House Bill 10-1001 – Renewable Energy Standard
House Bill 1 will increase the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard and provide incentives for local development of “distributed generation” projects. Currently, Xcel Energy is required to provide 20% of its power through renewable sources by the year 2020. This bill will increase this requirement to 30% without increasing energy costs. Furthermore, these renewable sources must include a substantial percentage of “distributed generation,” which means new local energy sources that will not require additional investment in power transmission infrastructure, and includes everything from solar panels on a home to a small, locally-owned wind farm, all of which are set to receive additional financial incentives.
House Bill 10-1046 – Preventing Property Tax Late Fees for Metered Mail
At present, property tax payments that arrive at the county treasurer’s office without a postmark are often considered to be late, and late fees are charged to the homeowners. This bill clarifies the rules and will stop the county from charging late fees on payments received within five days of the due date.
House Bill 10-1050 – Online Registry for End-of-Life Directives
In the current system of paper records, the preferences of patients are sometimes hard to bill joins a larger effort to move our health care record system into the 21st century by creating an online medical registry where patients can go to update their preferences for hospice and palliative care.
House Bill 10-1077 – Fusion Voting
This bill will allow candidates for federal and state office to be nominated by more than one political party. The effect of this change will be to allow smaller parties to endorse a mainstream candidate while still maintaining their core values and to give voters the option to support a candidate and endorse one of many party platforms, all with a single vote.
Revisions to FASTER to Reduce Late Fees on Trailers
The increased vehicle registration fees passed last year were a crucial step in providing funding for Colorado’s crumbling roads and bridges. However, some of the details led to unfair consequences for some. This bill, which is still under construction, will reduce the late fee charged on non-motorized trailers weighing less than 2001 lbs to only $10.
Full text of all numbered bills can be found at www.leg.state.co.us. Under the “House” heading, click on “Bills.”