DENVER – An attempt to expand business owners’ ability to deny service to customers based on personal beliefs was defeated by a bipartisan group of Colorado lawmakers Tuesday in the Senate.
Senate Bill 283, which would have allowed businesses to “decline to contract” service to individuals if the owner did not agree with the message the goods would promote or was opposed to an event the goods were for, was killed by the Senate on a vote that saw three Republicans, including Sen. Don Coram, R-Montrose, vote against the measure.
While the sponsor, Sen. Kevin Lundberg, R-Berthoud, maintained that the bill was an attempt to clarify the difference between discrimination and disagreement, it was shot down by Democrats who railed against SB 283 as counter to Colorado and American values.
“This bill is wrong, it allows businesses to discriminate if they don’t like your message, or something that they don’t agree with, like perhaps your religion or sexual orientation,” said Sen. Matt Jones, D-Louisville.
Lundberg argued that the bill protected business owners’ rights by allowing them to decide what were the publicly offered services and what were special request services that they could deny to people who they disagree with.
“The person who engages in business in the state of Colorado should have the right to define what their business involves,” Lundberg said.
On Tuesday, besides SB 283, 32 bills were scheduled for third reading and final vote, 17 for second reading and 18 for hearing by committees.
House Bill 1003, which places a Dec. 1 deadline on a study being conducted to examine the teacher shortage in Colorado and come up with a strategic plan to correct the problem, was adopted by the Senate upon second reading.
This is Rep. Barbara McLachlan’s, D-Durango, signature piece of legislation this session, which she has partnered with Coram on.
SB 278, which places a $100 fine on individuals for engaging in “nuisance exhibition of motor vehicle exhaust,” or “rolling coal,” was also adopted by the Senate upon second reading.
SB 105, which requires investor-owned electric companies to provide itemized electrical bills, and HB 1288, which places minimum and maximum sentences on individuals convicted of four or more DUIs, were adopted upon second reading by the House.
Included in the sentencing requirements of HB 1288 are between 90 and 180 days imprisonment without the potential for sentence reduction and 48 to 120 hours of community service as a condition of probation.
Current law increases the penalty for a fourth or subsequent DUI from a misdemeanor to a Class 4 felony, which carries a 2- to 6-year jail sentence.
Having passed second reading, the bills will be placed on the calendar for a final reading and vote by their respective chambers in the coming days.
lperkins@durangoherald.com
