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Denver committee presses amendments on PUC reauthorization and RTD governance; budget bills' expected to affect local funds
Summary
City staff briefed the committee on key state bills including a Public Utilities Commission reauthorization, an RTD governance bill (with changes to board composition) and several budget bills (HB1410 long bill and related orbital bills) that would shift funds for affordable housing and transportation; staff said Denver remains in an amend or oppose posture on several measures.
Policy Matters and mayor's-office staff briefed the Governance and Intergovernmental Relations Committee on fast-moving activity at the state legislature and Denver's positions.
Katie Hancock and Adam Paul summarized the city's bill engagement: roughly 53 bills under active city monitoring this session, with positions ranging from support to oppose, and several items in 'amend.' Staff emphasized that about 22 days remained in the session and that conference committee action was imminent for some budget items.
On PUC reauthorization (referred to in committee materials as a PUC 'sunset' bill), Jonathan Rogers of the Governor's Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency explained Denver seeks amendments that would allow local governments to retain certain nonpublic utility data for system planning. Rogers said the city's amendments aim to preserve access to distribution planning data so Denver can coordinate infrastructure replacement and electrification planning.
The committee also discussed a polarizing RTD governance bill (SB 206150) that would reduce and recompose the RTD board, change appointment processes and add statutory elements such as a disability-services study and a sunset review. Dottie/transportation staff and the mayor's office said they remain in 'amend' to protect ridership-based representation and adequate Denver voice on the board, even as they acknowledge the bill may pass and that continued amendment work is critical.
On the budget, staff summarized the long bill HB1410 and related 'orbital' bills. Highlights included HB1360 (Affordable Housing Financing Fund action taken in the budget package), HB1399 (temporary pause to a multimodal transportation fund transfer), HB1405 (cash fund transfers), and a marijuana tax distribution change (HB1409) that staff estimated could reduce Denver's FY26 local distributions by about $1.3 million if enacted as proposed. Staff told the committee the Joint Budget Committee would meet that afternoon to reconcile House and Senate differences.
Committee members asked for continued coordination with the mayor's office and city departments and noted interest in testifying on lot-splitting and lot-size bills (HB1308 and HB1114) scheduled for upcoming committee hearings. The committee directed staff to keep members updated as the bills move through conference committees and floors.
