Government - County - Digest of Bills

Digest of Bills - 2007

GOVERNMENT - COUNTY

S.B. 07-98 County sales or use tax - incremental exemption from statutory limitation for county-owned open space and parks. States that any increment of sales tax or use tax imposed by any county for the specific purpose of funding the acquisition or management of open space and parks within such county shall be exempt from the statutory limitation on the total amount of sales tax or use tax that may be imposed by the state, any county, and any city or town.

Specifies that in no case shall such additional increment of sales tax or use tax exceed a rate of 1/2 of one percent.

Specifies that the legislation is not meant to limit the amount a county may levy, collect, and expend for open space. States that any additional increment imposed will supplement and not supplant any other county moneys budgeted for similar programs or purposes.

Specifies that a county may only impose an additional increment of sales tax or use tax after voter approval from eligible electors in the county.

APPROVED by Governor March 30, 2007
EFFECTIVE March 30, 2007

H.B. 07-1045 County planning commission - increase in maximum size of commission in larger counties. In counties of the state having a population of 100,000 or more, authorizes the board of county commissioners to increase the maximum size of the county planning commission from 9 to 15 members.

APPROVED by Governor March 2, 2007
EFFECTIVE August 3, 2007
NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.

H.B. 07-1078 Building contractors - county licensing program. Authorizes any county in the state that has adopted a building code to establish a licensing program to require a person who engages in the business of being a building contractor within the unincorporated areas of the county to obtain a license from the county prior to engaging in the business. Authorizes the county to develop the licensing program and specifies that any such program may include one or more of the following:

● Procedures to be followed by building contractors to obtain or renew a license;

● A requirement that the building contractor achieve a passing grade on a nationally recognized examination promulgated by the international code council that is commonly used and accepted in the industry;

● Specification of the duration of the license;

● The imposition of a reasonable fee to be charged by the county to a building contractor to cover the costs of any testing required to be performed by the county, the processing of the application, or any other costs issued by the county in connection with the issuance or renewal of a license; or

● Grounds for the revocation or suspension of a license issued by the county, grounds for the revocation or suspension of a building permit issued for a project for which the building contractor is found not to be in compliance with the county's licensing requirements, or grounds for the imposition of any lesser sanction, and procedures to be followed by the county in carrying out the revocation, suspension, or other sanction.

Requires any county that establishes a licensing program to issue a license to a building contractor holding a valid license issued by another county or municipality in the state without requiring the building contractor to take or achieve a passing grade on the county's examination where the license issued by another county or municipality required the building contractor to achieve a passing grade on a nationally recognized examination promulgated by the international code council commonly used and accepted in the industry.

Specifies that, in the case of a building contractor holding a valid license issued by another county or municipality in the state, the fee charged by a secondary county for issuance or renewal of a license shall be reasonable and limited to costs incurred by the secondary county in processing the application and otherwise administering the issuance or renewal of a license required by the act.

If a building contractor applying for a license complies with the requirements for obtaining a license established by the county, requires the county to issue a provisional license to the building contractor no later than 7 business days after the building contractor has submitted a complete application. Specifies that any failure on the part of the county to issue a nonprovisional license within 45 days after submission of a complete application to a building contractor who has otherwise satisfied all other requirements for obtaining a license shall not preclude the building contractor from engaging in the business of being a building contractor and applying for a building permit for unincorporated areas of the county.

Prohibits a person from engaging in the business of being a building contractor within the unincorporated areas of any county that has adopted a licensing program unless the person holds a valid license issued or recognized by the county.

Specifies that, notwithstanding any other provision of the act:

● The provisions of the act shall apply to any licensing program operated or administered by a county that is in existence as of the effective date of the act.

● Specifies that any licensing program operated or administered by a county as of the effective date of the act that satisfies or is amended to satisfy the requirements of the act is hereby ratified as compliant with the requirements of the act and need not be reestablished by the county.

● Nothing in the act shall be construed to require any individual to hold a license to perform repair or maintenance work on his or her own property, nor shall it prevent a person from employing an individual on either a full-time or a part-time basis to perform repair or maintenance work on his or her own property who is not licensed under the provisions of the act.

APPROVED by Governor April 9, 2007
EFFECTIVE August 3, 2007
NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.

H.B. 07-1092 Fireworks - authority to regulate in unincorporated areas. Authorizes the board of county commissioners of a county to adopt an ordinance prohibiting or restricting the sale, use, and possession of fireworks for a period no longer than one year within all or any part of the unincorporated areas of the county; except that such an ordinance shall not be in effect between May 31 and July 5 of any year unless the ordinance includes an express finding of high fire danger based on competent evidence. Prohibits a county from permitting or authorizing the sale, use, or possession of fireworks in violation of state fireworks laws.

APPROVED by Governor April 16, 2007
EFFECTIVE August 3, 2007
NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.

H.B. 07-1119 Clerk and recorder - agent of department of revenue - motor vehicle registration and titling - fee. Increases the fee that a county clerk and recorder retains for acting as the authorized agent of the department of revenue for registrations and titling of motor vehicles and titling of manufactured homes from $2 to $4 per paid motor vehicle registration and registration requiring a metallic plate, plates, individual temporary registration number plates, or validation tab or sticker.

APPROVED by Governor May 18, 2007
EFFECTIVE September 1, 2007
NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.

H.B. 07-1142 Information related to oil or gas leasehold or lands - access - department of revenue - notices. Authorizes the executive director of the department of revenue to have access to all statements and documentation filed with a county assessor related to the valuation of an oil or gas leasehold or land. Establishes that notices of valuation for oil or gas lands and leaseholds shall be pubic records available for inspection.

APPROVED by Governor April 16, 2007
EFFECTIVE April 16, 2007

H.B. 07-1187 County employees - publication of salary information. Requires that county employees be identified by title only rather than by name and title when the board of county commissioners publishes information on the salaries of county employees twice annually in a legal newspaper in the county.

APPROVED by Governor March 26, 2007
EFFECTIVE March 26, 2007

H.B. 07-1195 County, municipal, and political subdivision officers' and employees' retirement systems - contributions - exemption. Specifies that a retirement plan that was established pursuant to a law other than the county, municipal, and political subdivision officers' and employees' retirement systems (retirement system) law may elect not to be covered under the retirement system law. Eliminates the limitation on the percentage of an employee's basic salary or wage that the employee shall be required to contribute to a retirement system in which the employee is a participant.

Eliminates the provision that authorizes the governing body of a county, municipality, political subdivision, or other entity (governing body) that has employees that participate in a retirement system to make contributions out of federal revenue-sharing funds under certain circumstances.

Specifies that each governing body shall establish the percentage of the employees' basic salary or wage that the governing body contributes to the retirement system. States that the contribution shall not be less than 3% of the employees' basic salary or wage.

APPROVED by Governor April 9, 2007
EFFECTIVE August 3, 2007

NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.

H.B. 07-1379 Environmental sustainability - education and outreach. Authorizes the board of commissioners of a county to provide in the county budget for programs that support education and outreach on environmental sustainability within the county but do not exempt the county from the requirements of any other statute.

APPROVED by Governor May 30, 2007
EFFECTIVE August 3, 2007

NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause. For further explanation concerning the effective date, see page vi of this digest.