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DENVER – The Colorado Chamber today announced its opposition to House Bill 1118 filed in the state legislature this week. The bill imposes broad new regulations and restrictions on how employers manage employee workweek schedules and pay.
“Businesses have a choice in where they can locate, expand and invest – and we want them to choose Colorado,” said Colorado Chamber President and CEO Loren Furman. “But for years, business leaders have been telling us that Colorado’s increasingly complex and costly regulatory climate is hurting our competitiveness. HB 1118 is precisely the type of proposal we’re talking about when we caution lawmakers about the consequences of their policies. The harsh reality of this bill is that it will lead to fewer available jobs for workers, lower pay and less flexibility – all while driving businesses out of the state. As written, it’s the most punitive of its kind in the country and the Colorado Chamber will utilize all resources available to oppose it.”
The position to oppose HB 1118 was unanimously supported by the Colorado Chamber’s labor and employment policy council. The Chamber is leading a growing coalition of business groups against the bill.
A major priority listed in Colorado Chamber’s 2023 legislative agenda announced last month is to “do no harm” and oppose any significant new regulatory burdens on employers. The Chamber bases its opposition to HB 1118 on this priority due to its sweeping impact on the business community.
The Colorado Chamber recently released the results of a new study assessing the state’s overall business climate. Key findings expose Colorado’s biggest economic vulnerabilities pushing some company leaders to expand operations outside of the state or consider leaving altogether. Colorado’s increasingly complex and cumbersome state legislative and regulatory landscape was identified as a major competitive challenge.
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The Colorado Chamber of Commerce champions free enterprise, a healthy business environment and economic prosperity for all Coloradans. It is the only business association that works to improve the business climate for all sizes of business from a statewide, multi-industry perspective. What the Colorado Chamber accomplishes is good for all businesses, and that’s good for the state’s economy. It was created in 1965 based on the merger with the Colorado Manufacturers’ Association.