House passes bill to address long-standing environmental injustices in Colorado

DENVER, CO – The House of Representatives today passed legislation to address some of the longstanding environmental injustices that have disproportionately impacted communities of color and low-income communities in Colorado. HB24-1338 passed by a vote of 43 to 18.

HB24-1338sponsored by Representatives Manny Rutinel and Elizabeth Velasco, would direct the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) to recommendations of the Environmental Justice Action Task Force, founded by HB21-1266.

“For nearly a year, the Environmental Justice Action Task Force has met with community members and gathered data-driven information to create a comprehensive checklist to clean our air and support communities disproportionately affected by environmental pollution,” said Rep. Manny Rutinel, D-Commerce City. “This bill implements key recommendations from the task force, including increased oversight of known polluters, such as refineries, and improved response time to community complaints about air pollution. By delving deeper into the cumulative impacts of environmental injustice, we can create policies that address the pollution that negatively impacts our neighbors of color and low-income neighbors.”

“Poor air quality and other environmental factors can lead to respiratory problems, such as asthma,” said Rep. Elizabeth Velasco, D-Glenwood Springs. “We owe it to our neighbors to implement the Environmental Justice Action Task Force’s recommendations to clean our air, take air pollution complaints seriously, and combat long-standing environmental injustices. Environmental justice is a nation-wide issue, and we all deserve access to clean air and water. Our bill implements the task force’s recommendations to help our neighbors most affected by poor air quality live healthy lives.”

HB24-1338 would authorize the CDPHE to implement the recommendations of the Environmental Justice Action Task Force and address long-standing environmental injustices. In concrete terms, this bill would:

• Increase supervision of petroleum refineries. The bill would fund the hiring of an air pollution control expert for petroleum refineries. This expert would assess the gaps in public health protection and identify the best regulatory instruments to fill these gaps. The bill would also require refineries to provide near real-time emissions monitoring and compliance data.

• Improve response to air pollution complaints. The department’s Air Pollution Control Division would house a new rapid response inspection team to support faster responses to air pollution complaints by affected communities.

• Analyze the cumulative effects of pollution. The bill would implement recommendations of the Environmental Justice Action Task Force by formally establishing and authorizing the creation of at least two Environmental Equity and Cumulative Impact Analyzes to assess cumulative air, water, soil, and demographic impacts in specific disproportionately affected analyze communities.

Established in 2021 through HB21-1266, the Environmental Justice Task Force hosted several in-person meetings and gatherings with Coloradans in Commerce City, Grand Junction, Greeley and Pueblo, in addition to receiving more than 300 written comments and survey responses. The task force made its final recommendations to Governor Polis, the Legislature and the CDPHE in 2022.