DENVER – Schools would be able to hire teachers of Native American languages even if the teachers have not completed college or a teacher training program under a bill introduced Friday in the state Legislature.

Senate Bill 53, by Sen. Suzanne Williams, D-Aurora, and Rep. J. Paul Brown, R-Ignacio, will be heard in the Senate Education Committee, although a hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Other bills continue to be introduced as the Legislature ramps up its 2012 session:

SB 49, by Sen. Ellen Roberts, R-Durango, and Rep. Don Coram, R-Montrose, would reduce the bond that tow-truck drivers need to carry, in order to help rural towing companies.

SB 53 would repeal the health-insurance exchange the Legislature passed last year, if the Supreme Court overturns President Barack Obama’s national health-insurance law.

The Colorado exchange is supposed to be a way for people and small employers to pool their resources and get cheaper insurance, and supporters said it has nothing to do with Obama’s law. But it caused a nasty fight within the Republican Party. The sponsors of SB 53 are both Republicans.

jhanel@durangoherald.com