Advocacy Report

AGC Legislative Committee Meets on April 21 to Review Next Batch of 2026 Legislative Session Bills

The AGC Legislative Committee met on April 21 to review the next batch of bills in the 2026 legislative session. The committee took the following positions:

 

HB26-1030 Data Center & Grid Modernization – Support if Amended

HB26-1415 Optional Residential Construction Contractor Certification – Oppose

SB26-175   Adjust Experience Mod Factor in Work Comp - Support

 

There are 50+ members of the AGC Legislative Committee and all member firms are eligible to have a representative on the committee. The next meeting is on May 5. To check it out or join the committee email Nicole at the AGC office at nicole@agccolorado.org.

 

2026 AGC Bill Tracker

AGC is once again providing the AGC Bill Tracker for members to follow along with AGC positions and action on bills affecting the construction industry. You can access the bill tracker through the AGC Website at www.agccolorado.org/advocacy or access it from the button at the top of this weekly AGC Advocacy Report. The same link works all session so you can also bookmark it on your computer for easy access!

 

AGC to Testify in Support (if Amended) of HB26-1030 Data Center & Grid Modernization 

AGC Advocacy Director Michael Gifford is set to testify in Support (if Amended) of HB26-1030 Data Center & Grid Modernization. AGC has worked all session (with partners of the Colorado Energy Crossroads Coalition) to help this bill become law, help Colorado gain it’s share of the lucrative data center development & construction market, and help support a strong economy with the data manufacturing capacity that will drive our economy forward. The bill provides for sales & use tax exemptions on the construction of facilities, while also ensuing environmental and power generation guardrails are met by each project that is approved by a new Data Center Authority. AGC also hopes to gain a seat on the 13 member authority. Stay tuned as the bill works its way through the legislative process.

 

AGC Takes Support Position on SB26-175 Adjust Experience Mod Factor in Work Comp

AGC took a support position on SB26-175 on April 21. The bill creates a process for employers and licensed insurance producers to update an employer's experience modification factor when:

• An open claim is reported by an insurance carrier to the rating bureau with a higher open claim amount than the amount after the claim was closed; and
• The lower claim amount would reduce an employer's experience modification factor at least .05 compared to the previously released experience modification factor or from above 1.0 to 1.0 or below.

The employer must notify the insurance carrier between the time the claim is reported to a rating bureau and 31 days after the employer's rating effective date. The insurance carrier is required to credit the employer for a premium change resulting from the revised experience modification factor.

 

The portion of the bill highlighted in yellow above was an amendment from AGC that was placed in the draft bill prior to introduction. AGC will testify in support of the bill in committee. Stay tuned for more info as the bill proceeds through the process.

 

Energy Crossroads Coalition Issues Strong Opposition Letter to Draft Clean Energy Planning Bill 

AGC is a founding member of the coalition

Colorado Energy Crossroads is a growing, diverse, statewide coalition bringing together Colorado’s labor, business, utilities, industry, consumer advocates, and community stakeholders. The coalition is united around a practical, balanced path to meet the state’s climate and clean-energy goals, while protecting affordability, ensuring reliable power, supporting high-quality jobs and economic growth, and advancing solutions through a transparent, accountable, and modernized regulatory process. Coalition members include:

• Associated General Contractors
• Black Hills Energy
• Colorado AFL-CIO
• Colorado Chamber of Commerce
• Colorado Concern
• Colorado Real Estate Alliance
• Colorado Rural Electric Association
• CORE Electric Cooperative
• DataGrid Consortium
• Denver Pipefitters Local 208
• Energy Outreach Colorado
• Guzman Energy
• IBEW Colorado State Conference of Electrical Workers
• IBEW Local 111
• IBEW Local 113
• IBEW Local 12
• IBEW Local 667
• IBEW Local 68
• Manufacturing Alliance of Colorado (MAC)
• Pipeliners Local Union 798, United Association
• Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 145
• Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 58
• Rocky Mountain Chapter of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA)
• Rocky Mountain Mechanical Contractors Association (RMMCA)
• Rocky Mountain Pipe Trades District Council 5
• Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors’ National Association - Colorado Chapter
• Sheet Metal Workers Local 9
• Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association
• Western Line Constructors Chapter, Inc. - NECA
• Xcel Energy

This week the coalition issued a strong opposition letter against a draft bill that would accelerate the clean energy generation timeline from 2050 to 2035 and 2040. The coalition is also using a social media campaign to help everyday citizens to contact legislators to slow down to avoid increases in the cost of utility bills. That campaign has been working to date as the draft bill has not been introduced. The coalition is anticipating bill introduction and the opposition letter lays out some reasons the bill is not appropriate for Colorado at this time. Stay tuned for more info in the last 3 weeks of the 2026 legislative session. To learn more about the coalition visit https://www.coenergycrossroads.org/.