State Rep. Claire Levy was still waiting Wednesday for Gov. Bill Ritter to sign several bills that she sponsored in 2008 – but he’s already signed four and there could be more to come.

Levy, a Democrat from Boulder, also said she believes the Legislature had a “very good and very productive” session as a team.

“As the Speaker of the House (Andrew Romanoff) likes to say, it was probably the best session for kids that we’ve had in recent memory,” said Levy.

For example, she said the Legislature boosted funding for preschool and kindergarten programs, covered more children under Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and passed legislation regarding mental health benefits along with Developmental Disability services.

She also tackled a diverse and interesting set of challenges in 2008.

Levy, a land use attorney by trade, serves on the House Judiciary committee as well as the House/Senate Legal Services committee. She also wound up early in the session sitting on a panel to investigate the behavior of Rep. Douglas Bruce, R-Colorado Springs, after Bruce kicked a news photographer who took his picture during a morning prayer on the House floor.

Two of Levy’s bills that Ritter has already signed – House Bills (HB) 1148 and 1193 – arose from controversy surrounding a property-related case in Boulder.

Boulder residents Richard McLean and Edith Stevens won in 2007 an “adverse possession” claim filed in 2006 against their neighbors, Don and Susie Kirlin. McLean and Stevens claimed that they used a portion of the Kirlin’s property as a path for more than 18 years, and District Judge James Klein awarded the parcel to McLean and Stevens.

The Kirlins have appealed, and the case touched off a firestorm of local and not-so-local controversy over adverse possession and property rights. Also, Stevens was Levy’s campaign treasurer, although she eventually resigned, and certain citizens questioned whether McLean got preferential treatment in District Court because he was a former District Judge.

In response, Rep. Rob Witwer, R-Golden, and Levy sponsored HB 1148. Sen. Ron Tupa, D-Boulder, carried 1148 on the Senate side.

The bill would prevent adverse possession property title awards unless the party has: satisfied all of the common law elements of adverse possession; has a “good faith belief” that the party was the actual owner of the property; and can prove each element of the claim by “clear and convincing evidence.”

Levy said she worked on all aspects of the bill, with a special interest in the “clear and convincing evidence” clause. She also said she was the point person for interacting with real estate lawyers and the Colorado Bar Association, in part to make sure the bill had no unintended consequences.

She said adverse possession cases in general are not uncommon, especially in cases in which property boundaries are not clearly defined, but said she supported the legislative action for a fairly simple reason.

“The case that brought adverse possession to everybody’s attention, I think, also brought to the public’s attention the existence of this doctrine, which in many ways is inconsistent with peoples’ notions of private property rights,” said Levy. “So, the bill was a pretty careful effort to balance a very long-standing doctrine that has legitimate purposes with modern notions of property rights.”

Under HB 1193, parties involved in a legal dispute could request a District Judge from another district to try the case – if their adversary is a former or present District Judge from the district in which the case will take place. Sen. Brandon Shaffer, D-Longmont, carried the bill on the Senate side.

Levy said she doesn’t believe real-life situations that might trigger 1193 are common, but said she carried the bill because of a belief, “particularly as an attorney,” that people should have complete confidence in the fairness of the judicial system.

Ritter has also signed two Senate bills that Levy carried on the House side. Sen. Dan Gibbs, D-Silverthorne, sponsored SB 27, which in part extended certain gaming licensing periods from one to two years. Sen. Steve Johnson, R-Loveland, sponsored SB 105, which set fees and definitions for trailer vehicles.

Several of Levy’s bills have cleared the House and Senate but await Ritter’s approval or veto, including HB 1408. Sen. Jennifer Veiga, D-Denver, carried 1408 on the Senate side.

If Ritter approves, the bill would in part require corporate income taxpayers to verify the validity of transactions related to Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT). Levy said the corporations could pay rent to the REIT, deduct the expense from their income for state income tax calculations, but eventually earn a dividend from the transaction – which would not count as reportable income.

“Several states have brought enforcement actions for back taxes, and most recently, North Carolina recovered $33.5 million from Wal-Mart because of this practice,” said Levy. “HB 1408 is simply requiring more reporting on corporate income tax returns, so the Department of Revenue can take a closer look and determine whether these entities are using this scheme to avoid paying state tax.”

She and Senate sponsor Sen. Chris Romer, D-Denver, are also waiting for Ritter’s verdict on SB 184. The bill would create a low-interest loan mechanism for people of low or moderate income who wish to do home projects that will improve energy efficiency, or for renewable energy equipment installations.

Levy has finished her second legislative session in her two-year term, and she is running for re-election in 2008. She said she’s already thinking about at least three concepts for the 2009 session, if voters return her to office.

She sponsored a bill in 2008 that would have required rural electric associations and municipal utilities to invest in energy efficiency measures, but the bill was killed in a Senate committee after passing in the House. Levy said she still supports such action, for environmental reasons and to protect consumers against the increasing prices of natural gas and coal.

She also sponsored a bill in 2008 that would have required land use planning to be part of transportation planning processes, but pulled the bill in committee before it went to the House. She said she believes state transportation funds shouldn’t subsidize sprawl, but also said legislative solutions will need further study.

“I also want to look at a statewide recycling initiative,” said Levy. “Colorado, despite having a very environmentally active and conscious population, ranks very poorly in our rate of recycling, which leads to a lot of wasted resources and too much trash going into our landfills.”

FYI

For more information about Rep. Claire Levy, visit her Web site www.clairelevy.org. To read any of the bills listed in this story, visit the Web site www.leg.state.co.us.