After being required to adjourn on March 11, 2020 due the Public Health Crisis, the Colorado General Assembly was able to return to work on May 26, 2020. Given the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, the legislature is required to make very difficult decisions on the budget, including what bills will be moving forward and what bills will need to be dropped.
Just before the adjournment, we were monitoring four different bills which may have impacted community associations. As of today, the status of these bills is as follows:
HB 20-1200 Continuation of the HOA Information and Resource Center: This bill was heard in the House Committee for Business Affairs and Labor on May 27, 2020. Given the very large fiscal note attached to this bill, everything in the bill that required new state money was removed. Rather than being a very large change to CCIOA, the HB 20-1200 has been reduced to just a continuation of the HOA Information and Resource Center. Due to the continuing conversations as to how to address the alternative dispute resolution concerns within the bill, the sponsors elected to amend the bill to keep the HOA Information and Resource Center going.
In addition, Rep. Van Winkle introduced an amendment to “enhance religious freedoms” to protect an owner’s ability to display religious symbols. This amendment passed unanimously in committee. The Bill itself passed out of committee on a 9 – 2 vote and was assigned to the Finance Committee.
HB 20-1333 Homeowners’ Association Transparency Responsibility Competency Bill introduced by Rep. Titone (D-Wheat Ridge) was geared at increasing the levels of transparency by associations, while potentially increasing the costs to an association and the liability of board members. HB 20-1333 was heard in the House Committee on Transportation and Local Government on May 27, 2020, where the sponsor requested the bill be postponed indefinitely. We expect something like this bill to be reintroduced next year.
HB 20-1004 Bill Concerning Wild Fire Mitigation Grants. As this bill contained a fiscal note, it did not make the cut to pass into the post COVID Session and is postponed indefinitely.
SB 20-126 Concerning the Operation of Day Care in an HOA. This passed out of committee and will be referred to the Senate. Being a bill that made the post COVID Session, this bill has a good chance of passage.
Should you have any questions on the above, please feel free to contact any of the Altitude Community Law attorneys at 303.432.9999. We will keep all legislative bills updated on our Legislative Tracker. Stay tuned for more!
Well, I guess we can expect to allow our lives to be messed with by people who don’t know what they’re talking about. I am a firm believer that legislation should be made only for things that we seriously need. We do not need daycare centers in our complexes. I actually am terrified that if this legislation passes there will be several people in my building that will be operating day care centers with no place for the children to play or hang out. This is no way to treat children. What are these legislators thinking? We don’t have a pool but can you imagine what is going to happen with the complexes that do? I believe that there are places for child care, and those places do not include condominium complexes. Adult day Care will be next. God help us!