Printed on 11/22/08
Life and liberty are the ideals our nation was founded upon. They are the essence of a free people. Today we should have no less.
This past legislative session was not an ideal time to promote life and liberty. There was far too much interest in regulating new businesses and professions. By my count, nine new categories were created, including landscape architects, powersports equipment dealers, and interior designers.
We also increased fees and created new ones. In the first year alone the increases in fees will take over $32,000,000 from the people and businesses of Colorado.
I used to say that at least the legislature cannot raise taxes, but not anymore. Despite the clear constitutional requirement that any tax increase be approved by a vote of the people, the legislature put in place the second largest tax increase in Colorado's history ($1.7 billion in ten years.) They did this by locking in our property taxes to real estate inflation rates.
We had bills (all of which are now laws) redefining families as any group of persons living together whether or not they are related by blood, marriage or adoption, allowing homosexual couples to adopt children, forcing employers, including many religious organizations, to hire people without regard to sexual orientation, and prohibiting schools from teaching abstinence-only sex-education. Our government abandoned any policy of encouraging strong and wholesome families and embraced a radical agenda of anti-family values.
I am grateful that at least my gas discount bill became law this year. We are all going to need every break we can get to help pay for all the new government we are going to have to start paying for this year.
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2007 Session
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Final Observations on the Session
Life and Liberty vs. the LegislatureLife and liberty are the ideals our nation was founded upon. They are the essence of a free people. Today we should have no less.
This past legislative session was not an ideal time to promote life and liberty. There was far too much interest in regulating new businesses and professions. By my count, nine new categories were created, including landscape architects, powersports equipment dealers, and interior designers.
We also increased fees and created new ones. In the first year alone the increases in fees will take over $32,000,000 from the people and businesses of Colorado.
I used to say that at least the legislature cannot raise taxes, but not anymore. Despite the clear constitutional requirement that any tax increase be approved by a vote of the people, the legislature put in place the second largest tax increase in Colorado's history ($1.7 billion in ten years.) They did this by locking in our property taxes to real estate inflation rates.
We had bills (all of which are now laws) redefining families as any group of persons living together whether or not they are related by blood, marriage or adoption, allowing homosexual couples to adopt children, forcing employers, including many religious organizations, to hire people without regard to sexual orientation, and prohibiting schools from teaching abstinence-only sex-education. Our government abandoned any policy of encouraging strong and wholesome families and embraced a radical agenda of anti-family values.
I am grateful that at least my gas discount bill became law this year. We are all going to need every break we can get to help pay for all the new government we are going to have to start paying for this year.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
May 06, 2007
Topics:
1. 2007 Session Ends Early
2. HJR 1048 calls for controlling Mexican trucking companies in U.S.
3. SB 25: Hiring Practices and Religious Liberty
4. General Assembly Finishes on a Regulation Binge.
5. Tribute to Berthoud Wrestlers
6. National Day of Prayer
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. The 2007 regular session ended five days early! With the rush all session to increase regulations, fees, taxes (SB 199), limit charter schools and pass bills that fly in the face of traditional family values, we ended none to soon. In the next few days I will prepare an overview of the session. For this report I give you some of the details of the final week.
2. In the final two days of the session the House and Senate passed my resolution (HJR 1048) calling on Congress to pass legislation prohibiting 100 Mexican trucking companies from shipping goods all across the U.S. until they fully satisfy all safety and security issues. In the opinion of many the Federal government is starting this pilot program before all security and safety issues have been settled. The Colorado Legislature has now gone on record demanding that this not be a compromise of the safety of our roads and the security of our boarder.
3. SB 25 passed the House this week and it is now on the governor's desk. It adds the words "sexual orientation" to the list of reasons an employer cannot discriminate in hiring decisions. It exempts religious organizations, but only if that organization has no association with any public funds. This bill sets the state up as the judge of moral and religious principles for private employers, including any religious organization that has any association with public funds. It is the state establishing a moral (religious) value and prohibiting the free exercise of any conflicting moral (religious) value.
4. The General Assembly continued their regulating spree. Just this week the House voted for regulation of interior designers, debt-settlement services, elevators and escalators, mortgage brokers, settlement service providers, movers of household goods, and powersports vehicle dealers.
This rush to regulate is a very different philosophy of government than the liberty loving principles that I ascribe to. I believe the citizens of Colorado are wise and for the most part good. They are capable of solving their own problems, capable of developing powerful industries and capable of educating and raising their own children. That is the key fact that is so often missed, Colorado is a great state filled with responsible adults and brave citizens " they dont need a nanny state. They need to defend life and liberty.
5. In the closing minutes of this year's session it was my privilege to honor on the House floor the two young men from Berthoud, Tyler Carron and Nikko Landeros, who lost their legs in a tragic accident.
Here are the comments I prepared for that special time last Friday:
Mr. Speaker.
Thank you for your generosity in allowing us to present this tribute as one of the final actions for the 2007 regular session.
At the close of this session it is fitting that we look outward, toward the accomplishments of the people of Colorado, rather than inward, only dwelling on what has transpired within this building, for It is not our role to rule the people, it is our role to represent the people, and what they do is ultimately what really counts.
Today we have an extraordinary example of two young men who have faced adversity with courage, and we have the medical professionals who showed compassion and unsurpassed skill as they rescued and restored, and the community did not just watch this drama unfold. They got involved and through their prayers and their contributions helped this tragedy become a story of triumph.
With this in mind, Mr. Speaker, I ask that the tribute be read at length.
6. I conclude this final legislative report on the activities that took place this past Thursday. It was the National Day of Prayer. I attended a prayer breakfast in Fort Collins, a noon prayer rally on the steps of the capitol and a community prayer meeting that evening in Berthoud. It was an inspiration and an encouragement to know that people across our state are rising up to appeal to the Creator for his blessing and guidance.
I am confident that if every day is a day of prayer for our nation, God will hear and He will heal our land.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 29, 2007
Topics:
1. School Finance Act is Probably an Unconstitutional Tax Increase
2. Session is Almost Over
3. HB 1366 Hurts Small Business
4. RSCC Holds Global Warming Hearing
5. Server Problems Slowing Email and Freedom Watch Webpage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. SB 199 is the school finance act. This past week it was debated and voted on in the House. Most significantly, this bill contained a fundamental change to how property taxes are calculated, which will drive the second largest tax increase in Colorado's history (second only to Referendum "C".) Despite the attorney general's opinion that the legislature does not have the authority to impose this tax increase without a vote of the people, the House passed SB 199. The new property tax mechanism will essentially lock school property tax assessments to the inflation of property values. Had this taxing system been in place over the past ten years school property taxes would today be double and triple what they are today. If the governor signs this bill, that is what can easily happen for future years.
2. The 2007 legislative session is coming to a close. Most expect we will finish on either the 4th or 7th of May. Constitutionally we can go no further than the 9th of May. This final full week will be a busy time as all measures still in the system will be on the table at the same time. Just about anything can happen and it is essential to stay alert for anyone trying to quickly (and quietly) sneak something into the law books.
3. HB 1366, a bill which will create serious consequences for some small businesses, passed the House. This bill will make it a requirement that all business owners working on construction sites carry workers compensation insurance on themselves. "Construction site" is broadly defined to include any alteration of a building in Colorado. There is an exception for LLCs and Corporations if they file a specific form, but all other sole proprietors will be required to carry this very expensive insurance coverage. This bill prevents hard working Colorado entrepreneurs from making their own decisions about running their business. If business owners believe it doesn't make financial sense for them to take out this insurance on themselves, then I believe that the General Assembly has no right to interfere. HB 1366 will also drive up the costs of hiring subcontractors in the construction business, particularly one man shops.
4. On Friday, April 27th, the Republican Study Committee of Colorado held a public hearing on Global Warming. I chaired this meeting which featured Dr. William Gray, the world renowned CSU hurricane expert. He and his CSU team have developed the reputation of developing the most accurate predictions for hurricane seasons. It is Dr. Gray's professional opinion that most global warming predictions are way out of any range of accuracy and greatly exaggerated. Also presenting was Mr. Marlo Lewis of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a Washington D.C. think tank that has been focusing on the global warming debate. After the legislative session is over I hope to put a video record of this important hearing on the internet.
5. Some serious server problems have prevented me from updating the Freedom Watch page on my website for the past several days. I apologize for this problem and hope to have it up and running soon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 15, 2007
Topics:
1. April 15
2. Capital Punishment Challenged
3. Primary Seat belt Law Fails
4. Homeschool day at the Capitol
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. On this date, made famous with the death of President Lincoln, the sinking of the Titanic and, of course, income taxes, good news is sometimes hard to find. In this legislative report we have found both good news and bad.
We had the usual batch of bad bills that increased and created fees and regulations. HB 1329 brings us new and increased fees for drinking water and waste water systems. HB 1344 allows local governments to seek sales tax increase of up to 2% and lifts the total sales cap by .5%. HB 1292 came back from the Senate amended, but it still prevents most local school districts from teaching abstinence-only sex education courses. These all passed, with a clear party line slant.
2. Another bad bill removes some funding for the State's capital crimes office. The bill started out as essentially eliminating the death penalty in Colorado. The bill's sponsor then amended it down to only get rid of some positions in the capital crimes office. This office investigates capitol crime homicides. The bill does not eliminate the death penalty, but it is a strike against the state being able to effectively enforce the death penalty.
I believe the death penalty is an important deterrent for major crimes in Colorado and I an confident the people in District 49 continue to support capitol punishment. I voted against the bill.
3. In the good news column there was the battle over SB 151, the primary seat belt law. This bill would have made it a primary offence for driving without a seat belt. That means that law enforcement could pull over any motorist suspected of not wearing a seat belt. Seat belts are an important safety feature, but as a primary offense this law troubles many as another nanny bill that jeopardizes our civil liberties. As has happened in the two previous sessions, the bill lost by the narrowest of margins. Some times good news comes in small packages, this time it was two more votes than the other side.
4. Friday may have been the best day for the session, primarily because we did no harm. Both the House and the Senate leadership decided to not meet because of the anticipated "blizzard" that never arrived.
Despite the House not meeting, I went to the capitol to welcome several hundred homeschool families as part of the annual Homeschool Day at the Capitol, sponsored by Christian Home Educators of Colorado. Despite the fact that the legislature closed up shop for the day, these homeschool families came out in force to make a statement about their commitment to homeschooling and their determination to defend their liberties. It is no surprise to me that these mothers and fathers, who cheerfully and directly provide their children's education, would not be swayed by a bit of snow.
Their active involvement in the civic process should encourage us all to stand up and be counted. Even on April the 15th we can find good things happening which we can get behind and be proud of.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 10, 2007
Topics:
1. They Couldn't Even Reduce Spending By .1%
2. Iraq Memorial Passes House on Party-line Vote
3. Bill Fixing Amendment 41 Ignores the Constitution
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. They couldn't even reduce General Fund spending by one tenth of one percent.
Early in April the House passed the "Long Bill." This is the main budget bill of the session. The total spending for this budget is over $17.8 billion. I tried to get four amendments on the bill.
First I ran an amendment to encourage' the government to respect the law of Colorado concerning public funding for abortions. The state constitution (Article 5, Section 50) prohibits any direct or indirect public funding for abortions. Because of this law former governor Owens had established a policy of not funding Planned Parenthood for any services related to abortion services. Our new governor reversed that policy and reinstated full funding for Planned Parenthood. I believe he is thumbing his nose at our constitution. The amendment failed on a party line vote.
I also sponsored three amendments to cut government spending which would encourage at lest a little fiscal responsibility. I wanted to reduce General Fund discretionary spending by a very small amount and use the funds as seed money to start a rainy day fund. The first amendment called for a one percent reduction. The second made it one quarter of one percent. The final was a mere one tenth of one percent. That final vote for the reduction of the General Fund by one thousandth (.1%) of the discretionary line items went down on a virtual party line vote.
Don't ever forget that the $17.8 billion dollar budget comes from the taxpayer. As these government budgets continue to balloon we need, more than ever, to ensure that stewardship and responsibility are practiced. I refuse to believe that we could not meet the needs of Colorado with a number lower, even significantly lower, then that.
2. On Thursday of last week the House passed Senate Joint Memorial 02, calling on the Federal government to stop the current escalation of the war in Iraq. I opposed this measure because of its poor understanding of international politics, its lack of solid support for the troops currently in the field and its blatant political agenda.
Several Republicans spoke eloquently in defense of the troops and the clear need we always have to show solidarity against our enemies, but good, common sense logic was not to prevail with this issue. It passed, on a party line vote.
3. SB 210 is waiting on the Supreme Court. The general assembly has asked the court whether or not SB 210 violates the constitution. I applauded this move as it is a step towards exactly what I am fighting for: constitutional responsibility. SB 210 is the bill which I believe goes beyond the constitutional language of the ethics in government Amendment (41), which passed last November. Amendment 41 created a ban on almost all gifts more than $50 for government employees. SB 210 limits that to only gifts that are designed to influence public policy.
As much as I think Amendment 41 is bad law, I am not willing to violate the constitution to fix it. If we want to fix the damage done by 41 it can only be done at the ballot box by changing the constitution. Regardless of the short term ramifications of 41, attacking the constitution is a bad precedent for Colorado and the rule of law.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
March 31, 2007
Topics:
1. SB 124 Redefines the Family
2. SB 117 and HB 1338 makes life in Colorado a Bit More Expensive
3. HB 1081 Adds One More Regulated Industry
4. SB 135 Puts Colorado in the Bingo Business
5. Long Bill Brings Both Good and Bad to the DMV
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Perhaps the most dangerous bill in the House this week was SB 124. This is a technical bill that deals with Coloradan's eligibility for federal housing assistance. In many ways this bill is a necessary action to clarify some details in Colorado statutes. The difficulty is that the Senate amended the bill so that instead of continuing to say that a family is a group of persons related by blood, marriage or adoption it now reads that a family is a group of persons who live together or plan to live together, WHETHER OR NOT they are related by blood, marriage or adoption. When we tried to amend these three words back out of the bill, the opposition to the amendment was too intense for it to have been an innocent oversight. This is an attempt to piggyback a radical redefinition of the family onto a sensible proposal. After all of our debate, the bill still passed, with the new definition of a family.
2. SB 117 and HB 1338 are both bills that will drive up the cost of living in Colorado. Both bills were passed by the House this week. SB 117 removes the requirement that the loser in a civil suit must pay for court costs, if it is the employee in an employer/employee lawsuit. Today it is a simple rule that the loser pays the cost of the lawsuit. This is a trial lawyers bill which will clog up the courts with long-shot lawsuits. The other bill, HB 1338, removes all expressed warranty provisions in construction contracts made in the last six years and prohibits those warranty provisions in future contracts. HB 1338 arguably violates Article 1 section 9 of the US Constitution by enacting an ex post facto law.
3. One more industry will be regulated this year with the passage of HB 1081. This time it is the "powersports equipment" dealers. Powersports are ATVs, off-road motorcycles, snowmobiles, power water sports equipment, etc. HB 1081 is another advance of the nanny state and another measure that will drive up the cost of living in Colorado.
4. SB 135 is an attempt to put Colorado in the bingo promotion business. This bill will tax bingo operators so that the state of Colorado can run a marketing campaign for bingo halls. It is appropriate for the state to regulate the bingo industry, but why are we trying to become the ad agency for bingo halls?.
5. The Long Bill (major budget bill) passed through the Senate this past week. The House will get the bill in this coming week. Contained within the 17 plus billion dollar budget is the opening of three new drivers license offices, including one in Loveland. So far, so good, I was trying to get them to do that last year. Now the bad news: this will cost everyone a $4 increase in drivers license fees and the special vehicle plate charge of $25 will be doubled to $50.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
March 24, 2007
Topics:
1. HB 1208 Clears Final Legislative Hurdles
2. Immunization Tracking System Expanded
3. Historic State Policy Changes for Oil and Gas Industry
4. Long Bill Begins Next Week
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. My bill, HB 1208, which will provide major savings to consumers on gas and prescription drugs, suffered a brief set-back this week when it was amended with a "poison pill" in the Senate. The Senate decided that instead of boosting savings for consumers, this bill was a good vehicle for boosting protectionism! The Senate's amendment would have actually made the current law stricter for 55 counties and only allowed the discount programs in the nine largest counties. The House rejected the Senate Amendments and the Senate finally voted to accept the House version. HB 1208 is now on the governor's desk
2. HB 1347 passed second reading on Friday. This bill rewrites the laws concerning the immunization tracking system. The tracking system is a database that permanently tracks all children (but the law is so open-ended on age requirements that it might be a system that includes adults as well.) The personal information is taken from birth certificates, hospitals, schools, medical insurance companies, doctors offices and anywhere else they can gather it. In second reading the sponsor insisted that participation in the database is voluntary, but I have found that it is not so. Once a person's name is entered into the system there is no provision for removing their name from the system. If one "opts out" it simply means their vaccination records are removed and they are then listed as one who objects to having their immunization records in the system. This is deeply troubling for many parents and individuals who have personal objections with the aggressive immunization regimen that the state requires. HB 1347 is an expansion of the big brother government policies of the immunization tracking system.
3. HB 1341 is concerning the mission and membership of the Oil and Gas Commission. The House passed this bill by essentially a party-line vote on Friday.
This bill is, as the proponents said at the mic, an historic change in Colorado's oil and gas policy. The bill changes the composition of the commission, shifting the commission membership from those who understand the industry toward those who, at best do not know the industry or, at worst, are special interests who oppose oil and gas development. This might even open the door for environmental extremists to run our oil and gas policies.
Most telling to me in this bill is the way the purpose of the commission is being changed. This bill is stripping out the words "encourage and promote" from the statement that deals with the development of the oil and gas industry. When I tried to amend the words back into the bill I was told that removing "encourage and promote" is an essential part of the bill. As I see it, encourage and promote are being trumped by command and control.
No longer will state policy encourage and support the largest industry in the state that 70,000 jobs depend upon. With HB 1341 we are replacing encourage and support with a system of command and control.
Nor will we encourage and support the development of our tremendous natural resources of energy, which could make Colorado a world-class leader in energy production and the front-line for our nation's drive for energy independence. We are replacing a policy of encouraging and promoting with a command and control policy that will trade out the bright prospects for our state's prosperity for a dim future of economic malaise.
4. The Long Bill (the General Fund budget) begins in the Senate next week. Each year the State of Colorado spends over $15 billion on various programs throughout the state, and it will be critical for us to be vigilant against the profligate waste that is sure to come in the budget process.
May 06, 2007
Topics:
1. 2007 Session Ends Early
2. HJR 1048 calls for controlling Mexican trucking companies in U.S.
3. SB 25: Hiring Practices and Religious Liberty
4. General Assembly Finishes on a Regulation Binge.
5. Tribute to Berthoud Wrestlers
6. National Day of Prayer
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. The 2007 regular session ended five days early! With the rush all session to increase regulations, fees, taxes (SB 199), limit charter schools and pass bills that fly in the face of traditional family values, we ended none to soon. In the next few days I will prepare an overview of the session. For this report I give you some of the details of the final week.
2. In the final two days of the session the House and Senate passed my resolution (HJR 1048) calling on Congress to pass legislation prohibiting 100 Mexican trucking companies from shipping goods all across the U.S. until they fully satisfy all safety and security issues. In the opinion of many the Federal government is starting this pilot program before all security and safety issues have been settled. The Colorado Legislature has now gone on record demanding that this not be a compromise of the safety of our roads and the security of our boarder.
3. SB 25 passed the House this week and it is now on the governor's desk. It adds the words "sexual orientation" to the list of reasons an employer cannot discriminate in hiring decisions. It exempts religious organizations, but only if that organization has no association with any public funds. This bill sets the state up as the judge of moral and religious principles for private employers, including any religious organization that has any association with public funds. It is the state establishing a moral (religious) value and prohibiting the free exercise of any conflicting moral (religious) value.
4. The General Assembly continued their regulating spree. Just this week the House voted for regulation of interior designers, debt-settlement services, elevators and escalators, mortgage brokers, settlement service providers, movers of household goods, and powersports vehicle dealers.
This rush to regulate is a very different philosophy of government than the liberty loving principles that I ascribe to. I believe the citizens of Colorado are wise and for the most part good. They are capable of solving their own problems, capable of developing powerful industries and capable of educating and raising their own children. That is the key fact that is so often missed, Colorado is a great state filled with responsible adults and brave citizens " they dont need a nanny state. They need to defend life and liberty.
5. In the closing minutes of this year's session it was my privilege to honor on the House floor the two young men from Berthoud, Tyler Carron and Nikko Landeros, who lost their legs in a tragic accident.
Here are the comments I prepared for that special time last Friday:
Mr. Speaker.
Thank you for your generosity in allowing us to present this tribute as one of the final actions for the 2007 regular session.
At the close of this session it is fitting that we look outward, toward the accomplishments of the people of Colorado, rather than inward, only dwelling on what has transpired within this building, for It is not our role to rule the people, it is our role to represent the people, and what they do is ultimately what really counts.
Today we have an extraordinary example of two young men who have faced adversity with courage, and we have the medical professionals who showed compassion and unsurpassed skill as they rescued and restored, and the community did not just watch this drama unfold. They got involved and through their prayers and their contributions helped this tragedy become a story of triumph.
With this in mind, Mr. Speaker, I ask that the tribute be read at length.
6. I conclude this final legislative report on the activities that took place this past Thursday. It was the National Day of Prayer. I attended a prayer breakfast in Fort Collins, a noon prayer rally on the steps of the capitol and a community prayer meeting that evening in Berthoud. It was an inspiration and an encouragement to know that people across our state are rising up to appeal to the Creator for his blessing and guidance.
I am confident that if every day is a day of prayer for our nation, God will hear and He will heal our land.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 29, 2007
Topics:
1. School Finance Act is Probably an Unconstitutional Tax Increase
2. Session is Almost Over
3. HB 1366 Hurts Small Business
4. RSCC Holds Global Warming Hearing
5. Server Problems Slowing Email and Freedom Watch Webpage
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. SB 199 is the school finance act. This past week it was debated and voted on in the House. Most significantly, this bill contained a fundamental change to how property taxes are calculated, which will drive the second largest tax increase in Colorado's history (second only to Referendum "C".) Despite the attorney general's opinion that the legislature does not have the authority to impose this tax increase without a vote of the people, the House passed SB 199. The new property tax mechanism will essentially lock school property tax assessments to the inflation of property values. Had this taxing system been in place over the past ten years school property taxes would today be double and triple what they are today. If the governor signs this bill, that is what can easily happen for future years.
2. The 2007 legislative session is coming to a close. Most expect we will finish on either the 4th or 7th of May. Constitutionally we can go no further than the 9th of May. This final full week will be a busy time as all measures still in the system will be on the table at the same time. Just about anything can happen and it is essential to stay alert for anyone trying to quickly (and quietly) sneak something into the law books.
3. HB 1366, a bill which will create serious consequences for some small businesses, passed the House. This bill will make it a requirement that all business owners working on construction sites carry workers compensation insurance on themselves. "Construction site" is broadly defined to include any alteration of a building in Colorado. There is an exception for LLCs and Corporations if they file a specific form, but all other sole proprietors will be required to carry this very expensive insurance coverage. This bill prevents hard working Colorado entrepreneurs from making their own decisions about running their business. If business owners believe it doesn't make financial sense for them to take out this insurance on themselves, then I believe that the General Assembly has no right to interfere. HB 1366 will also drive up the costs of hiring subcontractors in the construction business, particularly one man shops.
4. On Friday, April 27th, the Republican Study Committee of Colorado held a public hearing on Global Warming. I chaired this meeting which featured Dr. William Gray, the world renowned CSU hurricane expert. He and his CSU team have developed the reputation of developing the most accurate predictions for hurricane seasons. It is Dr. Gray's professional opinion that most global warming predictions are way out of any range of accuracy and greatly exaggerated. Also presenting was Mr. Marlo Lewis of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a Washington D.C. think tank that has been focusing on the global warming debate. After the legislative session is over I hope to put a video record of this important hearing on the internet.
5. Some serious server problems have prevented me from updating the Freedom Watch page on my website for the past several days. I apologize for this problem and hope to have it up and running soon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 15, 2007
Topics:
1. April 15
2. Capital Punishment Challenged
3. Primary Seat belt Law Fails
4. Homeschool day at the Capitol
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. On this date, made famous with the death of President Lincoln, the sinking of the Titanic and, of course, income taxes, good news is sometimes hard to find. In this legislative report we have found both good news and bad.
We had the usual batch of bad bills that increased and created fees and regulations. HB 1329 brings us new and increased fees for drinking water and waste water systems. HB 1344 allows local governments to seek sales tax increase of up to 2% and lifts the total sales cap by .5%. HB 1292 came back from the Senate amended, but it still prevents most local school districts from teaching abstinence-only sex education courses. These all passed, with a clear party line slant.
2. Another bad bill removes some funding for the State's capital crimes office. The bill started out as essentially eliminating the death penalty in Colorado. The bill's sponsor then amended it down to only get rid of some positions in the capital crimes office. This office investigates capitol crime homicides. The bill does not eliminate the death penalty, but it is a strike against the state being able to effectively enforce the death penalty.
I believe the death penalty is an important deterrent for major crimes in Colorado and I an confident the people in District 49 continue to support capitol punishment. I voted against the bill.
3. In the good news column there was the battle over SB 151, the primary seat belt law. This bill would have made it a primary offence for driving without a seat belt. That means that law enforcement could pull over any motorist suspected of not wearing a seat belt. Seat belts are an important safety feature, but as a primary offense this law troubles many as another nanny bill that jeopardizes our civil liberties. As has happened in the two previous sessions, the bill lost by the narrowest of margins. Some times good news comes in small packages, this time it was two more votes than the other side.
4. Friday may have been the best day for the session, primarily because we did no harm. Both the House and the Senate leadership decided to not meet because of the anticipated "blizzard" that never arrived.
Despite the House not meeting, I went to the capitol to welcome several hundred homeschool families as part of the annual Homeschool Day at the Capitol, sponsored by Christian Home Educators of Colorado. Despite the fact that the legislature closed up shop for the day, these homeschool families came out in force to make a statement about their commitment to homeschooling and their determination to defend their liberties. It is no surprise to me that these mothers and fathers, who cheerfully and directly provide their children's education, would not be swayed by a bit of snow.
Their active involvement in the civic process should encourage us all to stand up and be counted. Even on April the 15th we can find good things happening which we can get behind and be proud of.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
April 10, 2007
Topics:
1. They Couldn't Even Reduce Spending By .1%
2. Iraq Memorial Passes House on Party-line Vote
3. Bill Fixing Amendment 41 Ignores the Constitution
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. They couldn't even reduce General Fund spending by one tenth of one percent.
Early in April the House passed the "Long Bill." This is the main budget bill of the session. The total spending for this budget is over $17.8 billion. I tried to get four amendments on the bill.
First I ran an amendment to encourage' the government to respect the law of Colorado concerning public funding for abortions. The state constitution (Article 5, Section 50) prohibits any direct or indirect public funding for abortions. Because of this law former governor Owens had established a policy of not funding Planned Parenthood for any services related to abortion services. Our new governor reversed that policy and reinstated full funding for Planned Parenthood. I believe he is thumbing his nose at our constitution. The amendment failed on a party line vote.
I also sponsored three amendments to cut government spending which would encourage at lest a little fiscal responsibility. I wanted to reduce General Fund discretionary spending by a very small amount and use the funds as seed money to start a rainy day fund. The first amendment called for a one percent reduction. The second made it one quarter of one percent. The final was a mere one tenth of one percent. That final vote for the reduction of the General Fund by one thousandth (.1%) of the discretionary line items went down on a virtual party line vote.
Don't ever forget that the $17.8 billion dollar budget comes from the taxpayer. As these government budgets continue to balloon we need, more than ever, to ensure that stewardship and responsibility are practiced. I refuse to believe that we could not meet the needs of Colorado with a number lower, even significantly lower, then that.
2. On Thursday of last week the House passed Senate Joint Memorial 02, calling on the Federal government to stop the current escalation of the war in Iraq. I opposed this measure because of its poor understanding of international politics, its lack of solid support for the troops currently in the field and its blatant political agenda.
Several Republicans spoke eloquently in defense of the troops and the clear need we always have to show solidarity against our enemies, but good, common sense logic was not to prevail with this issue. It passed, on a party line vote.
3. SB 210 is waiting on the Supreme Court. The general assembly has asked the court whether or not SB 210 violates the constitution. I applauded this move as it is a step towards exactly what I am fighting for: constitutional responsibility. SB 210 is the bill which I believe goes beyond the constitutional language of the ethics in government Amendment (41), which passed last November. Amendment 41 created a ban on almost all gifts more than $50 for government employees. SB 210 limits that to only gifts that are designed to influence public policy.
As much as I think Amendment 41 is bad law, I am not willing to violate the constitution to fix it. If we want to fix the damage done by 41 it can only be done at the ballot box by changing the constitution. Regardless of the short term ramifications of 41, attacking the constitution is a bad precedent for Colorado and the rule of law.
LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
March 31, 2007
Topics:
1. SB 124 Redefines the Family
2. SB 117 and HB 1338 makes life in Colorado a Bit More Expensive
3. HB 1081 Adds One More Regulated Industry
4. SB 135 Puts Colorado in the Bingo Business
5. Long Bill Brings Both Good and Bad to the DMV
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1. Perhaps the most dangerous bill in the House this week was SB 124. This is a technical bill that deals with Coloradan's eligibility for federal housing assistance. In many ways this bill is a necessary action to clarify some details in Colorado statutes. The difficulty is that the Senate amended the bill so that instead of continuing to say that a family is a group of persons related by blood, marriage or adoption it now reads that a family is a group of persons who live together or plan to live together, WHETHER OR NOT they are related by blood, marriage or adoption. When we tried to amend these three words back out of the bill, the opposition to the amendment was too intense for it to have been an innocent oversight. This is an attempt to piggyback a radical redefinition of the family onto a sensible proposal. After all of our debate, the bill still passed, with the new definition of a family.
2. SB 117 and HB 1338 are both bills that will drive up the cost of living in Colorado. Both bills were passed by the House this week. SB 117 removes the requirement that the loser in a civil suit must pay for court costs, if it is the employee in an employer/employee lawsuit. Today it is a simple rule that the loser pays the cost of the lawsuit. This is a trial lawyers bill which will clog up the courts with long-shot lawsuits. The other bill, HB 1338, removes all expressed warranty provisions in construction contracts made in the last six years and prohibits those warranty provisions in future contracts. HB 1338 arguably violates Article 1 section 9 of the US Constitution by enacting an ex post facto law.
3. One more industry will be regulated this year with the passage of HB 1081. This time it is the "powersports equipment" dealers. Powersports are ATVs, off-road motorcycles, snowmobiles, power water sports equipment, etc. HB 1081 is another advance of the nanny state and another measure that will drive up the cost of living in Colorado.
4. SB 135 is an attempt to put Colorado in the bingo promotion business. This bill will tax bingo operators so that the state of Colorado can run a marketing campaign for bingo halls. It is appropriate for the state to regulate the bingo industry, but why are we trying to become the ad agency for bingo halls?.
5. The Long Bill (major budget bill) passed through the Senate this past week. The House will get the bill in this coming week. Contained within the 17 plus billion dollar budget is the opening of three new drivers license offices, including one in Loveland. So far, so good, I was trying to get them to do that last year. Now the bad news: this will cost everyone a $4 increase in drivers license fees and the special vehicle plate charge of $25 will be doubled to $50.
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LUNDBERG LEGISLATIVE REPORT
March 24, 2007
Topics:
1. HB 1208 Clears Final Legislative Hurdles
2. Immunization Tracking System Expanded
3. Historic State Policy Changes for Oil and Gas Industry
4. Long Bill Begins Next Week
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1. My bill, HB 1208, which will provide major savings to consumers on gas and prescription drugs, suffered a brief set-back this week when it was amended with a "poison pill" in the Senate. The Senate decided that instead of boosting savings for consumers, this bill was a good vehicle for boosting protectionism! The Senate's amendment would have actually made the current law stricter for 55 counties and only allowed the discount programs in the nine largest counties. The House rejected the Senate Amendments and the Senate finally voted to accept the House version. HB 1208 is now on the governor's desk
2. HB 1347 passed second reading on Friday. This bill rewrites the laws concerning the immunization tracking system. The tracking system is a database that permanently tracks all children (but the law is so open-ended on age requirements that it might be a system that includes adults as well.) The personal information is taken from birth certificates, hospitals, schools, medical insurance companies, doctors offices and anywhere else they can gather it. In second reading the sponsor insisted that participation in the database is voluntary, but I have found that it is not so. Once a person's name is entered into the system there is no provision for removing their name from the system. If one "opts out" it simply means their vaccination records are removed and they are then listed as one who objects to having their immunization records in the system. This is deeply troubling for many parents and individuals who have personal objections with the aggressive immunization regimen that the state requires. HB 1347 is an expansion of the big brother government policies of the immunization tracking system.
3. HB 1341 is concerning the mission and membership of the Oil and Gas Commission. The House passed this bill by essentially a party-line vote on Friday.
This bill is, as the proponents said at the mic, an historic change in Colorado's oil and gas policy. The bill changes the composition of the commission, shifting the commission membership from those who understand the industry toward those who, at best do not know the industry or, at worst, are special interests who oppose oil and gas development. This might even open the door for environmental extremists to run our oil and gas policies.
Most telling to me in this bill is the way the purpose of the commission is being changed. This bill is stripping out the words "encourage and promote" from the statement that deals with the development of the oil and gas industry. When I tried to amend the words back into the bill I was told that removing "encourage and promote" is an essential part of the bill. As I see it, encourage and promote are being trumped by command and control.
No longer will state policy encourage and support the largest industry in the state that 70,000 jobs depend upon. With HB 1341 we are replacing encourage and support with a system of command and control.
Nor will we encourage and support the development of our tremendous natural resources of energy, which could make Colorado a world-class leader in energy production and the front-line for our nation's drive for energy independence. We are replacing a policy of encouraging and promoting with a command and control policy that will trade out the bright prospects for our state's prosperity for a dim future of economic malaise.
4. The Long Bill (the General Fund budget) begins in the Senate next week. Each year the State of Colorado spends over $15 billion on various programs throughout the state, and it will be critical for us to be vigilant against the profligate waste that is sure to come in the budget process.
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