House Speaker Crisanta Duran said this week she intends to monitor a Republican-sponsored Senate bill aimed at encouraging construction of condominiums by changing how disputes over construction problems are resolved and “see what shape it takes” as it makes its way to the House.

She also noted that the legislation – Senate Bill 156, “Homeowners’ Association Construction Defect Lawsuit Approval Timelines,” sponsored by state Sen. Owen Hill, R-Colorado Springs, and Assistant House Majority Leader Cole Wist, R-Centennial, and state Reps Lori Saine, R-Firestone – is similar to bills that have died in the Legislature in previous years.

Bills taking a similar approach have been voted down in the Democratic-controlled House in 2014 and 2015. It would require disputes over construction issues be submitted to mediation or arbitration before filing a lawsuit and also require require that homeowners association boards obtain the approval of a majority of owners before proceeding with a complaint. It would also require that everyone who owns an affected unit in a condominium complex be notified about potential risks and benefits of pursuing legal remedies.

It’s one of numerous bills – some bipartisan, some not – making their way through the General Assembly this session intended to boost construction of affordable housing in Colorado. Builders and developers say they’re reluctant to build condominiums because current law makes it too easy to get bogged down in lawsuits over faulty construction. They also say insurance premiums to guard against that kind of litigation have skyrocketed, driving builders from the market. But Democrats have blocked proposals in recent years, maintaining that the law can’t threaten the rights of homeowners to protect what is often their most valuable asset.

Senate Bill 157, a Democratic-sponsored bill addressing some of the same issues as SB 156 was introduced in the Senate Friday by Williams and state Rep. Jovan Melton, D-Aurora. Dubbed “Construction Defect Actions Notice Vote Approval,” it would require that the board of a unit owners’ association notify all owners and obtain the approval of a majority of owners before filing a lawsuit seeking less than $100,000. It also would limit the contact a developer or builder can have with individual unit owners while seeking approval for a lawsuit.

“We’re working on a number of different concepts, including SB-045, which addresses high insurance premiums to jumpstart more condo development and legislation regarding homeowner approval of litigation before it’s filed to create more education at the front end of the process,” Duran told The Colorado Statesman this week.

Duran is a sponsor of Senate Bill 45, along with Senate President Kevin Grantham, R-Cañon City, and state Sen. Angela Williams, D-Denver, and Assistant House Majority Leader Cole Wist, R-Centennial. The legislation would affect how the costs of defending against litigation are allocated among builders and contractors. It’s making its way through the Senate and is headed for the appropriations committee for a hearing.

“Sen. Owen Hill’s bill is similar to prior efforts that have not made it through the legislature in the past,” Duran said. “I will continue to watch that bill and see what shape it takes if it reaches the House.”

Last week, the Metro Mayors Caucus – a bipartisan group of 40 mayors from across the metro area – asked Duran to make sure Hill’s bill received a fair hearing in a House committee.

“As I’ve said from the start of this session, my goal is to seek solutions that address the issue of new condo development without jeopardizing the right of Coloradans to protect the largest investment most of them will ever make – their homes,” Duran said.

Hill’s bill is scheduled to be heard in the Senate Business, Labor & Technology Committee on Monday, Feb. 27. The Williams bill has been assigned to the same committee, but a hearing date has yet to be set.

– ernest@coloradostatesman.com