Friday was the last day for Gov. John Hickenlooper to sign, veto or let bills become law without his signature. He only vetoed two bills passed during the legislative session, and the final bill he signed was controversial.
The last measure was a bipartisan bill to reform how police departments seize property when someone is suspected of committing a crime. The new law still allows the practice – but it gives people more rights to get their property and assets returned if they are not convicted. Democratic Sen. Daniel Kagan of Cherry Hills Village said it’s about fairness.
“Asset forfeiture should never be used as a tool as an easy tool to boost law enforcement funding,” Kagan said.
But law enforcement and local groups said it will hamper their ability to combat crimes. Overall, state lawmakers passed 423 bills during the legislative session. That was more than 60 percent of the bills introduced and it was a higher success rate for bills than the previous session.
