Senate Passes Candidate Dependent Care Expenses Bill

April 12, 2019

Denver, CO – The Colorado State Senate today voted 26-to-6 with 3 excused to pass SB19-229, Campaign Contributions Dependent Care Expenses, a bill sponsored by Senator Faith Winter (D-Westminster) and Senator Mike Foote (D-Lafayette) to reimburse candidates for dependent care costs shouldered during their campaign. The bill now heads to the Colorado House of Representatives for consideration.

“We should be encouraging people from all backgrounds to run for office, and this bill is a commonsense way to allow for candidates with families to throw their hat in the ring,” said Senator Winter. “By making it easier for parents to run for office, we can get better solutions for hardworking Colorado families.”

“If we are going to address the issues facing Colorado families, parents need to have a seat at the policymaking table. This bill does exactly that: By allowing campaign funds to be used to pay for childcare, we can mitigate the burden facing parents who run for office,” said Senator Foote.

SB19-229 would allow a candidate committee to spend money received during the campaign to reimburse a candidate who spent necessary funds caring for their children while on the campaign trail. The funds being reimbursed must have been directly connected to campaign activities. Campaign expenses linked to dependent care must be disclosed by a candidate committee along with their other expenditures.

For more information on SB19-229, please visit https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb19-229.

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