May 13, 2009

Legislative session ends, but participation should not

By Jennifer Kraska

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”—Winston Churchill

Another legislative session in Colorado has come to an end.  Many battles were fought – some were won and some were lost.  Every legislative session provides an opportunity for faithful men and woman to stand up and make their voices, opinions and beliefs heard in the public square.  Throughout the course of any given session I will hear from Catholics across the state who tell me that seizing this opportunity is just too difficult.  Many people tell me they disagree with their elected officials on numerous issues so they won’t waste their time trying to contact them.  Others tell me they are intimated and overwhelmed by the task of communicating with a legislator about such complex issues. 

While these are legitimate concerns they do not override our obligation to seize, even in the midst of difficult circumstances, the opportunity to bring our Catholic beliefs and values to the public square.  I offer my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who took the opportunity to participate in the life of the government during the 2009 legislative session and expressed those beliefs and values.  Your voice and participation is vital to the work the Colorado Catholic Conference (CCC) does at the Capitol each session.  Below I have highlighted just a few of the bills (and their outcomes) that the CCC lobbied this past session.  For a full list of the bills the CCC lobbied, visit our Web site at cocatholicconference.org and click on the tab marked “legislation.”

• HB 1087 – Child Sex Offense Civil Action Accrual.  This bill dealt with the issue of statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases.  Once again this legislation was unfairly targeted at private institutions and created a great deal of confusion with already existing laws regarding the statute of limitations for these types of cases. The CCC opposed this bill; it was postponed indefinitely in its first committee hearing.

• HB 1064 – Economic Opportunity Poverty Reduction Task Force.  This bill set up a legislative task force to find ways to advance economic opportunity while reducing poverty.  This task force has a goal of developing a strategic, integrated and comprehensive plan to reduce the number of Coloradans living in poverty by 50 percent by 2019.  The CCC supported this bill; it is awaiting the governor’s signature.

• HB 1260 – Designated Beneficiary Agreements.  This bill creates a designated beneficiary agreement that can be used by any two unmarried persons in the state of Colorado.  The CCC opposed a section of the bill that would have recognized civil unions and domestic partnerships from other jurisdictions in Colorado.  This section of the bill, which the CCC opposed, was removed and the bill has been signed into law by the governor.

• HB 1274 – Repeal of the Death Penalty.  This bill would have abolished the death penalty in Colorado and used the funds not spent on death penalty cases to fund a cold case unit in the Colorado Bureau of Investigations to solve some of the 1,400-plus unsolved murders that have occurred in Colorado since 1970.  The CCC supported this bill; it died by one vote in the Senate during the final hours of session.

• SB 88 – State Group Benefits for Domestic Partners.  This bill establishes a definition for “domestic partner” in the context of granting health benefits to state employees.  The CCC opposed this legislation; it is now awaiting the governor’s signature.

• SB 225 – Concerning the Definition of Contraceptive.  This bill defined “contraceptive” or “contraception” to mean a “medically acceptable drug, device or procedure used to prevent pregnancy.”  There was a good amendment added to protect the definition of emergency contraception, but the CCC still opposed this legislation due to the definition of pregnancy that Colorado has and the unintended consequences this bill could have in the future.  The governor signed this bill into law.

• SB 170 – Nondiscrimination in Higher Education Funding.  This bill would have granted in-state tuition to students in Colorado regardless of their immigration status.  The CCC supported this legislation; it failed during second reading in the Senate.

Colorado’s legislative session may be over, but this does not mean that we should stop participating in the public square.  I would encourage all Catholics to stay informed and engaged with what is happening here and in our nation’s capitol.  Take the time to meet or communicate with your elected officials, attend a town hall meeting, write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper about an issue that is important to you and, finally, consider running for elected office yourself.  It is important that we all recognize the opportunity we have during difficult times to be a witness for truth and goodness.

Jennifer Kraska is executive director of the Colorado Catholic Conference, the state-level, public policy agency of the Catholic Church.