CONSUMER PROTECTION

Unfortunately, Colorado ranks as one of the top states for the prevalence of scams that target seniors, veterans, and others.  Shady business practices hurt consumers and also hurt honest businesses that treat people the right way.  State laws should empower law enforcement as well as impacted individuals to seek redress against those who’ve done wrong through abusive business practices.

Below are bills I’ve sponsored to help keep Coloradans from getting ripped off.

Protecting Coloradans from Medical Debt (SB23-093) - Too many Coloradans struggle to pay medical bills and are frustrated with the lack of transparency when paying for medical services. I sponsored this bill to strengthen our consumer protections related to medical debt and out-of-network billing. This bill requires a health-care facility to provide an estimate of the total cost of a self-pay service, requires a debt collection agency collecting on a medical debt to provide to the consumer an itemized statement to dispute the validity of the debt, and caps debt interest at 3% per year.  Status: signed into law.

Protecting Borrowers from High Interest Loans (HB23-1229) - Since the voters approved an elimination of predatory payday loans in 2018, some Colorado lenders have replaced the practice with “alternative charge loans”, short-term loans capped at $1,000 that avoid certain consumer protections. I sponsored this bill to protect consumers by limiting fees on alternative charge loans and to increase repayment timelines in order to protect consumers from harmful debt cycles.  The bill also protects Colorado borrowers from facing high interest rates “exported” by out of state state banks into Colorado, which increase the cost of borrowing.  Status: signed into law.

Antitrust & Price Gouging Enforcement (HB23-1192) – Mergers and other anti-competitive conduct between large corporations can increase prices and decrease choices for consumers, but our state’s anti-trust enforcement laws haven’t been updated in decades.  I sponsored this bill to update the Colorado Antitrust Act so that the Colorado attorney general, the “people’s lawyer,” has the tools necessary to investigate and take action against anti-competitive business practices.  This bill also enhances Colorado’s disaster price gouging law so that the attorney general and district attorneys can take action against businesses that unfairly try to profit off consumers following a declared disaster like a fire or flood.  Status: signed into law.

Property Rights Protections for Mineral Interest Owners (SB23-201) – Decades-old Colorado law allows oil and gas companies to “force-pool” the property rights of people who own the right to underground oil and gas in ways that owners may not agree with.  I sponsored this bill to better protect the rights of oil and gas property owners.  The bill would require oil and gas operators to better respect the property rights and financial interests of owners who do not consent to being “pooled”.  It would also prevent oil and gas interests owned by school districts or local governments from being “force-pooled.”  Status:  defeated due to lobbying.

Increased Oversight of Insurance Rates (HB22-1357) – Car insurance is legally required, and homeowners insurance is required to have a mortgage, which most homeowners do. But Colorado law offers less oversight over insurance rates than some other states have. I sponsored this bill to require certain minimum “loss ratios” for auto and homeowners insurance – so that auto insurance policies would have to pay policyholders 75% of premium dollars in benefits (claims paid after an accident) and homeowners policies would have to pay 80%. Just a 1% improvement in these “loss ratios” would save Coloradans $80 million per year. However, this bill was defeated due to lobbying by the insurance industry.

Consumer Protection & Oversight of Non-Bank Mortgage Servicers (HB21-1282) – Since the housing crash of 2007-08, servicing of mortgages by companies other than banks has increased from about 10% of all mortgages to 50%, but Colorado historically had not had consumer protection laws overseeing these companies. Failures in proper servicing can lead to payments not going to lenders on time, headaches for homeowners, and at worst, foreclosures. I sponsored this bill to empower the Colorado Attorney General to oversee non-bank mortgage servicers doing business in Colorado and to assess fines on bad actors who harm homeowners. STATUS: signed into law.

Consumer Protection for Medical Liens (HB21-1300) – People who are hurt in auto accidents and have inadequate insurance sometimes receive medical care paid for by a lien on a future legal settlement they may receive from the person who caused the accident. Most of the companies providing these services do so appropriately, but there are some bad actors in this market. I sponsored this bill to increase consumer protections by requiring disclosures about the liens and preventing charges against injured individuals. STATUS: signed into law.

Prohibitions Against Price Gouging in Disaster Emergencies (HB20-1414) – At the outset of COVID-19, Colorado was one of only about 15 states with no specific prohibition against price gouging – charging unconscionable or abusive prices to rip off consumers.  I sponsored this bill to update the Colorado Consumer Protection Act to empower the attorney general and each district attorney to take action against sellers engaging in price gouging.  Because retailers themselves may sometimes be victims of price gouging by another actor in the supply chain, the bill also makes clear that just passing on prices directly attributable to costs imposed by suppliers is not a violation of the new law.  STATUS:  signed into law.

Continue HOA Information Office & Create Alternative Dispute Resolution Process (HB20-1200) – Millions of Coloradans including many in Aurora and Adams and Arapahoe Counties live in HOAs.  Sometimes questions arise concerning homeowners’ rights in matters of covenants, fines and disputes.  I sponsored this bill to extend by 5 years the HOA Information Office as a hub for HOA residents to seek information and lodge complaints if necessary.  To contact the HOA information office, visit https://colorado.gov/pacific/dora/hoa-information-and-resource-center. STATUS:  signed into law.

Consumer & Employee Dispute Resolution Fairness Act (SB20-093) – Forced arbitration practices in consumer and employment contracts abridge people’s rights. Instead of resolving a debate before a neutral judge, arbitration privatizes the justice system, lacks transparency, and lacks protections against conflicts of interest by arbitrators and companies that force arbitration on consumers. I sponsored this bill to require greater disclosures and transparency in arbitration and to provide remedies for non-compliance.  STATUS – postponed indefinitely due to COVID-19.

Strengthening the Colorado Consumer Protection Act (HB19-1289) – Until this year, Colorado’s consumer protection laws were rated among the weakest in the nation. I sponsored this bill to strengthen protections for consumers harmed by irresponsible corporations by removing barriers to enforcement, updating penalty amounts for the first time in decades, and allowing action against reckless anti-consumer conduct. STATUS – signed into law.

Arbitration Fairness Act (HB18-1261) – Forced arbitration practices in consumer and employment contracts abridge people’s rights. Instead of resolving a debate before a neutral judge, arbitration privatizes the justice system, lacks transparency, and lacks protections against conflicts of interest by arbitrators and companies that force arbitration on consumers.  I sponsored this bill to require greater disclosures and transparency in arbitration and to provide remedies for non-compliance.  STATUS: killed on a party-line vote in GOP state senate.

I’ve also supported consumer protection legislation to: