Page 1 of 6 TRANSPORTATION and TELECOMMUNICATIONS Friday April 18, 2014 CCI Office (Please be advised this meeting is being recorded) Teleconference: 1.218.862.1300 Passcode: 171009 WELCOME Commissioner Dan Gibbs, Chair Commissioner Erik Hansen, Vice Chair Tony Lombard, CCI Eric Bergman, CCI INTRODUCTIONS AGENDA LEGISLATION Bill # HB14-1021 Highway Restriction Violation Penalties D. Mitsch Bush, M. Hamner G. Schwartz HB 1021 increases the fines for the operator of any vehicle who violates a road closure or road restriction on Independence Pass. The bill also directs CDOT to erect additional signs warning truckers of the increased fines. This bill comes out of the Transportation Legislation Review Committee which met this past summer. HB 1021 is a CCI Legislative Priority for 2014. Support Bill # HB 14-1105 Tax Exempt Gas Sales Between Gov Entities D. Mitch Bush N. Todd HB 1105 clarifies in statute that counties that are selling fuel to other fuel tax exempt entities (municipalities, school districts, Colorado State Patrol, CDOT, etc.) do not have to obtain a fuel distributor license from the Department of Revenue. This bill is a CCI Legislative Priority for 2014. Support Governor Signed
Page 2 of 6 Bill # HB 14-1121 County Highway Contract Bid Notice Requirements C. Gerou, T. Kraft-Tharp C. Jahn With respect to contracting by a county for work on highways, the bill requires a county to advertise in a newspaper in the county or post notice in the county courthouse for open contracts that involve expenditures equal to or greater than the amount at which a contract requires a contractor's bond, instead of $5,000 or more as specified in current law. Support - Governor Signed Bill # HB 14-1161 Preserve & Expand Amtrak Interstate Rail Service L. Garcia The bill: Creates a 9-member southwest chief rail line economic development, rural tourism, and infrastructure repair and maintenance commission (commission) consisting of: 7 voting members, including one member of each house of the general assembly, 2 residents of southeastern Colorado counties, and representatives of the freight rail, passenger rail, and tourist industries; and 2 nonvoting members, including an employee of Amtrak and an employee of the Colorado department of transportation; Specifies that the mission of the commission is to coordinate and oversee efforts by the state and local governments and cooperate with the states of Kansas and New Mexico, Amtrak, and the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe railway (BNSF) to ensure continuation of existing Amtrak southwest chief rail line service in the state, expansion of such service to include a stop in Pueblo, and exploration of the benefits of adding an additional stop in Walsenburg; Grants the commission the powers and duties necessary to further the accomplishment of its mission; Creates a southwest chief rail line economic development, rural tourism, and infrastructure repair and maintenance fund (fund); Specifies that moneys received by the state from the federal government, local governments, public-private partnerships, or any other person, or as a result of any voter-approved ballot measure, that are dedicated for the purposes of ensuring that the Amtrak southwest chief rail line continues to pass through Colorado and that an additional stop in Pueblo is added to the southwest chief rail line, and any other moneys that the general assembly may appropriate or transfer, are credited to the fund; and Specifies that, subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly and specified conditions regarding funding commitments from the states of Kansas and New Mexico, Amtrak and BNSF, and southwest chief rail service commitments
from Amtrak, the commission may expend moneys from the fund for rail replacement on or other improvements to the portion of the BNSF railway line used to provide existing Amtrak southwest chief rail line service in Colorado and to pay costs associated with the expansion of southwest chief rail line service to include a stop in Pueblo. Support Page 3 of 6 Bill # HB 14-1203 Funding For Digital Trunked Radio System Maintenance C. Duran K. Lambert In each fiscal year beginning with the 2013-14 fiscal year through the 2024-25 fiscal year, the bill directs the general assembly to appropriate a total of $3.5 million from the general fund to the public safety communications trust fund. The moneys appropriated to the trust fund shall be used for the replacement of legacy radio equipment and hardware at radio tower sites. In addition, in each fiscal year beginning with the 2017-18 fiscal year through the 2024-25 fiscal year, the bill directs the general assembly to transfer a total of $3.7 million from the general fund to the trust fund. The moneys appropriated to the trust fund shall be used for software upgrade assurance. Support as Amended Bill # HB 14-1219 Water Conveying Structure Maintenance Obligations R. Rankin Current law requires a person or corporation that owns a ditch, race, drain, or flume to construct a culvert, bridge, or similar structure (structure) when necessary to ensure that water being conveyed by the ditch, race, drain, or flume does not interfere with safe and convenient travel on any highway, or to pay the costs incurred by a local government in constructing a structure. The local government in which the structure is located must then maintain the structure at its own expense. The bill clarifies that the maintenance obligation of a local government does not include construction of a new structure or complete reconstruction or replacement of an existing structure and that any such costs must be paid by the person or corporation that owns the affected ditch, race, drain, or flume. PI d Bill # HB 14-1259 General Fund Transfer To State Highway Fund B. DelGrosso
The bill requires the state treasurer to transfer $100 million from the general fund to the state highway fund on July 1, 2014. The department of transportation is required to: Allocate the money transferred among its engineering regions in proportion to the number of state highway system lane miles in each engineering region; and Expend the money transferred only for the maintenance, repair, reconstruction, and replacement of existing state highways and bridges. Support - PI d Page 4 of 6 Bill # HB 14-1301 Safe Routes To School Program State Funding D. Mitch Bush A. Kerr Under current law, the Colorado department of transportation administers the safe routes to school program (program). The program distributes federal moneys to local governments and schools for projects to improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in school areas. Beginning in state fiscal year 2014-15, the Colorado department of transportation will receive no federal moneys for the safe routes to school grant programs. The bill authorizes the appropriation of state moneys to the program and requires that at least 20% but not more than 30% of the state moneys be used for noninfrastructure projects. The bill appropriates $3 million of general fund moneys for the program. Support Bill # HB 14-1328 Connect Colorado Broadband Act A. Williams, D. Coram J. Nicholson, L. Crowder The high cost support mechanism (HCSM) reimburses telecommunications service providers for some of the cost of providing telephone services to rural areas. The bill adds broadband service in unserved areas to the services that are reimbursable. Section 1 of the bill defines terms including broadband service, broadband network, and unserved area. Section 2 of the bill adds the provision of broadband networks in unserved areas to the purposes served through financial assistance from the HCSM. Section 2 also requires the department of regulatory agencies (department) to include information about the implementation and administration of the HCSM in its presentation to legislative committees. Section 3 adds universal access to broadband service to the list of goals stated in the current expression of state policy concerning telecommunications policy and planning. Section 4 creates a broadband fund and a broadband deployment board to facilitate the funding of projects to deploy broadband service into unserved areas of the state through the award of grants from moneys allocated to the provision of broadband service from the HCSM. As amended, this board will include one county commissioner.
Page 5 of 6 Section 5 repeals the functions of the broadband deployment board regarding its administration of the broadband fund on September 1, 2024, subject to a sunset review by the department of regulatory agencies. Support as amended Bill # SB 14-055 Vehicles Subject To Daily Rental Fee D. Coram P. Steadman Current law imposes a $2 daily vehicle rental fee on the rental of any vehicle required to be registered that is rented in the state by a person whose primary business is the rental of such vehicles to other persons for periods of less than 45 days, including renewals, and exempts such vehicles from the road and bridge safety charges imposed on other vehicles at the time of registration. The bill specifies that the $2 daily vehicle rental fee is imposed without regard to the primary business of the renter on any short-term rental of a vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of twenty-six thousand pounds or less that is rented in the state for a period of less than 30 days; except that renewals of such rentals are not subject to the fee. Monitor - Governor Signed Bill # SB 14-127 Statewide Radio Systems New Subcommittee & Report T. Dore E. Roberts House Bill 12-1224 created the consolidated communications system authority (authority), which is comprised of representatives of entities that use the statewide digital trunked radio system (system) as their primary means of public safety wireless communication. Section 3 of the bill reorganizes the authority as a subcommittee (subcommittee) under the homeland security and all-hazards senior advisory committee in the division of homeland security and emergency management in the department of public safety (department). As part of the reorganization, the bill adds members and modifies duties of that body. Section 5 makes conforming amendments necessitated by the reorganization. Pursuant to the laws regarding creation of new advisory bodies, section 4 schedules the subcommittee for sunset review and repeal in 2019. Additionally, section 2 directs the executive director of the department to undertake a needs assessment and formulate a business plan, in consultation with the subcommittee, regarding statewide radio communications and to report the findings to the joint budget committee prior to 2015. Oppose unless amended
Bill # SB 14-146 OTHER BUSINESS ADJOURN Use Local Traffic Info For CDOT Speed Limit Study J. Wilson G. Schwartz Current law requires that the department of transportation (CDOT) approve any change to a speed limit on a portion of a state highway that is within a municipality and requires CDOT to conduct any traffic investigation needed for the determination of a safe and reasonable speed limit if a municipality with a population of 5,000 or fewer people requests that it do so. The bill allows CDOT to receive traffic and engineering data from the city or county engineer of the affected municipality when conducting such a traffic investigation. Monitor Page 6 of 6