RELEASE: Joint Resolutions Approved To Temporarily Recess Legislative Session and Request a Court Opinion
Bill to allow local parties more flexibility during COVID-19 outbreak also passes
Denver, CO – In an effort to protect the health and safety of all Coloradans, the Senate passed HB20-1359 as well as two joint resolutions today in response to Colorado's COVID-19 outbreak.
With the passage of HB-1359, county assemblies will be able to extend various deadlines related to ballot access requirements as well as amend their bylaws as needed to accommodate remote participation in assemblies, conventions, and vacancy committees. In this way, delegates to assemblies may participate remotely if allowed by the party, and parties may reduce or waive any quorum requirements to allow assemblies to proceed. These modifications are repealed effective December 31, 2020.
"In order to combat the spread of COVID-19, it is crucial that we limit large gatherings, especially those involving vulnerable populations," said Majority Leader Fenberg (D-Boulder). "Currently, some of our essential democratic processes require in-person voting and therefore present a serious community-spread risk for participants. This bill will take public safety concerns into account while allowing important functions of our democracy to continue."
Furthermore, in light of increased community spread of COVID-19, the General Assembly has approved bipartisan joint resolution HJR-1007 to recess the legislative session until March 30, 2020.
“Today we made an important bipartisan decision to protect the health & safety of state employees and the community at large,” said Senate President Leroy Garcia (D-Pueblo). “I am proud that we were able to come together and rise to the occasion in solidarity. This is an unprecedented time in recent history and the decision to recess our session is not one we take lightly. But participation in the process is foundational to our democracy and we will not do the people’s work without their critical input.”
Due to the viral transmission of COVID-19, limiting public access to the Capitol remains in the best interest of public health and limiting the spread of the virus. Our senators value and rely on significant citizen input, and have chosen to recess until it is safe for the public to participate in our democratic process.
In light of capitol closures, the General Assembly is also seeking the opinion of the Colorado Supreme Court regarding the number of legislative session days outlined in the state's constitution.
Current Joint Rules of the General Assembly deem the length of session to be 120 consecutive calendar days. However, the Colorado Constitution only stipulates a maximum of 120 calendar days. Therefore, clarification is needed regarding session length in the event that the Governor declares a state of emergency due to a public health crisis. HJR-1006 requests an opinion from the Colorado Supreme Court on the following question:
Does the provision of article V, section 7 of the Colorado Constitution that limits the length of the regular legislative session to "120 calendar days" require that those days be counted consecutively and continuously beginning with the first day on which the regular legislative session convenes, or may the General Assembly for purposes of operating during a declared disaster emergency interpret the limitation as applying only to calendar days on which the Senate or the House of Representatives, or both, convene in regular legislative session?
The General Assembly will now await clarification from the Colorado Supreme Court to determine if Joint Rule 44, which allows session days to be counted as separate working calendar days in the advent of a state emergency, is indeed constitutional.
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About the Colorado Senate Democrats
The 19-member Senate Democratic Caucus for the 2020 legislative session includes Senators Leroy Garcia, Kerry Donovan, Pete Lee, Tammy Story, Julie Gonzales, Stephen Fenberg, Rachel Zenzinger, Jessie Danielson, Dominick Moreno, Brittany Pettersen, Jeff Bridges, Faith Winter, Nancy Todd, Joann Ginal, Mike Foote, Angela Williams, Rhonda Fields, Chris Hansen and Robert Rodriguez.