Appropriations panel delays rail-safety fee collection, removes general-fund appropriation in amended SB162

The Senate Appropriations Committee amended Senate Bill 162 to delay collection and spending of newly authorized rail-safety fees and to remove a direct general fund appropriation, sponsors and members said during committee consideration.

The changes, adopted as amendment L013 and followed by L014 and L015, push the start of fee collection and bar expenditures until fee revenue has been received. Committee discussion focused on how the delay affects the bill’s fiscal note, whether the program will be funded by fee revenue rather than the general fund, and how the change interacts with TABOR (the Taxpayer Bill of Rights).

Senator Cutter, who explained the amendments, said, “L 13 amends the bill. It shifts the timeline for when the fee will be collected, removing the TABOR impact for the fiscal year 2526. It shifts the fee collection to January…14 delays the expenditure of money within the rail safety fund until February of 2027…It ensures that the hazmat assessment doesn't begin before the office has started collecting fees.” The sponsor also said the office will be funded by fees collected from rail operators once collections begin.

Committee members pressed for fiscal clarity. Senator Kirkmayer asked about the fee amount and the first-year impact. Committee discussion referenced a fee “around a million” and a first-year general fund impact of about $425,000, though members said those figures depended on the revised fiscal note and the timing of collections. Senator Snyder noted the measure “will have an impact on the TABOR refund surplus,” even if the authors delayed spending so no dollars would be paid out of the general fund immediately.

The panel adopted L013, L014 and L015 without recorded objection. L013 shifts the timing for fee collection so the TABOR impact does not hit fiscal year 2025–26; L014 delays spending from the rail safety fund until February 2027 so initial program costs are covered by future fee revenue; and L015 removes continuous (automatic) spending authority so the Joint Budget Committee will appropriate funds annually.

Committee members repeatedly distinguished between discussion items and formal action: the adopted amendments passed on the committee record, while members noted that actual fee collection and program expenditures will begin only after the fee is collected and subsequent appropriations are made.

Miss Sewell (committee clerk) was directed to pull the committee on Senate Bill 162 as amended.

The amendments redirect initial program costs to fee revenue rather than an immediate general fund appropriation and leave final appropriation authority to future JBC action, per the amendments adopted in committee.