Bipartisan Pair of Roberts Bills to Support Rural and Mountain Communities Passes Committee

DENVER, CO – Today, a pair of bipartisan bills sponsored by Senator Dylan Roberts, D-Frisco, to support rural and mountain communities passed out of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.

“Coal workers deserve the opportunity to transition to good-paying jobs in the communities where they live and want to be for years to come,” said Roberts. “For years, they’ve provided for their families and powered our communities, and they should have the chance to benefit from new technologies, industries and opportunities coming to Northwest Colorado and beyond.  SB64 also supports our mountain and rural communities by expanding eligibility for agricultural loans and strengthening water conservation efforts. These bipartisan bills that passed committee today reflect my commitment to the workers and farmers who are the backbone of Colorado’s rural and mountain economies.”

SB26-052, also sponsored by Senator Marc Catlin, R-Montrose, would require certain businesses in a coal transition community to give hiring preference to former coal workers who meet the job requirements. Covered businesses would include railroads, utilities, energy generation, and advanced manufacturing. The covered businesses would report annually to the Colorado Office of Just Transition on positions filled by coal transition workers and recruitment efforts by the business.

The committee also approved SB26-064. Also sponsored by Minority Leader Cleave Simpson, R-Alamosa, the bill would expand eligible recipients for the Agriculture Future Loan Program, allowing the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) to provide loans to state-certified water conservation entities. 

Initially created in 2021 by the legislature, the Agricultural Future Loan Program provides low-interest loans and grants to newer or underrepresented producers who lack access to traditional capital to help them grow their farms, ranches, and agribusinesses.