Senate Passes Vital Bills to Address Coloradans’ Economic Pains

DENVER, CO – Today the Senate passed two critical bills to support those hit hardest by the economic turmoil resulting from the coronavirus pandemic. 

“These bills work to support Coloradans who have been hurt by the economic crash following COVID-19,” said Sen. Winter, D-Westminister. “From a lack of childcare resulting in school closures to employers not prioritizing the health of their workers, Coloradans need additional protections if they lose or leave their jobs. By strengthening Unemployment insurance and limiting the power of debt collectors, we are giving families the breathing room they need to make it through these difficult times.”

SB20-211 Limitations on Extraordinary Collection Actions, sponsored by Senators Faith Winter and Julie Gonzales expands the ability of the Attorney General to provide oversight of extraordinary debt collection actions, like wage garnishment. The Attorney General would also have the ability to freeze new actions, establish a minimum grace period for payments to resume, and require that monthly payment amounts consider a consumer’s ability to repay. 

“During a disaster emergency such as COVID-19 where so many people are experiencing financial hardship, we need to establish more robust restrictions in terms of debt collection,” said Sen. Gonzales, D-Denver. “Taking someone’s wages when they are barely putting food on the table is unacceptable and this bill will make sure that doesn’t happen. So many hardworking Coloradans are underwater right now–making it more important than ever that we put these protections in place.” 

SB20-207 Unemployment Insurance Expansion, sponsored by Senators Chris Hansen and Faith Winter, aims to expand those who qualify for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits and increase the benefits workers can receive. Some of these increased benefits include the amount a worker can earn while remaining eligible for UI, as well as an expanded definition of “good cause” for a worker to quit and still receive the benefit.