Colorado: D-thornton

A major bill to raise annual vehicle registration fees to pay for road and bridge improvements squeaked through another vote today at the state Capitol.

Senate Bill 108, known as FASTER, won initial approval in the House, over the objections of every House Republican and four Democrats, including the House majority leader. It must still receive another vote in the House.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Joe Rice, D-Littleton, urged his colleagues to pass the bill, saying it is critical the state invest money to repair its aging infrastructure. He said the work generated by the bill would preserve as many as 8,000 jobs in Colorado and generate new ones.

Emboldened by Democratic control of the Capitol, labor interests this year are pushing for sweeping legislative changes and trying to regain ground lost during GOP-controlled eras.

Police and firefighters throughout Colorado may be able to unionize. State contractors may have to pay higher wages. And employers could be punished financially for locking out union employees.

Critics call the bills — two of which will be heard today — political payback for union campaign contributions and say the proposals will raise the cost of doing business in Colorado.

Supporters such as Rep. Ed Casso say it's about time Democrats begin looking out for working-class families, and strengthening unions is one way of doing that.

A Democratic-led committee shot down a key pro-union bill Wednesday, leading some in organized labor to question whether some Democrats are turning their backs on workers.

Meanwhile, another pro- union measure could meet the same fate today.

Two Democrats joined with five Republicans on the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee to kill a bill that would require state contractors to pay prevailing wages on any public works project.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. John Soper, D-Thornton, said as Colorado launches road and energy projects, it must ensure that workers are paid enough to stimulate the economy.

Several witnesses, including Colorado State University-Pueblo business professor Kevin Duncan, said surveys show that states with such laws do not see a marked increase in project costs, mainly because higher-priced workers are more efficient.

Supporters of a bill to require carbon-monoxide detectors in new homes and in older houses before they are sold say the legislation won't apply to hotels or other places of public accommodation.

"You can't add every issue in every bill at one time," said Rep. John Soper, D-Thornton, who is sponsoring the bill.

The measure, co-sponsored by Sen. Chris Romer, D-Denver, is to be heard in committee today.

Soper sponsored similar legislation last year, but it failed amid concerns from homebuilders, Realtors and apartment owners over costs and who would be responsible for installing the carbon monoxide detectors.

This year, supporters of the bill found new momentum after the deaths of Denver residents Parker Lofgren, 39; Caroline

State Rep.