Outgoing Rep. Bernie Buescher, D-Grand Junction, believes the bill he worked on for over a year will die before birth without his return to the state Legislature next year.

The bill, which Buescher discussed in a press conference during his re-election campaign this fall, would have required Colorado law enforcement to collect and store cheek swabs from people arrested on felony charges. It’s already legal to collect swabs from convicted felons. Buescher said broadening the police DNA database would help catch murderers and rapists quicker.

The as-yet-unknown price tag of the bill wouldn’t help its passage in a year when the state is holding its budget tight, Buescher said. The bill also deals with a “sensitive” issue, he added, so it would take a lot of a legislator’s time to promote. Buescher believes he would have had that kind of time if he’d been voted speaker of the House by his peers, a post that will go to Rep. Terrance Carroll, a Denver Democrat, in January. Buescher said he doesn’t think Carroll will take over the bill.

“The speaker tends to only carry three or four or five bills a year,” Buescher said. “I was willing to make a substantial commitment of time to that bill and I just, I don’t know who is willing to do that right now.”

“My estimation is that bill is very difficult to carry if I’m not carrying it.”

The bill isn’t officially dead before arrival. Buescher said there still may be “an obvious person to carry that bill.” For now, though, he hasn’t approached anyone about it.

“I have not twisted any arms on that. It’s only about two-and-a-half pages long, but it’s a very tough bill,” he said.

Buescher’s successor, Collbran Republican Laura Bradford, and Grand Junction Rep. Steve King (R) have expressed interest in the bill. Both said they won’t make a move until they see if any of Buescher’s Democratic colleagues want to carry his bill.

“It’s common courtesy” to give Democrats priority in claiming the bill, King said. King said he will look at carrying the bill if Carroll asks him to because of King’s law enforcement background.

Although she sees herself passing more business bills than anything else, Bradford has also expressed some interest in the bill, although she hasn’t made any commitments. She said she’s also discussed with King and Senate Republican Leader Josh Penry of Grand Junction presenting a Buescher-inspired fetal homicide bill.

Reach Emily Anderson at eanderson@gjfreepress.com.