COLORADO, USA — A new year means new state laws take effect. From cage-free eggs to minimum wage, many of the new laws could financially impact Coloradans.
Minimum wage
More than half of all U.S. states are increasing their minimum wage this year. That includes Colorado, where the state minimum wage increased by a little over a dollar to $13.65 an hour. If you work in Denver, the minimum wage increased by almost 9% to $17.29 an hour.
Cage-free eggs
Egg producers are now required to give one square foot of space to all egg-laying hens in order to sell eggs in the state. By 2025, all egg-laying hens in Colorado will be required to be cage free.
But more room may cost shoppers more money.
“With different confinements – of course there’s a cost to that,” said Bill Scebbi, executive director of Colorado Egg Producers. “And raising hens in these other facilities, other environments, it’s more costly to raise the hens and produce the eggs. So that will equate to an increase in price. What that’s going to be, we can’t say.”
Single-use bag fees
Starting Sunday, stores across the state are required to charge 10 cents for every paper or plastic bag they provide to customers. The universal fee is the next step toward a statewide ban on single-use plastic bags that will take effect in 2024.
But Walmart didn't wait until next year. Sunday was the first day the store no longer provided single-use plastic or paper bags at checkout in Colorado. It was news that came as a surprise to a lot of shoppers.
"I was looking for the bags, but they were all gone. I didn't even see any for sale," John Irvine said outside of a Walmart on Sunday. "If I would have known, I would have brought one with me. I was kind of surprised."
FAMLI program payroll deduction
Many Coloradans will see some changes to their paychecks this year as the state introduces the FAMLI program. The program is a voter-approved new payroll deduction that will contribute to a fund that will provide a wage replacement for workers during life situations that force them to take time off.
According to the state, workers who are eligible can get up to 12 weeks of payments on a sliding scale based on how much they make, with lower wage earners receiving up to 90% of their wages. Those benefits will be available for workers starting in 2024.
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