Legislative Issues of Interest to CAMMP
By Timothy R. Gablehouse, Gablehouse Calkins & Granberg
tgablehouse@gcgllc.com
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SB
06-002
This bill would mandate disclosure in a sale transaction of whether
property has been used as a meth lab. Sellers would have to disclose if
they have a suspicion or knowledge that the property was used as a meth
lab. If the seller fails to disclose then they are liable for all damages
and costs. The bill does not apply to rental properties. It has passed
the Senate and is now awaiting action in the House Business Affairs and
Labor Committee.
SB 06-008
This bill deals with hazardous material transportation. It would impact
those CAMMP members who from time to time transport hazardous materials.
The primary changes in this bill involve first, the authority of police
officers to write citations even when they do not have level1 inspections
certification and second, a fairly substantial increase in fines and
penalties for violations. The bill has passed the Senate and its first
House committee. It is now awaiting action in the House Appropriations
Committee.
HB
06-1145
This bill is a comprehensive and expensive effort to address meth abuse in
Colorado. It creates
the state methamphetamine
task force to examine specific issues concerning best practices for the
prevention, intervention, and treatment of methamphetamine abuse and the
response of the criminal justice system and to provide guidance and
recommendations to the legislative oversight committee. There is no
direct funding as all payments to the committee and task force are
dependent upon contributions, grants, and donations. The bill also limits
the daily retail sale of methamphetamine precursor drugs to not more than
a total of 4 grams of one or more methamphetamine precursors per
individual. The bill prohibits public access to methamphetamine
precursors in stores prior to sale and prohibits the retail sale of a
methamphetamine precursor to a minor under the age of 18 years. The bill
also clarifies that the child abuse crime of manufacturing a controlled
substance in the presence or proximity of a child under the age of 16
years is a strict liability offense. The bill has passed its first House
Committee and is awaiting action in the House Appropriations Committee.
HB
06-1303
This is an interesting bill as it potentially will give local governments
access to money for cleanup and prevention efforts. It moves money from
the current hazardous substance response fund into a new county
environmental hazard remediation fund. Grants would then be made from
this fund based upon county population. The money can only be awarded by
the division of local government to county governments for the purposes of
assisting the governments with the identification, clean-up, or
remediation of environmental hazards or impacts. The bill also authorizes
the division of local government to promulgate rules to implement the
provisions of the act. The bill is currently awaiting action in the House
Finance Committee.
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