current Penalty Penalty Under Bill
1-4 mph over the maximum lawful speed $30.00 $60.00
5-9 mph over the maximum lawful speed $70.00 $140.00
10-19 mph over the maximum lawful speed $135.00 $270.00
20-24 mph over the maximum lawful speed $200.00 $400.00
State Expenditures
Spending from the State Highway Fund by the CDOT will increase by $100,000 in FY 2024-25
only. Expenditures in the Department of Revenue (DOR) will increase by about $32,000 in
FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 only. Expenditures are shown in Table 3 and detailed below.
Table 3
Expenditures Under SB 24-100
FY 2024-25 FY 2025-26
Department of Transportation (CDOT)
Feasibility Study $50,000 -
Awareness Campaign $50,000
CDOT Subtotal $100,000 -
Department of Revenue (DOR)
DRIVES Programming $31,684 $32,356
DOR Subtotal $31,684 $32,356
Total Cost $131,684 $32,356
Department of Transportation. The bill requires the CDOT to conduct a study on the feasibility
of additional chain-up stations. The department estimates it will cost up to $50,000 in
FY 2024-25 to conduct the study, assuming two consultants working for four weeks at a cost of
$150 per hour, with $2,000 reserved for any additional miscellaneous costs. The bill additionally
requires the CDOT to conduct an awareness campaign on the new highway restrictions, which
requires up to $50,000 in FY 2024-25. The department will request this amount from the
Transportation Commission during their annual budget process. These expenditures will come
from the State Highway Fund and will reduce the overall amount available in the fund for
roadway construction and maintenance projects.
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July 17, 2024 SB 24-100
Department of Revenue. The bill increases expenditures in Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV) within the DOR to update the DRIVES system, which both the DMV and County Clerk and
Recorders use to issue driver’s credentials and maintain driver’s records. Computer
programming costs in FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 include DRIVES programming, estimated at
96 hours at a rate of $248 per hour in FY 2024-25 and 96 hours at a rate of $255 per hour in
FY 2025-26; ISD development and testing costs, estimated at 71 hours at a rate of $35 per hour
in each year; support from the Office of Information Technology estimated at 37 hours at a rate
of $99 per hour in each year, paid to OIT through real-time billing; and business user acceptance
testing at 54 hours at a rate of $32 per hour in each year. These costs will require roll-forward
spending authority through FY 2026-27.
Judicial Department. A minimal increase in traffic filings is expected while drivers become
accustomed to the new requirements. The increased workload is absorbable within existing
resources.
Local Government
Similar to the state, it is expected that any workload or cost increases for district attorneys to
prosecute any new offenses under the bill will be minimal. District attorney offices are funded by
counties.
Effective Date
The bill was signed into law by the Governor on May 20, 2024, and takes effect on
August 7, 2024, assuming no referendum petition is filed.
State Appropriations
For FY 2024-25, the bill requires and includes an appropriation of $31,684 to the Department of
Revenue from the DRIVES Cash Fund.
The State Highway Fund is continuously appropriated to the Department of Transportation.
State and Local Government Contacts
Revenue Transportation
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 the General Assembly website.