Sen. Paul Lundeen and Rep. Tim Geitner spoke at a town hall meeting sponsored by The Friends of the Black Forest Preservation Plan at the Black Forest Community Center on Jan. 25. For the most part, the meeting was focused on bills.Lundeen discussed his three bills. With the Sales and Use Tax Revenue for Transportation Bill, Lundeen said he is proposing using 10 percent of the sales tax on vehicle and transportation related items for the Highway Userís Tax Fund. The HUTF will be used for state, county and municipal highway system projects. Lundeen said the bill was sent to the State Veterans and Military Affairs Committee instead of the transportation committee. ìIn politics, this is what is known as a ëkill committee,íî he said. The bill has been killed since the town hall meeting.The second bill, SB-74, Bonuses for Highly Effective Teachers, suggests using $50 million from the existing education budget to give effective teachers a $2,000 bonus. Lundeen said, according to the last audited school year, 2016-2017, Colorado spent $13 billion on public education, which equals about $15,000 per child in K-12. Lundeen said the Department of Education would be responsible for deciding which teachers would receive the bonuses, based on a formula that accounts for the number of teachers employed by each district.The third bill, which he hopes will be introduced in three or four weeks, is related to data privacy. Lundeen said he believes companies should not be able to gather personal information to sell or share. He said a bill was already passed three years ago that protects studentsí privacy rights; this bill is broader.He also talked about two bills coming up that he said would be detrimental to the people of Colorado. One is called Public Option, which allows the government to set prices hospitals can charge, doctorsí visits, tests, etc. Lunden said, ìThere are three critical pieces of information to consider when making these kinds of decisions; cost, access and quality.î He said he agrees we need to contain the cost, but is concerned about what will happen to access and quality in the process.The second bill involves a tax increase. Lundeen said there is a proposal to take 1 percent of each personís salary for a fund to allow an employee 16 weeks leave from work to take care of someone with whom the employee has a meaningful relationship. He said they are still waiting for the exact language, but the last time it was discussed, there was no explanation as to what ìmeaningfulî means. Lundeen said most companies and employers already have a provision for the Family and Medical Leave Act for their employees.ìI think freedom is the greatest thing,î Lundeen said. ìMy friends on the other side think government is here to help everyone. I will continue to talk to them with respect and honor every day and share with them where I think government belongs and where it doesnít belong,îGeitner talked about his three bills. The Fundamental Family Rights in Colorado Bill, HB20-1063, states that parents have the right to make financial, medical and educational decisions relating to their children, without government intervention; and it establishes that parents should have fundamental rights in Colorado. Geitner said this bill has been sent to the kill committee. The second bill is the Colorado TRAILS System Requirement, HB20-1105. Geitner said TRAILS is what Colorado uses to track and register those who are suspected and accused of child abuse and neglect. He said the problem with TRAILS is that it puts anyone who is under suspicion into the system without due process. Currently, a case is opened and a letter is sent to the individual suspects informing them they are now in the registry; the letter also provides information about a hearing.Geitner said the first problem is that the process can affect peopleís licenses, such as doctors, teachers and people in the military with security clearances. Also, young people are being added to the registry, which means they can now be entered into the adult judicial process, Geitner said.ìThis bill requires the department of human services to provide the accused person written notice of the intent to list the personís name in the system,î Geitner said. After an allegation is made, the accused can request a hearing before a judge within 14 days.The third bill is Parent Authority to Require Educational Reforms, HB20-1111. Geitner said currently parents donít have many options to address failing schools, other than taking the child out of the school. Geitner said most parents cannot just take their kids out of school. According to this bill, if 50 percent of the parents agree on a proposed plan for the failing school, they can present it to the school board and ask them to institute the changes, he said. The board can agree or negotiate; if they decline the plan, parents can initiate a recall of the board or apply for an appeal. Geitner said he is concerned about two bills that have not been introduced. One could involve limits on firearm purchases. Rep. Tom Sullivan is the author of the bill and has not yet introduced the bill. The second bill requires a standard mill levy for school districts. Geitner said every district would have to pass a $27 million levy, which could be a burden for smaller school districts. He said the $27 million is not set in stone.Geitner said, ìItís an honor to represent the people in my district.î He will be running for re-election this November.Toward the end of the meeting, attendees brought up questions related to school districts, future plans for I 25, the Black Forest Preservation Plan and water issues.Regarding water, Lundeen said, “Part of the challenge is every year we allow too much water to flow down river; we don’t store water we have legal rights to; and, if we are to move forward, we need to store more water and use municipality systems in dense areas rather than only groundwater.” Resident Judy Von Ahlefeldt addressed the group regarding the countyís process to approve development.Lundeen and Geitner encouraged the people of Black Forest to keep having meetings and to keep bringing their concerns to official meetings.
