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Pueblo leaders weigh response to state bill that would curb municipal failure-to-appear charges
Summary
City staff alerted council on Feb. 3 that Senate Bill 25-062 would bar municipal failure-to-appear charges and limit contempt authority; staff and the Colorado Municipal League recommended seeking an amendment rather than outright support or opposition, and a city letter is being circulated for signatures.
Brian McCain, the mayor’s chief of staff, briefed the Pueblo City Council at its Feb. 3 work session on Senate Bill 25-062, introduced by state Sen. Nick Henriksen, which would prohibit a person’s failure to appear from forming the basis of a municipal criminal charge and would bar municipal judges from imposing jail time for that failure to appear.
Why it matters: The change would limit a municipal court’s current tools for sanctioning repeated, willful failures to appear, a practice McCain said has been used repeatedly in Pueblo municipal court. Councilors and staff said the bill’s effect on local contempt authority could reduce the court’s ability to enforce orders tied to bonds and other court-ordered conditions.
McCain told council that the Colorado Municipal League has recommended seeking an amendment and that he and the mayor “think that we should be opposed to this as is with an amend provision on it.” He later outlined the amendment he favors: limiting the prohibition to failure to appear for a first appearance on a summons or complaint rather than removing contempt authority for repeated failures to appear. “I would not oppose the bill if it were limited to failure to appear for a first appearance on a summons or complaint,” McCain said.
Council reaction focused on process and local consultation. President Mark Aliff and other councilors said they were surprised to see a local senator as prime sponsor without prior outreach to city officials. Several council members asked to sign a city letter urging amendment of the bill; McCain said he would circulate a draft letter after the meeting for signatures and further discussion.
McCain also said the bill was scheduled for a judiciary committee hearing on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.; he noted that the Colorado Municipal League had not issued an official public position but was engaged in stakeholder discussions.
What happens next: Staff circulated a draft letter for council signatures and asked members to speak with lobbyists if they wanted an official city position filed. No formal vote was recorded in the work session minutes.
Ending: Councilors said they would continue discussions with staff and the city’s lobbyists ahead of the committee hearing.
