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Dan Pilcher CACI Senior Vice President & Chief Operating Officer
Phone: 303.866.9600 E-Mail: dpilcher@COchamber.com
Friday, February 6, 2009
House Passes Amended Parental-Leave Bill, HB-1057, on Second Reading; CACI Member Comments Needed
This morning, the House passed on Second Reading HB-1057, which was amended substantially yesterday afternoon in the House Education Committee. If the House approves the bill Monday on Third Reading, it will then go to the Senate. The House sponsor is Representative Andy Kerr (D-Lakewood). For the debate yesterday before the House Education Committee, visit:
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2009/feb/06/parental-leave-advances-after-modification/
We are asking CACI members to review the amended bill and contact CACI Vice President of Governmental Affairs Loren Furman with comments at 303.888.9387 or via e-mail at lfurman@COchamber.com
The amended bill can be found on the CACI Web site in the Headlines section as a pdf that you can read, print out or download. The new language is highlighted in yellow.
Major highlights of the amendment include:
As introduced, HB-1057 would have required companies that employ more than 10 workers to provide up to six hours of unpaid leave per month and up to 40 hours in an academic year to workers who want to attend parent-teacher conferences or other academic activities related to the educational achievement of the employee’s child.
CACI Member Testifies Against HB-1117, which Would “Recapture Unearned Compensation” of Corporate Executives
Larry Marquess, Littler Mendelson PC
On Wednesday, the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee took testimony on HB-1117, and laid the bill over for action until Tuesday morning when the Committee convenes in Room 112 following adjournment of the House floor session.
The bill is aimed at prohibiting, or recovering, “unearned compensation” from the top five executives at publicly-traded firms who earn more than $1 million per year when the firm is failing by being “undercapitalized.” HB-1117 allows shareholders, creditors, the Colorado Attorney General and others to try to recover the compensation.
Larry Marquess, a Shareholder with Littler Mendelson PC, testified against the bill on behalf of CACI. Among the points that Larry made about the bill are the following:
The bill will have an adverse effect on existing and prospective businesses by interfering with existing executive employment contracts. It will foster disputes and lawsuits against employers by executives or contractors if the companies cut their pay. The effect on executives will be retroactive. If a company does not cut the pay of the executives, then shareholders can take legal action against the company.
If it becomes law, the SB-23 will drive executive talent and corporate headquarters out of the state. It also will cause companies considering Colorado for corporate headquarters to locate elsewhere. It would be better to let the Federal Government deal with the problem.
The bill would create a “breeding ground for class action litigation” to the detriment of the business community while the primary beneficiaries will be class-action trial lawyers.
One worrisome scenario would be for one or two individuals to buy a few shares of stock, and the have a class-action lawsuit filed on their behalf under the bill. The company would be forced to either spend a lot of money to defend itself against the lawsuit—or pay an out-of-court settlement to the plaintiffs and their attorneys.
The vagueness or absence of definitions will encourage abusive lawsuits, including the following:
The bill also contains legal inconsistencies:
A CACI member, Littler Mendelson PC specializes in employment and labor law: www.littler.com
House Committee Overwhelmingly Votes to Kill Controversial Bill to Codify Pending County Ordinances
This bill, HB-1106, opposed by CACI, has to be one of the stranger creatures that we’ve seen introduced at the legislature. It would have applied the force of law for a proposed local government ordinance to pending land-use applications before the proposed ordinance had actually been enacted by elected local government officials.
The bill’s title said it concerned “codification of the pending ordinance doctrine in connection with land use approvals by local governments.”
On Thursday, the House Local Government Committee voted overwhelmingly 10-0 with one member excused to kill HB-1106, which was sponsored by Representative Dickey Lee Hullinghorst (D-Boulder). Our thanks to CACI Contract Lobbyist Donnah Moody for working hard to muster opposition on the Committee to the bill.
CACI Testifies Against Bill to Mandate that Employers Use the Federal “E-Verify” Program to Determine the Employment Status of Prospective Workers
On Wednesday, Larry Hudson, CACI Contract lobbyist, Wednesday testified in opposition to SB-23 before the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. The Committee took no action on the bill, and laid it over until Monday when the Committee meets at 1:30 p.m. in Senate Committee Room 353. The bill is sponsored by Senator Dave Schultheis (R-Colorado Springs).
In his testimony, Larry made the following major points:
Governor’s Job-Creation Tax-Credit Bill Approved by House Finance Committee
Yesterday, the House Finance Committee overwhelmingly passed by a ten-to-one vote HB-1001, the job-creation tax credit bill advocated by Governor Bill Ritter, thus sending it on to the House Appropriations Committee. CACI supports the bill, which is sponsored by Representative Joe Rice (D-Littleton).
The bill is intended to provide an incentive for businesses to create jobs. To participate in the program, a business would have to meet certain criteria and apply to the Colorado Economic Development Commission to receive the tax credit. The firm would be eligible for a corporate income-tax credit of up to 50 percent of its annual FICA taxes on new workers. The tax credit would be calculated on a year-to-year basis for five years according to the number of new workers on the payroll of the business at the end of the year. In order for the tax credit to be granted, a company has to prove that the company would not move or expand its operations in Colorado but for this program.
Bill to Allow Expanded Employment Lawsuits Scheduled for Wednesday Hearing
SB-110, the Colorado Civil Rights Division “sunset” bill, is on the agenda of the Senate Judiciary Committee when it meets Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in Senate Committee Room 352. It is sponsored by Senator John Morse (D-Colorado Springs). CACI opposes the bill. Here is CACI’s “Fact Sheet” that details our opposition to the bill:
SB-110 was originally a non-controversial "sunset" bill that would have reauthorized the Colorado Civil Rights Commission and the Colorado Civil Rights Division until 2018.
Trial attorneys requested, however, that a new provision be included in SB-110 that added expanded remedies to employment claims. Under current law, a plaintiff who wins an employment discrimination claim can recover actual economic damages. The new provision allows employment lawsuits to be diverted from the Federal courts, where they are currently considered as Federal EEOC cases, to state district courts with dockets that are already overloaded.
The Impact: Increased Lawsuits and Awards against All Colorado Businesses:
· This provision hurts large and small businesses by allowing plaintiffs to pursue compensatory, punitive damages and attorneys’ fees based on the size of the business; · This provision creates an incentive for trial attorneys and their clients to file lawsuits against employers so that they can receive larger settlements and awards; · This provision conflicts with Federal law that currently exempts small businesses from the damages that this bill imposes (Congress recognized that small businesses face significant financial costs in defending against employment lawsuits, and this provision negates those protections); · This provision will cause small businesses to shut down based on the substantial damage awards that could put them out of business or even the cost of settling a lawsuit, which could be, at a minimum, $100,000; · This provision will cause businesses of any size to hire fewer workers, or even lay off current employees, based on an excessive award of damages or cost of settling a lawsuit; and · Businesses will re-consider locating to Colorado if there is a risk of costly employment lawsuits that could potentially put them out of business.
Impact in Other States where Similar Bills Were Enacted:
· Similar legislation was implemented in California and the number of lawsuits increased dramatically; · California businesses now dedicate funds in their budget to employment litigation and insurance coverage versus spending it on increased wages and benefits for employees; · Employers choose to keep underperforming workers to avoid the risk of employment litigation.
CACI is working closely with the Colorado Civil Justice League to oppose the bill. The CCJL has created a fact-sheet on this bill, which can be found on the CCJL Web site along with a CCJL press release on the bill:
First Hearing Set for CACI-Opposed Bill that Would Provide Unemployment Insurance Benefits for Locked-Out Workers
HB-1170 is on the agenda for the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee, when it convenes on Tuesday, February 17th, in Room 112 after the House adjourns its morning floor session. The bill is sponsored by Representative Edward Casso (D-Thornton).
This proposal would allow union workers to receive Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits when the employer initiates the “lockout” of the workers during a labor dispute with the union. The bill defines “lockout” as “a refusal by an employer engaged in a dispute with a union to permits its employees to perform services on behalf of the employer.” The bill also covers “multi-employment bargaining units,” which is defined as “any group of two or more employers bargaining with a union as a single unit with the consent of each employer and the union.”
The bill defines an employer-initiated lockout to “constitute a labor dispute” and thus the unemployed workers are eligible for UI benefits. The exception to this change is that workers may be ineligible for UI benefits if “the lockout results from the demands of employees as distinguished from an effort on the part of the employer to deprive the employees of some advantage that they already possess.” From CACI’s perspective, employers lock out workers when they fear that striking workers will damage the employer’s facility. CACI has opposed similar bills in past sessions.
CACI Opposes Bill to Force Companies to Pay “Prevailing Wages” on State Public Works Projects
A new bill, HB-1208, introduced last week would force companies working on state public works projects, such as building and repairing roads and bridges, to pay “prevailing wages” set by the U.S. Labor Department to their non-unionized workers.
In effect, this bill, which CACI opposes, would force companies—and their subcontractors--to pay union wages to their workers. Such a bill would add millions to the price tag for such projects or force a cutback in the scope of the projects, or both.
The bill is sponsored by Representative John Soper (D-Thornton) and is scheduled to be heard by the House Business Affairs Committee on Tuesday, February 17th, in Room 112 following adjournment of the House floor session. For more on the bill, click on:
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2009/feb/03/union-wage-bill-assailed/
Bill to Force Employers to Provide Paid Sick Leave Scheduled for First Hearing
The bill, HB-1210, had been calendared for a hearing on Wednesday, February 18th, before the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee, which convenes at 1:30 p.m. in Room 112. CACI opposes the bill, which is sponsored in the House by Representative Anne McGihon (D-Denver).
CACI members are urged to go to the Headlines section of the CACI Web site to print out or download HB-1210 and study its provisions. Please e-mail your comments as soon as possible to Loren Furman, CACI Vice President of Governmental Affairs, at lfurman@COchamber.com
Among other things, the bill would require that companies provide the leave according to the following schedule based on the size of firms:
On Tuesday, the Governmental Affairs Council meets at 12 Noon. The Council is comprised of members of the business lobbying corps at the State Capitol who are, or who represent, CACI members, including corporate lobbyists, trade association lobbyists and contract lobbyists. The Council meets for a working lunch every-other-Tuesday during the legislative session for a strategic and tactical discussion regarding bills that affect the business community.
The CACI lobbying team presents CACI’s Legislative Agenda and lobbying strategy and enlists the help of Council members, who also discuss the issues they are lobbying on behalf of their respective CACI-member clients.
Because of the strategic nature of the Government Affairs Council, membership is open only to lobbyists who are CACI members or who lobby on behalf of one or more CACI members. Unlike other CACI councils, the Government Affair Council does not inform CACI Board of Directors’ policy but, rather, implements a broader business agenda based on parameters and policies set by the CACI Board of Directors.
NOTE: CACI councils meet in the Conference Room at the CACI Office. Information about council meetings and agendas can be accessed on the CACI Web site. If you, as a CACI member, are not a member of these councils and want to join, please e-mail Misty Fox at mfox@COchamber.com
For More Information on Legislation . . .
CACI members with questions about legislation that CACI opposes or supports should contact Chuck Berry, CACI President, at 303.866.9652 or e-mail him at cberry@COchamber.com
Questions pertaining to health-care bills should be directed to Ralph Pollock, Chair of the CACI HealthCare Council, at 303.866.9657 or via e-mail at ralph@apaccess.com |
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