Rep. Shane Sandridge, R-Colorado Springs, has weighed in on the primary fight between his minority leader, Rep. Hugh McKean of Loveland, and Austin Hein, the former communications director for the House GOP when the minority leader was Rep. Patrick Neville, R-Castle Rock.

Hein announced this week that Sandridge endorsed him. That may signal a deepening divide within the House GOP caucus. 

McKean, elected minority leader in November 2020, has had to deal with conservative members of his caucus who backed Neville. That support also comes from Rep. Dave Williams of Colorado Springs, who has launched a primary challenge against U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs. 

Meanwhile, Rep. Andy Pico, R-Colorado Springs, found himself a man without a district after the new maps for the Colorado General Assembly were approved in November. Pico currently represents House District 16, which is bordered on its west side by I-25, on its south side by Fillmore, on its east side by Powers Blvd., and on its north side by Dublin and Vickers.

He’s now announced that he’s running for the new House District 22, which shifts to the east to drop the I-25 area and with North Academy Blvd as its western boundary.

In other news, a bipartisan bill led by Rep. Mary Bradfield, R-Colorado Springs, cleared its first House hearing on Thursday.

House Bill 1057 would address critical teacher shortages in public education. 

How critical is that shortage? The Wall Street Journal this week reported that the National Guard has been activated in several states, including New Mexico, to substitute teach and drive school buses. 

HB 1057 would temporarily waive the annual 110-day limit on the number of days a retired teacher, covered by the state’s pension plan, can work as a substitute, a limitation imposed by state law and the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA). Under current PERA regulations and state law, school districts that hire retired teachers as substitutes must pay all current employer contributions and disbursements for each rehired retiree, who must also pay the applicable member contribution rate. Those contributions do not add benefits to the member’s retirement. 

Under HB 1057, the temporary waiver would repeal on Jan. 1, 2025. 

According to its fiscal note, the bill could incentivize current teachers to retire, and that could impact PERA’s revenue. 

If teachers get sick, or their children get sick, or they just need a day off, substitutes are just not available in many districts, according to Rep. Barbara McLachlan, D-Durango, the bill’s co-sponsor. 

Bradfield told the House Education Committee Thursday the bill addresses a critical teacher shortage that has been exacerbated by the pandemic. 

As for PERA, Bradfield said she thought it was reasonable to give them an expiration date for the bill. 

The bill is backed by the Colorado Association of School Executives, the group representing superintendents; AARP Colorado; and, the Colorado Association of School Boards. But PERA is opposed. 

Ron Baker, PERA’s executive director, told the committee that an extension of working after retirement poses a negative impact on PERA’s unfunded liability, both for its Denver Public Schools division and for PERA’s school division. The PERA board did not take a position on the need or policy around teacher shortages.

Schools have struggled to keep their doors open during the pandemic, said Robin Reeser, a retired teacher from the Cañon City School District. The district’s substitute teacher “fill rate” – meaning available substitutes – dropped to 50% during the spike of the omicron variant, she said.

That has led to schools drawing counselors, principals, paraprofessionals, and administrators away from their regular work to cover those classrooms. The shortage affects the neediest students, Reeser said. 

In a world of high-stakes assessments, “it’s preposterous to limit the employee pool,” she added.

Rep. Colin Larson, R-Littleton, said he would support the bill, in part because of the law’s repeal.

“The immediate crisis overrides concerns” he had about the bill, including the incentive on retirement, he added. 

Rep. Mary Young, D-Greeley, said the temporary law could have a positive effect by improving working conditions in schools.

“This is the time to institute” this kind of program,” she said. “I know retired teachers will want to fill this gap.”  

The bill was sent to the full House for debate on a unanimous 9-0 vote.