The first act of this year’s session of the Colorado General Assembly has been one of mostly compromise and accord. But in the second act, the drama will likely start up in earnest.

During a mid session review by members of the House Republican Leadership Friday, Minority Leader Brian DelGrosso, R-Loveland, said the 60 days of the 120-day session had been fairly slow and marked mostly by bills with bipartisan support. But with the state budget debate taking center stage in the last half of the session, and contentious issues like the state’s hospital provider fee and construction defects on the horizon, the legislative seas will likely start to get a little rough.

“It’s been a cordial session so far. I think the second half, once we get to the budget in a couple of weeks, that’s when it will start ramping up,” DelGrosso said. “I think there’s a lot of contentious stuff that we’re hearing to come in the second half of the session, which unfortunately that’s kind of the way it happens in an election year … We might see some choppy waters to finish off the session.”

DelGrosso, joined by House Assistant Minority Leader Polly Lawrence, R-Roxborough Park, and House Minority Caucus Chair Lois Landgraf, R-Fountain, talked about some of their legislative victories, including HB 1256 by Rep. J. Paul Brown, R-Ignacio, to study storage along the South Platte River, a bill which passed out of the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee on a 10-2 bipartisan vote. The same bill failed last session.

Also recapped were some of the minority party’s early goals that fizzled out this session. Brown’s HB 1138 on transportation funding and HB 1181 by House Minority Whip Perry Buck, R-Windsor, a bill that would have compensated mineral rights owners when a fracking ban prevents extraction were two such priorities. Both died on party-line votes in the committee where legislation is sent by the majority party to quickly die with minimal political consequence — State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

But the session most likely will be defined by what happens in the next couple of months over moving the state’s hospital provider fee out from underneath TABOR restrictions — an issue Democrats in both chambers are united on — and what happens with construction defects reform, a Republican priority. Increasing transportation funding also remains a top agenda item for both parties, but one that has reached little agreement over just how it is accomplished.

DelGrosso said the rumor is that House Democrats will be focused more on pushing lightning rod bills in the second half of the session that target oil and gas operations.

Regardless, DelGrosso said Republicans would introduce several bills centered on construction defects reform and that GOP members are working with the opposition to craft a bill that may even have a chance of passing out of the House. He also said a bill on transportation bonds would be coming down the pike before the session ended.

“(We’re) trying to work on collaboration before we introduce them. Construction defects is such a big deal that we don’t want to rush into anything and just have it come in and die,” DelGrosso said. “We’re basically getting everybody involved, continuing to have stakeholder meetings and just working to make sure we have a solid product before we introduce it.”

When it comes to the hospital provider fee, DelGrosso said the question for him is whether or not to give taxpayers their refunds. As one might assume, DelGrosso is for giving back the refunds — a hard-line party position in both chambers that has seen few waiver other than Sen. Larry Crowder, R-Alamosa, who is facing what could be a close reelection bid in a swing district.

“We can get bogged down all day long on legal technicalities stuff. But it is if we bring in too much revenue it’s supposed to be refunded to the people and the only way we can do that is to ask them,” DelGrosso said. “(The JBC said) it’s going to be a tight year. But definitely not a sky is falling type of scenario like the governor had painted going into this session with massive cuts in several areas of the state. Will some departments have to tighten their belt? I’m sure they will. We probably won’t be able to expand any programs, but I don’t think the sky is falling as much as people have painted.”

DelGrosso didn’t seem amenable to using the hospital provider fee as a chip to trade to get House Democrats to take action on a construction defects bill.

“For us, for me to say I believe voters should get their refund and the proposals out there don’t allow that. For me to change my mind on that to get something else through, I think is going to be a difficult path to go,” DelGrosso said.

— ramsey@coloradostatesman.com