April 1, 2026 · Judiciary · 1,566 words · 10 speakers · 35 segments
To order, Ms. Jensen, please call the roll.
Senators Carson.
Present.
Doherty.
Here.
Henriksen.
Here.
Wallace.
Here.
Zamora Wilson.
Present.
Robert.
Here.
Mr. Chair.
Here. All right. Everyone is present. Notwithstanding it's April Fool's Day, we really do only have one bill on the committee's agenda today, and that is 1101 by Senators Pelton and Linstead, who are before us and ready to present. Present. Senator, whoever would like to start. Senator Pelton.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Today we bring you House Bill 1101, protecting critical communication infrastructure against vandalism. At a time of exploding consumer demand for wireless service, the industry is investing billions of dollars to deploy and upgrade infrastructure for communities across the country. However, ongoing criminal theft and vandalism of telecommunication infrastructure puts this progress at risk. During one year period in 24 to 25, nearly 16,000 incidents of theft and vandalism were reported across the U.S., impacting all types of wireless and broadband infrastructure. Colorado HB 261101 takes action to address telecommunication vandalism and theft by strengthening the state's metal dealing laws to include wireless and telecommunication equipment, which will help eliminate the market for stolen materials that are vital to our telecommunications network.
All right, Senator Linstead. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you to everybody for hearing our bill. This is an important one for many of our communities to make sure that we protect those critical infrastructure pieces by strengthening the rules that will eventually eliminate the incentive for people to sell stolen critical goods. So the bill got through the House almost unanimously and will protect dealers who will not only receive critical infrastructure materials mixed in loads, but still create penalties for dealers that are knowingly purchasing stolen materials. So it's a pretty thoughtful approach. I think it will do a lot to protect all of those critical infrastructure needs. So let us know if you have any questions. Thank you. Members, questions or other sponsors? Alright seeing none Just two witnesses signed up that we know about On the Zoom we have Bob Pfeiffer F and Mr Hudson And was there anyone else present who wanted to testify to 1101? Anybody else on the Zoom that we know of? Okay, Mr. Hudson, please go ahead.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. My name is Larry Hudson. I'm coming before you today. on behalf of CTIA, the Wireless Industry Association, in support of House Bill 1101. As a background, CTIA represents a broad swath of wireless industry stakeholders, including AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, American Tower, and others. For these members, this bill is at its core about connectivity, being able to ensure timely 911 calls, telehealth appointments, and family FaceTimes. The growing prevalence of vandalism of telecommunications assets puts that at risk, and House Bill 1101 is designed to help CTIA ensure no market exists for this equipment. CTIA is working across the telecommunications industry to strengthen the data collection on critical infrastructure theft and conversion. And as Senator Pelton stated, in 2025, CTIA determined there are approximately 16,000 incidents nationwide of this type of theft. Some of the most significant standalone incidents CTIA heard from its members did occur in Colorado. The theft of copper wire is a leading problem, but the industry is also reporting theft of items like cell site batteries, engineering equipment, and the actual metal and other materials that equip and construct cell towers. CTIA members have robust corporate security teams. They work with law enforcement every day, and they hear from them daily about the issue of theft around critical infrastructure. This bill follows in the footsteps of what two dozen states, including states like California, Minnesota, Nevada, have done or are in the process of advancing laws to address this problem. Again what we doing here in House Bill 1101 is just adding that definition of critical infrastructure to the current statute around theft and sale of stolen materials to a recycler or salvage entity The underlying theft of this is not changing That is changing. It is putting some guardrails and actually protecting those salvage yards that are trying to do the right thing with folks and other companies to bring in materials that need to be salvaged. And I would just like to say we've worked very closely in the House with the recycling industry and what I think strikes a good balance here and what you see before you in House Bill 1101. So I would urge the committee to support 1101 and pass it on to the Senate floor.
All right. Thank you. Mr. Pfeiffer, please go ahead.
Thank you, Chair Wiseman. Members of the committee, thank you for having me. My name is Bob Pfeiffer. I'm the Deputy Director of Operations at the Colorado Department of Transportation. I'd like to thank the sponsors for introducing House Bill 1101 and urge a yes vote on this legislation. Commodity metal thefts targeting critical infrastructure is a persistent threat to the safety of Colorado's traveling public and the integrity of CDOT's operations. When essential components, specifically copper wiring and fiber optic cables, are removed from our system, the impact is immediate. These acts of vandalism and theft compromises the reliability of traffic signals, safety cameras and highway lighting, creating dark zones that directly increase the risk of crashes and hinder emergency response. The fiscal impact is equally devastating. To illustrate the scale of this issue, over the last four years, CDOT has been forced to spend over $2 million on repair just for a four-mile stretch of I-76 between Sheridan and Pecos. This $2 million represents a cycle of reactive maintenance. We have repeatedly diverted limited taxpayer dollars to fix the same infrastructure rather than investing in new safety improvements. Because recouping these funds is nearly impossible, these thefts act as a direct drain on the state's ability to maintain our transportation system. House Bill 1101 is a necessary step to protect these public assets and ensure Colorado's infrastructure remains functional and funded. Thanks again for your time, and I'd be
happy to answer any questions. All right, sir. Thank you. Committee questions for either witness at this point. All right. We are seeing no questions in the room. Mr. Pfeiffer, thanks for being with us. Mr. Hudson, thank you for being with us. Last call for any witnesses to speak to 1101. Confirming nobody on the Zoom, seeing none, we'll close the witness phase. Have you amendment sponsors? Committee amendments to 1101. Seeing none, amendment phase is closed. Sponsors, wrap up comments if any. Senator Lindstedt. Thank you Mr Chair This is a good piece of legislation to not only disincentivize theft but overall protect public safety I urge an aye vote Senator Pelton
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just would, my real job being a master electrician, the price of copper has gone skyrocketing up. And when you can get that money for salvaging a lot of these parts that they are getting off of these equipment that they're stealing from. This is a big deal to protect this infrastructure, especially in rural Colorado when you lose one tower. That could be communication for a lot of people out in the middle of nowhere. So I just really appreciate this bill, and I'm glad I got to work.
This is my first Linstat bill that I got to be on. So I appreciate it, and thank you. All right, thank you. Members, any closing comments? Mr. Buster.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll just offer my thanks to the sponsors for working on this, and I know the House sponsors, Representative Soper and Espinoza, put a lot of work into this. Two summers ago, the Good Center from Pueblo and I and several other legislators served on the very exciting Cell Phone Connectivity Interim Committee. And it was actually exciting, and making sure that our constituents have cell phone coverage is a really hot topic, an important one, and this was one of the recommendations that the committee made. We were only granted three bills that interim, so this one didn't make the top three, but really glad to see this coming forward and think it will make a big difference in making sure more people have reliable cell phone service in Colorado.
Members, any other closing comments? Seeing none for motion, Mr. Vice Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. I move House Bill 1101 to the Committee of the Whole.
Very good. Ms. Jensen, please call the roll.
Senators Carson.
Yes.
Doherty. Yes.
Henrickson. Yes.
Wallace. Aye.
Zamora Wilson. Respectfully, no.
Roberts. Aye.
Mr. Chair. Yes. Okay. With a vote of 6-1, you are going to the Committee of the Whole. Congratulations. All right. Members, at 1.46 p.m., that concludes the Judiciary Committee for today. Just in terms of looking ahead, next week is on the lighter side so far. I'll keep adding House bills as quickly as we get them, assuming they're ready to go. Plan on a longer day on Monday the 13th. That'll be the week that we take up the budget. Best I know, we still are meeting that Monday and doing work per usual. I'm not planning on our meeting the Wednesday of that week, so we'll load up Monday the 13th, and I'll be in communication with members about that in advance. Until then, judiciary is adjourned.