By Carolyn Martin (CHEC Director of Government Relations)

Speak Up on Good Bills
In Colorado, each legislator has the ability to introduce five bills themselves. Other bills can be brought by certain interim committees, or, if approved by the majority leadership of the House or Senate, a legislator could bring forth any number of late bills. In the political climate we are experiencing currently in Colorado, the bills more favorable to freedom will be heard in the beginning of the session. They most likely will not make it past their first committee hearing. However, it is important for us to show our support for bills and legislators who seek to do what is right and good!

Make your voice heard on the good bills listed below. Time is of the essence. Follow the bill link to read the entire bill. Send emails or call the committee members where these bills are being heard by following the links below. The sponsor of the bill is listed in parenthesis, go here to find their contact information.

HB23-1063 Reduction of State Income Tax Rate (Bottoms). Decreases the state income tax to 3.5%. House State, Civic, Military & Veterans Affairs committee: Thursday, February 9th upon adjournment of the House floor in room LSB A.

HB23-1073 State of Disaster Emergency Length (Hartsook, Bottoms). Prohibits the governor from extending a declared emergency beyond the first 30 days without consent from the legislature. House State, Civic, Military & Veterans Affairs committee: Thursday, February 2nd upon adjournment of the House floor in room LSB A.

HB23-1044 Second Amendment Preservation Act (DeGraaf). Prohibits enforcement of federal laws that infringe on the right to bear arms. House State, Civic, Military & Veterans Affairs committee: Monday, February 6th at 1:30 PM in room LSB A.

HB23-1029 Prohibit COVID-19 Vaccine to Minor Without Consent (Bradley). Prohibits a public or private entity from discriminating against a homeschool minor based on their vaccine status. House Health & Insurance committee: Tuesday, February 7th upon adjournment of House floor work in room HCR112.

HB23-1079 Income Tax Credits for Nonpublic Education (DeGraaf). Creates a tax credit for private and homeschool students who leave the public school system or are entering into kindergarten. House Education committee: Wednesday, February 15th upon adjournment of the House floor in room HCR107.

Committee Hearing Dates Not Assigned Yet:
HB23-1097 Painkiller Administration Prior to Abortion (Luck). Requires the administration of a painkiller to a baby in the womb that is twenty weeks or older before performing an abortion. 

HB23-1119 Abolishing Abortion in Colorado (Bottoms). Defines and protects the life of a “person” to include an unborn child at all stages of gestation, from fertilization to natural death.

Don’t Forget This Bad Bill
I hope you will take the time to let your legislators know what you think about HB23-1003 School Mental Health Assessments which I wrote about a few weeks ago. The committee hearing was moved to Tuesday, February 7^th at 1:30 PM in the Old State Library.

To stay up-to-date on the above bills and more, please sign up to receive my weekly prayer emails.

Trusting in the mighty power and grace of Jesus,
Carolyn Martin
CHEC Director of Government Relations
carolyn@chec.org

About the Author: Carolyn Martin

Carolyn Martin serves as CHEC’s Director of Government Relations, working for you and other liberty-loving families to protect homeschool freedom, parental rights, and religious liberty at the state capitol. Subscribe to the CHEC blog for Carolyn’s regular updates here, learn more about legal issues in Colorado here, and donate to support Homeschool Freedom here. Contact Carolyn directly at carolyn@chec.org.