Colorado bill would roll back farmworker protections in response to Supreme Court ruling
Visitors walk around the Colorado Capitol on the first day of the 2025 session of the Legislature on Jan. 8, 2025. (Lindsey Toomer/Colorado Newsline)
Colorado lawmakers are moving forward with bipartisan legislation that would roll back a protection in state law for farmworkers after an adverse U.S. Supreme Court ruling, over the objections of some advocates who question whether the repeal is necessary.
Members of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee voted 5-2 on Thursday to advance Senate Bill 25-128, with two Democrats, state Sens. Jessie Danielson of Wheat Ridge and Janice Marchman of Loveland, opposed.
The bill would repeal a provision in state law guaranteeing access by 'key service providers' — including medical personnel, attorneys, legal advocates and clergy — to farmworkers on private agricultural properties during off hours. That protection was passed by Democratic majorities in the Legislature in 2021 as part of a larger piece of legislation known as the Farmworkers Bill of Rights.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
SB-128's Senate sponsors, Democratic Sen. Dylan Roberts of Avon and Republican Sen. Byron Pelton of Sterling, say the 'cleanup bill' is needed after a 2021 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the case Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, which found a similar access provision enacted in California unconstitutional.
'This isn't a fun bill to run,' said Roberts. 'It's not something that Sen. Pelton and I are celebrating as a big, exciting thing to do here at the Legislature. But it's the responsible thing to do, my opinion, to protect the spirit of the larger law, and also honor the oaths we take to the Constitution.'
The bill would leave intact the vast majority of the wide-ranging 2021 farmworkers' rights measure, which also guaranteed agricultural employees the right to unionize, mandated meal breaks and rest periods, and much more.
But some farmworker advocates argued in Thursday's committee hearing that it's premature to fully strip the key service provider protection from state law. The Supreme Court's ruling in the Cedar Point case specifically concerned access for union organizers, making Colorado's access law meaningfully different, especially given its inclusion of health care providers.
'A lot of these farmworkers are in remote locations and working incredibly long hours, so it simply is not an option to run to the pharmacy on your lunch break or to go to the doctor,' said Valerie Collins, an attorney with progressive group Towards Justice.
Instead of repealing the protections, Collins said, lawmakers should direct the state's labor department to craft new rules 'based on the holding in Cedar Point, and based on the need of workers to access health care providers,' and potentially let further litigation play out from there.
'That could address some of the nuances that we're seeing here, and try to shape some of the parameters, rather than just wholesale eliminating all of these options,' said Collins.
But Jim Manley, state policy chief at the Pacific Legal Foundation, the conservative property-rights group that challenged the California access law in the Cedar Point case, insisted in testimony before the committee that the Supreme Court's ruling clearly invalidates Colorado's version of the law.
'The holding in Cedar Point is quite broad,' Manley told lawmakers. 'The court held that the access regulation 'appropriates for the enjoyment of third parties … the owners' right to exclude.' So it applies in a broad array of contexts, even though the factual situation there was narrower.'
Before advancing the bill, the committee adopted an amendment proposed by Roberts at the request of farmworker advocates, which included language to preserve service providers' access to employer-provided housing.
Following the Cedar Point ruling, the Colorado Livestock Association challenged the key service provider law in state court in 2023. That lawsuit is pending, and Roberts argued that a legislative fix now could prevent 'collateral damage' to other parts of the Farmworkers Bill of Rights in the future.
'There is (a) likelihood that at some point a court here in Colorado will hear this case on the merits,' he said. 'It could go all the way up and could result in a decision that strikes (down) more of this law than we're trying to fix here, which would be worse for workers.'
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Ohio Senate passes budget giving Browns $600 million, tax cut to wealthy, more public school money
Ohio Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon. (Photo by Graham Stokes for Ohio Capital Journal. Republish photo only with original article.) The Ohio Senate has passed a $60 billion state biennial operating budget, which includes a tax cut for the wealthy, some increased public education funding, and $600 million in funding to the Cleveland Browns for their new stadium. The total budget is expected to be around $200 billion once federal dollars come in. Ohio House Bill 96 was voted on mainly along party lines, 23-10. State Sen. Bill Blessing, R-Colerain Township, joined the Democrats to vote no. The senators increased the amount of money going to public schools from the Ohio House's proposal. The Senate budget gives public schools about $100 million more than the House. Although they follow most of the Ohio House's proposed budget, which only gives schools about $226 million of an increase for school funding, the Senate changed the funding 'guarantee' amount. Right now, some districts have guarantees that a portion of their funding will not be reduced, even if their enrollment goes down This $100 million added back would only go to high-performing or 'improving' districts. However, to be fully funded based on statistics from the Fair School Funding Plan (FSFP) from 2021, schools would need an additional $666-800 million, compared to the $226 million given by the House. Still, the Senate's version is closer to the FSFP than the House's. 'We're following the funding scheme that was put together in the first place,' Senate Finance Chair Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, said. 'Our bill is the closest way to get there.' They also raised the House proposal's cap on districts' rainy day funds to 50%, instead of 30%. This would mean that the schools would have to refund anything above that back to the taxpayer to provide property tax relief. 'The priority is not, obviously, in fully funding education, investing in our children and our future,' Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, said. The Senate's budget proposal still includes $600 million for a new Cleveland Browns stadium in Brook Park. However, the funding structure differs from what the Browns proposed and what the House approved earlier this year. The House proposed borrowing $600 million by issuing bonds and repaying the debt, with interest, over 25 years, at a cost of about $1 billion. The Senate is proposing a $600 million grant for the stadium using unclaimed funds. That's other people's money that the state is holding, from things like forgotten bank accounts, rent, or utility deposits or uncashed insurance policies. The Ohio Department of Commerce's website states the state is sitting on $4.8 billion in unclaimed funds. Asked about the possibility of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine vetoing that provision, Cirino noted that DeWine said publicly he did not like the debt arrangement of the House for the $600 million. DeWine himself had proposed raising gambling taxes. 'I'm pretty confident and feel good that the governor and the House will look at our approach to it,' Cirino said. Ohio Democratic lawmakers remain staunchly opposed to the project. 'If they could find that money for the Browns and their stadium's move to Brook Park, why didn't they decide to use those funds for the schools?' Antonio asked. The budget also includes a 2.75% flat income tax. There are three income tax brackets in Ohio. Those making up to $26,000 do not need to pay state income tax. Ohioans earning between $26,000 and $100,000 pay a tax of 2.75%. Those making more than $100,000 have to pay 3.5%. State data reveals that this flat tax could result in a loss of about $1.1 billion in the General Revenue Fund. 'The dollars that we're foregoing in the flat tax are already incorporated into our overall spending,' Cirino said. Funding for schools, Medicaid, libraries, lead abatement, food banks, and child care face funding decreases from the current status or from the governor's budget. Asked about these cuts these cuts to social services for lower-income people while giving a tax cut to the state's highest earners, Cirino said Republicans think it's going to be good for the economy. 'It's going to be good for attracting people,' Cirino responded. Antonio disagreed. 'It's a gift to the wealthiest among us on the backs of the poorest and lowest-income and middle-class folks in the state of Ohio,' she said. Senate Republicans propose giving $20,000 to top high school students to encourage them to stay in the state for their higher education. The Governor's Merit Scholarship was passed in the House budget. Already existing, the House language would extend the proposal that gives the top 5% of each graduating high school class $5,000 a year to attend a public or private school in Ohio. But the Senate version reduces the scholarship to the top 2% of students. The money would also have strings attached. The scholarship recipients would be required to reside in Ohio for three years after graduation. There would be an 'expectation' that the money would be returned if they leave within the three years. Now, the Senate and House leaders will enter a conference committee, a closed-door negotiation period to create a final budget. Once a decision is made, both chambers must pass the combined bill. If it passes through both sides, it will be sent to Gov. Mike DeWine for review. In the past, he issued dozens of line-item vetoes on operating budgets. Line-item vetoing is the ability for the governor to pick and choose which policies within a larger piece of legislation get to stay or must go. The deadline for the budget to be passed is July 1. Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on X and Facebook. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Newsom speech taking on Trump encourages Democrats looking for a leader
California Gov. Gavin Newsom won praise on Wednesday for his speech Tuesday night seen by a national audience, something many Democrats saw as a shot across the bow to President Donald Trump that they can fight Trump -- and one that sparked new talk of Newsom as the party's standard-bearer in 2028. "The rule of law has increasingly given way to the rule of Don," he said, blasting Trump for sending the military to quell protests in Los Angeles. "The founding fathers did not live and die to see this moment. It's time for all of us to stand up," Newsom said in his eight-minute highly produced remarks, flanked by the California and U.S. flags. Newsom's message to Californians -- and Americans listening -- was politically sobering, arguing that "Democracy is under assault before our eyes. The moment we've feared has arrived." "What Donald Trump wants most is your fealty. Your silence. To be complicit in this moment. Do not give in to him," he urged what might have been millions of viewers watching on cable news channels. MORE: Protests live updates: At least 5 criminal cases related to LA protests, DA says His rhetoric directly calling out Trump comes as Democrats are hungry for a leader to unite them as they try to rebuild from 2024 and other party losses. "We want somebody to fight, and so he's been fighting, and it's been glorious to watch," RL Miller, an environmental activist and Democratic National Committee superdelegate, told ABC News. Miller thinks Democrats have spent too much time "navel-gazing" since the November election, wasting time and resources rather than looking forward. "Newsom is going to be vaulting back into that top tier of presidential candidates with this," she said. His speech was just the latest in Newsom's verbal combat with the Trump administration. Earlier in the week, he challenged Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, after he suggested that anyone who blocked the administration's immigration crackdown should be apprehended, even Newsom, a comment he later walked back but Trump endorsed. "Come after me, arrest me. Let's just get this over with, tough guy," Newsom told NBC News. "That's the energy we need in this moment," Democratic National Committee spokesperson Hannah Muldavian said of Newsom during the party's new daily YouTube show. Other national Democrats echoed that praise. In a joint news conference Wednesday morning, top party brass, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer threw their support behind Newsom's new war with Trump. "All I add is President Trump is trying to intimidate Gavin Newsom," Schumer, D-N.Y., said. "He has shown he's not going to be intimidated, and we're all for that, all for him and proud that he is refusing to be intimidated by Donald Trump." Newsom's PAC, Campaign for Democracy, sent out fundraising texts asking supporters to donate to help Newsom "continue to fight back against the attacks and threats from the Trump administration." Rob Stutzman, a Republican strategist who worked with former California GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, said Newsom with asserting authentic leadership for Democrats who have been "leaderless all year" and likely quite eager to see such a high-profile official "fighting back" to Trump. "There's resistance that often seems contrived, but these circumstances have given him an essential, authentic resistance footing," said Stutzman. Still, it remains unclear if Newsom can win on immigration, one of Trump's central campaign issues and a top concern of many Americans. As a whole, Democrats have struggled to offer a singular message and response to Trump's actions. And the White House is continuously highlighting the unrest in California as a prime example of what is says is Newsom's poor record. Trump blasted the governor on his social media platform Monday, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass have "failed their citizens." She said Newsom "owns" the images of violent protests. Newsom, who is term-limited and has not ruled out a 2028 presidential bid, isn't the only Democratic governor pitching themselves as tough on Trump. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz recently traveled to South Carolina to recap their record to voters, though both are adamant they are not running for the White House this time around. Even still, Newsom seems to rise above the pack. In fact, some operatives in Trump's orbit see Newsom transforming into the Democratic Party's long-sought leader. Former Trump political adviser Bannon told the New York Times that Newsom's address was "a kickoff to his 2028 campaign." Newsom speech taking on Trump encourages Democrats looking for a leader originally appeared on
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Bill allowing anyone 18 or older to conceal carry passes NC House, headed to governor
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Despite two Republican lawmakers siding with Democrats in opposition, a bill allowing people as young as 18 to carry a gun without a permit in the state, is headed to the Governor's office. Republican sponsors of the bill say it only enshrines the right to carry a weapon to law-abiding citizens. Rep. Jay Adams (R-Catawba) said in defense of the bill, ' States have done this…we're close to 50% of the country…this is really not going to affect criminal behavior…this is going to benefit law abiding citizens.' Democrats opposed the bill, saying it'll only lead to more gun violence and put guns into the hands of teenagers who aren't old enough to understand the true dangers of guns. 'Studies have shown that permit-less concealed carry increases violence and death,' Rep. Phil Rubin (D-Wake) said. The final vote came after a second reading in which 54 voted in favor and 48 voted against. The bill now heads to Gov. Josh Stein's desk, where he can sign it into law or veto the bill. If Stein vetoes SB50, House Republicans would need every single Republican and one Democrat to vote to override that veto. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.