| HB21-1004 | Colorado Uniform Electronic Wills Act |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Snyder (D) | M. Soper (R) / B. Gardner (R) | P. Lee |
| Summary: | Colorado Commission on Uniform State Laws. The bill enacts the "Colorado Uniform Electronic Wills Act". The bill declares that an electronic will is a will for all purposes of Colorado law. The bill specifies the requirements for: Executing and revoking an electronic will; Simultaneously executing, attesting, and making an electronic will; and Certifying a paper copy of an electronic will. |
| Status: | 1/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1011 | Multilingual Ballot Access For Voters |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | Y. Caraveo / J. Gonzales (D) | D. Moreno |
| Summary: | The bill requires the secretary of state (secretary) and county clerk and recorders (county clerk) of certain counties to provide multilingual ballot access. The secretary is required to establish a multilingual ballot hotline (hotline) to provide access to qualified translators or interpreters in each of the languages in which the most recent decennial census was offered to assist electors in translating ballot language. The secretary is required to establish the hotline for use during the general election held in November 2022, and for every general election and statewide odd-year election thereafter. The secretary is also required to: Provide notice of the hotline to electors through election day; Ensure that the translators who provide translations for the multilingual hotline are qualified translators or interpreters; and Promulgate rules as may be necessary to create and administer the hotline. The county clerk of any county that satisfies specified criteria is required to create, in coordination with the secretary, a minority language sample ballot (sample ballot) in any minority language spoken in the county that satisfies the following: The minority language is spoken by at least 2,000 citizens in the county age 18 years or older, who speak English less than very well, and who speak the minority language at home; or The minority language is spoken by at least 2.5% of citizens in the county age 18 years or older, who speak English less than very well, and who speak the minority language at home. The bill specifies that the sample ballot must include all of the same content that is on the English language ballot and also specifies the format of the sample ballot. In addition, the bill requires that the sample ballots be available for the general election held in November 2022, and for each general election and statewide odd-year election thereafter. The county clerk of any county that satisfies specified criteria is required to provide, upon the request of an elector, an in-person minority language ballot (in-person ballot) in any minority language spoken in the county that satisfies the same criteria specified for sample ballots. An in-person ballot can be a ballot on demand, a ballot from a printed stock of ballots, or a ballot via an electronic voting device. The bill specifies that the in-person ballot must include all of the same content that is on the English language ballot and specifies that in-person ballots are required to be available for the general election held in November 2022, and for each general election and statewide odd-year election thereafter. The secretary is required to determine, pursuant to specified criteria, which counties in the state are required to provide multilingual ballot access by creating a sample ballot and providing an in-person ballot, and to notify the county clerk of any county that is required to provide such multilingual ballot access. The secretary is required to provide each county clerk that is required to provide multilingual ballot access with a translation in the applicable minority language or languages of all content that is certified to the county clerks by the secretary of state for use by the county clerk in creating the multilingual ballot access. |
| Status: | 6/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1050 | Workers' Compensation |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Gray | K. Van Winkle (R) / J. Bridges (D) | J. Cooke |
| Summary: | The bill: * Adds guardian ad litem and conservator services to the list of medical aid that an employer is required to furnish to an employee who is incapacitated as a result of a work-related injury or occupational disease (section 1 of the bill); * Requires an injured worker who is claiming mileage reimbursement for travel related to obtaining compensable medical care to submit a request to the employer or insurer within 120 days after the expense is incurred, and requires the employer or insurer to pay or dispute mileage within 30 days after submittal and to include in the brochure of claimants' rights an explanation of rights to mileage reimbursement and the deadline for filing a request (sections 1 and 7); * Clarifies that offsets to disability benefits granted by the federal "Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Amendments of 1965" only apply if the payments were not already being received by the employee at the time of the work-related injury (section 2); * Prohibits the reduction of an employee's temporary total disability, temporary partial disability, or medical benefits based on apportionment under any circumstances; limits apportionment of permanent impairment to specific situations; and declares that the employer or insurer bears the burden of proof, by a preponderance of the evidence, at a hearing regarding apportionment of permanent impairment or permanent total disability benefits (section 3); * Adds the following conditions that must be met for an employer or insurer to request the selection of an independent medical examiner when an authorized treating physician has not determined that the employee has reached maximum medical improvement (MMI): An examining physician must have examined the employee at least 20 months after the date of the injury, have determined that the employee has reached MMI, and have served a written report to the authorized treating physician specifying that the examining physician has determined that the employee has reached MMI; and the authorized treating physician must have responded that the employee has not reached MMI or must have failed to respond within 15 days after service of the report (section 4); * Changes the whole person impairment rating applicable to an injured worker from 25% to 19% for purposes of determining the maximum amount of combined temporary disability and permanent partial disability payments an injured worker may receive (section 5); * Clarifies when benefits and penalties payable to an injured worker are deemed paid (section 6); * Prohibits an employer or insurer from withdrawing an admission of liability when 2 years or more have passed since the date the admission of liability on the issue of compensability was filed, except in cases of fraud (section 7); * Prohibits the director of the division of workers' compensation or an administrative law judge from determining issues of compensability or liability unless specific benefits or penalties are awarded or denied at the same time (section 8); * Clarifies the scope of authority of prehearing administrative law judges (section 9); * Increases the threshold amount that an injured worker must earn in order for permanent total disability payments to cease and allows for annual adjustment of the threshold amount starting in 2022 (section 11); and * Clarifies the orders that are subject to review or appeal (sections 10 and 12). |
| Status: | 6/30/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1054 | Housing Public Benefit Verification Requirement |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Jackson / J. Gonzales (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates a public or assisted housing benefit exception to the requirement that an applicant for federal, state, or local public benefits verify lawful presence in the United States. |
| Status: | 4/15/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1057 | Extortion Of Immigrants Engaging In Lawful Acts |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Roberts (D) | K. Tipper / J. Cooke | R. Rodriguez (D) |
| Summary: | Under current law, it is criminal extortion to threaten to report another person's immigration status to law enforcement to induce the threatened person to give the person money or another item of value. The bill adds to that version of criminal extortion a prohibition against threatening to report a person's immigration status to law enforcement to induce the threatened person to perform an act or refrain from performing Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. a lawful act. |
| Status: | 5/20/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1065 | Veterans' Hiring Preference |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONFERENCE COMMITTEE ON HB21-1065 8:30 AM HCR 0112 (1) in senate calendar. Tuesday, June 8 2021 Conference Committee on HB21-1065 8:30 a.m. Room 0112 (1) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Ortiz (D) / L. Garcia (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates a statutory basis to allow a private employer to give preference to a veteran of the armed forces or the National Guard and the spouse of a disabled veteran or a service member killed in the line of duty when hiring a new employee, as long as the veteran or the spouse is as qualified as other applicants for employment. The bill allows a Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. private employer's veterans' preference employment policy to also include the preferential hiring of veterans who have been discharged from active duty within the last 10 years, as determined by the discharge date. The bill clarifies that a private employer that adopts a program that gives preferences to veterans or their spouses is not committing a discriminatory or unfair labor practice |
| Status: | 6/23/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1071 | Ranked Choice Voting In Nonpartisan Elections |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (12) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kennedy / S. Fenberg (D) | F. Winter (D) |
| Summary: | Beginning in 2023, the bill allows a municipality to refer a municipal election using instant runoff voting to be conducted as part of a coordinated election. The secretary of state is required to promulgate rules establishing the minimum system requirements and specifications for a voting system to be used in an election using instant runoff voting by March 31, 2022. After March 31, 2022, a system that has been tested and satisfies the standards promulgated by the secretary of state may be submitted for certification for use in an election using instant runoff voting. If the secretary of state certifies a system, the secretary is required to negotiate and purchase, if possible, a single annual statewide license with the provider to allow each county that uses the voting system to conduct elections using instant runoff voting. On and after January 1, 2023, a statutory city or town or home rule municipality that has taken formal action to conduct an election using instant runoff voting may refer the election to be conducted as part of a coordinated election by providing written notice to the county clerk and recorder. If the county uses a voting system that is certified for use in an election using instant runoff voting, the county clerk and recorder must conduct the election as part of the coordinated election. The municipality referring the election is responsible for any reasonable additional costs the county incurs as a result of conducting an instant runoff voting election. If the referring municipality is located in more than one county, the counties are required to conduct the election using instant runoff voting only if each county receives timely notice, each county uses a voting system certified for such use, and the data from all the counties' voting systems can be tabulated together in accordance with rules promulgated by the secretary of state for conducting instant runoff elections across multiple counties. The counties and the municipality are required to enter into an agreement for the conduct of the election, which must specify the procedures for the county canvass boards to canvass the election. For any instant runoff voting election conducted as part of a coordinated election, the secretary of state is the designated election official responsible for tabulating and reporting the results. The secretary of state is required, by December 31, 2022, to promulgate rules related to instant runoff voting elections including the procedures for conducting logic and accuracy tests and risk limiting audits, and for the tabulation, reporting, and canvassing of results. |
| Status: | 6/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1073 | Support Foster Families License Plate |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | T. Van Beber | D. Michaelson Jenet (D) / D. Moreno | B. Kirkmeyer (R) |
| Summary: | The bill creates the "support foster families" license plate for vehicles. A person is qualified to be issued the plate if the person makes a donation to a designated nonprofit organization that meets the bill's qualifications. In addition to the normal fees for a license plate, a person must pay 2 additional one-time fees for the issuance of the plate. The fees are credited to the highway users tax fund and the licensing services cash Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. fund, respectively |
| Status: | 6/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1075 | Replace The Term Illegal Alien |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Lontine / J. Gonzales (D) |
| Summary: | The bill replaces the term "illegal alien" with "worker without authorization" as it relates to public contracts for services. |
| Status: | 4/15/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1077 | Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning Tax Policy |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | A. Benavidez | S. Bird (D) / J. Gonzales (D) | D. Moreno |
| Summary: | The bill creates the legislative oversight committee concerning tax policy (committee) and the associated task force (task force). The committee is required to review the policy considerations contained in the tax expenditure evaluations prepared by the state auditor and is responsible for the oversight of the task force. The committee may recommend legislative changes that are treated as bills recommended by Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. an interim legislative committee. The task force is required to study tax policy and develop and propose for committee consideration any modifications to the current system of state and local taxation. The task force is also authorized, upon request by a committee member, to provide evidence-based feedback on the potential benefits or consequences of a legislative or other policy proposal not directly affiliated with or generated by the task force, including any bill or resolution introduced by the general assembly that affects tax policy. |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1097 | Establish Behavioral Health Administration |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Young (D) | R. Pelton (R) / R. Fields (D) | B. Gardner (R) |
| Summary: | The bill addresses multiple recommendations from the Colorado behavioral health task force (task force), created in 2019, related to the creation of a behavioral health administration (BHA). The BHA would be a single state agency to lead, promote, and administer the state's behavioral health priorities. The bill requires the department of human services (department) to submit a plan for the creation and establishment of the BHA on or before November 1, 2021, to the joint budget committee and on or before January 30, 2022, to the department's committees of reference. The bill outlines what the plan must, at a minimum, include. The essential duties of the BHA, once established, are set forth. A timeline is described for the establishment of the BHA in the department and for a future determination of what state department, if different than the department of human services, the BHA will exist. |
| Status: | 4/22/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1100 | Electronic Filing Of Documents With Governmental Entities |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Soper (R) | S. Gonzales-Gutierrez / J. Bridges (D) | P. Lundeen (R) |
| Summary: | The bill requires a governmental entity to establish an electronic filing option by January 1, 2022, for each document required or allowed to be filed with the governmental entity. A governmental entity includes each principal department of the state and each county, and any agency, department, board, or division thereof. The electronic filing option may include accepting a scanned copy of the original document by email or through a secure file transfer system. The electronic filing option must comply with existing requirements for a governmental entity to have reasonable security practices in place if the governmental entity receives or maintains personal identifying information. The governmental entity is not authorized to require a filing to be made only by electronic filing if the department does not have authority under other law to require electronic filing. |
| Status: | 6/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1105 | Low-income Utility Payment Assistance Contributions |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kennedy / C. Hansen (D) | K. Priola (D) |
| Summary: | Section 1 of the bill removes the low-income energy assistance program administered by Energy Outreach Colorado (EOC) from the grant program reserve funded by tier 2 severance tax operational fund money. Section 2 clarifies that the definition of a "low-income utility customer", with regard to the public utilities commission's (PUC) consideration of a preference or advantage that a gas or electric utility grants a low-income utility customer, means a utility customer who meets the Colorado department of human services' income eligibility criteria. Sections 3 and 4 make modifications to the legislative commission on low-income energy assistance, wherein section 3 expands the commission's scope to include water utility assistance and section 4 reduces the composition of the commission from 11 members to 7 members. Section 4 also requires the commission to: * Advise the Colorado energy office (office) on grants awarded from the federal department of energy regarding the office's weatherization assistance program; * Advise water utilities that provide their customers with utility assistance and efficiency programs; and * Review EOC's annual budget that it submits to the PUC regarding the use of funding for utility bill payment assistance. Sections 5, 6, and 8 to 10 concern the creation of an energy assistance system benefit charge, which is a mandatory monthly charge that investor-owned electric and gas utilities are required to collect from their customers. The initial amount of the charge per customer is $1 for electric service provided and $1 for natural gas service provided, but the PUC may adopt rules to modify the amount of the charge, so long as the charge is at least $1 per service provided. Investor-owned utilities are required to remit the charges collected to EOC to help finance the direct utility bill payment assistance and energy retrofit programs that EOC administers for low-income households. Sections 7 and 11 concern voluntary, opt-in charges that a water utility may offer its customers to help finance the water utility bill payment assistance program that EOC administers. Alternatively, a water utility may implement its own water utility bill payment assistance program. Section 12 requires EOC and the office, when installing energy retrofits for low-income households, to prioritize customer savings, emission reductions, and improving indoor air quality. Section 13 governs reporting requirements for EOC regarding the mandatory monthly energy assistance system benefit charge and voluntary, opt-in monthly water utility bill payment assistance collections. Sections 14 to 17 make conforming amendments. |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1108 | Gender Identity Expression Anti-discrimination |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Esgar / D. Moreno |
| Summary: | The bill amends the definition of "sexual orientation" and adds definitions of the terms "gender expression" and "gender identity". The bill also adds the terms "gender expression" and "gender identity" to statutes prohibiting discrimination against members of a protected class, including statutes prohibiting discriminatory practices in the following Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. areas: * Membership of the Colorado civil rights commission; * Employment practices; * Housing practices; * Places of public accommodation; * Publications that advertise places of public accommodation; * Consumer credit transactions; * Selection of patients by direct primary health care providers; * Sales of cemetery plots; * Membership in labor organizations; * Colorado labor for public works projects; * Issuance or renewal of automobile insurance policies; * The provision of funeral services and crematory services; * Eligibility for jury service; * Issuance of licenses to practice law; * The juvenile diversion program; * Access to services for youth in foster care; * Enrollment in a charter school, institute charter school, public school, or pilot school; * Local school boards' written policies regarding employment, promotion, and dismissal; * The assignment or transfer of a public school teacher; * Leasing portions of the grounds of or improvements on the grounds of the Colorado state university - Pueblo and the Colorado school of mines; * Enrollment or classification of students at private occupational schools; * Training provided to peace officers concerning the prohibition against profiling; * Criminal justice data collection; * Employment in the state personnel system; * The availability of services for the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted infections; * Membership of the health equity commission; * The availability of family planning services; * Requirements for managed care programs participating in the state medicaid program and the children's basic health plan; * The treatment of and access to services by individuals in facilities providing substance use disorder treatment programs; * Employment practices of county departments of human or social services involving the selection, retention, and promotion of employees; * Practices of the Colorado housing and finance authority in making or committing to make a housing facility loan; * The imposition of occupancy requirements on charitable property for which the owner is claiming an exemption from property taxes based on the charitable use of the property; * The determination of whether expenses paid at or to a club that has a policy to restrict membership are tax deductible; and * Practices of transportation network companies in providing services to the public. |
| Status: | 5/20/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1109 | Broadband Board Changes To Expand Broadband Service |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Titone (D) | M. Soper (R) / J. Bridges (D) | D. Coram |
| Summary: | Sections 1 and 3 of the bill exempt certain mapping data submitted to the office of information technology (office) from public disclosure under the "Colorado Open Records Act". Section 2 adds a definition of "critically unserved", which means a household or area that lies outside municipal boundaries and lacks access to at least one provider of nonsatellite broadband service delivered at measurable speeds of at least 10 megabits per second downstream and one megabit per second upstream, and a definition of "office of information technology". Section 3 reduces the membership of the broadband deployment board (board) in the department of regulatory agencies from 16 members to 11 members. The board is required to develop a request for proposal process through which the board will solicit bids for proposed projects to serve areas of the state that the office has determined lack access to broadband service at measurable speeds of at least 10 megabits per second downstream and one megabit per second upstream. The board is required to reserve at least 75% of the money from the high cost support mechanism that is allocated for broadband deployment to award grants to proposed projects solicited through the request for proposal process. Section 3 also directs the board to: * Require an applicant or appellant to submit a speed test performed on an incumbent provider's network and conducted in accordance with industry-standard speed-test protocols; * Give additional consideration to proposed projects that would give discounted service for low-income households; * Contractually require an applicant receiving a grant award to: * Report annually on the number of homes and businesses served by the grant-supported broadband network, the number of homes and businesses expected to be served in the following year, and the speeds, rates, and services offered to customers through the grant-supported broadband network; and * Provide third-party certification, after the grant money has been fully expended, that the project meets the original design of, and provides the measurable speeds, rates, and services set forth in, the application. * Require an applicant or appellant to submit to the office, in a form and manner determined by the office, certain granular mapping data. Section 4 repeals the current board composition requirements on August 31, 2021. |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1117 | Local Government Authority Promote Affordable Housing Units |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Lontine | S. Gonzales-Gutierrez / J. Gonzales (D) | R. Rodriguez (D) |
| Summary: | The bill clarifies that the existing authority of cities and counties to plan for and regulate the use of land includes the authority to regulate development or redevelopment in order to promote the construction of Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing statute. new affordable housing units. The provisions of the state's rent control statute do not apply to any land use regulation that restricts rents on newly constructed or redeveloped housing units as long as the regulation provides a choice of options to the property owner or land developer and creates one or more alternatives to the construction of new affordable housing units on the building site. |
| Status: | 5/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1128 | Hospice And Palliative Care License Plate |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Michaelson Jenet (D) / C. Hansen (D) | F. Winter (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates the hospice and palliative care license plate for vehicles. A person is qualified to be issued the plate if the person makes a donation to a designated nonprofit organization. The person must also make an annual donation to the organization. In addition to the normal fees for a license plate, a person must pay 2 additional one-time fees for the issuance of the plate. One of these fees is credited to the highway users tax fund and the other fee is credited to the licensing services cash fund. |
| Status: | 6/24/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1134 | Report Tenant Rent Payment Information To Credit Agencies |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | N. Ricks (D) | M. Bradfield (R) / J. Bridges (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates the tenants' rent payment information pilot program (pilot program) and directs the Colorado housing and finance authority (authority) to contract with a third party to administer the pilot program in accordance with rules promulgated by the authority. The administrator shall recruit no more than 10 landlords to participate in the pilot program. A tenant may participate in the pilot program only if the tenant elects to participate and completes a financial education course. On or before January 1, 2024, the authority, in consultation with the administrator, shall submit to applicable legislative committees of reference a report concerning the pilot program. The pilot program is repealed, effective June 1, 2024. |
| Status: | 6/29/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1150 | Create The Colorado Office Of New Americans |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | I. Jodeh (D) / J. Gonzales (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates, initially within the department of labor and employment, the Colorado office of new Americans (ONA). The bill sets forth the ONA's duties and responsibilities and provides details regarding funding. The ONA serves as the point of contact for immigrant-serving state agencies, private sector organizations, and the public about immigrant issues in Colorado, and has as one of its central purposes the successful integration and inclusion of immigrants and refugees in our state's communities. As its main priority, the ONA is required to implement a statewide strategy to facilitate economic stability and promote successful economic, social, linguistic, and cultural integration by investing in the success of immigrants in Colorado. |
| Status: | 6/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1186 | Regional Transportation District Operation |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Gray | T. Sullivan (D) / F. Winter (D) | J. Bridges (D) |
| Summary: | The bill amends provisions related to the operation of the regional transportation district (district), including: Removing a cap on the amount of all vehicular service the district can allow to be provided by third parties under competitive contracts and retaining the cap on the amount of fixed route bus service that may be provided through such contracts; Expanding the types of entities the district can contract with to include nonprofit organizations and local government; Repealing farebox recovery ratio requirements and requiring the district to include in its annual financial reports information on annual operating costs, ridership numbers, and operating costs divided by ridership as a measure of the cost efficiency of its services; Repealing a limitation on developments that would reduce parking at a facility or result in a competitive disadvantage to private businesses near the facility; and Repealing limitations on the district's authority to charge fees and manage parking at district parking facilities. |
| Status: | 5/24/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1188 | Additional Liability Under Respondeat Superior |
| Position: | Actively Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kennedy / J. Gonzales (D) |
| Summary: | A recent Colorado supreme court case held that in a civil action when an employer admits liability for the tortious actions of its employee, the plaintiff cannot assert direct negligence claims against the employer arising out of the same incident. The bill allows a plaintiff to bring such claims against an employer or against a principal that admits liability for the actions of its agent. |
| Status: | 5/17/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1194 | Immigration Legal Defense Fund |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (6) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | K. Tipper | N. Ricks (D) / D. Moreno |
| Summary: | The bill creates the immigration legal defense fund (fund). The department of human services as the administrator awards grants from the fund to qualifying nonprofit organizations (organizations) that provide legal advice, counseling, and representation for, and on behalf of, indigent clients who are subject to an immigration proceeding. The bill lists permissible uses of grant money awarded from the fund. Organizations that receive a grant from the fund are required to report to the administrator certain information about persons served and services provided by the organization. The bill makes an appropriation. |
| Status: | 6/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1207 | Overpayment Of Workers' Compensation Benefits |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | L. Daugherty (D) | A. Benavidez / P. Lee | R. Fields (D) |
| Summary: | The bill limits the definition of "overpayments" of workers' compensation benefits to include only benefits paid as a result of fraud or duplicate benefits that result from offsets that reduce disability or death benefits paid to a claimant. The bill also: Clarifies that this limit does not prevent an insurance carrier from receiving a credit against permanent disability benefits for temporary disability benefits paid beyond the date of maximum medical improvement; and Prohibits the director of the division of workers' compensation or an administrative law judge from reopening an award of benefits paid to a claimant due to an overpayment except in limited, specific circumstances. |
| Status: | 5/17/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1218 | Professional Fire Fighters License Plate Standards |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Duran (D) | R. Bockenfeld (R) / J. Danielson (D) | L. Garcia (D) |
| Summary: | Current law provides for the issuance of a Colorado professional fire fighters license plate and sets standards for organizations that may qualify applicants to be issued the license plate. One of the qualifications is that the organization has been in existence for at least 20 years. The bill lowers this requirement to at least 15 years. Current law also requires that the organization have at least 3,000 members residing in Colorado. The bill specifies the evidence an organization is to submit to demonstrate compliance with this provision. |
| Status: | 5/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1219 | Nurses Special License Plate |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Esgar | K. Mullica (D) / D. Moreno | J. Buckner (D) |
| Summary: | The bill establishes a special license plate to recognize Colorado nurses. Beginning the earlier of January 15, 2022, or when the department of revenue (department) is able to issue the plates, the department shall issue Colorado nurses license plates to qualified applicants. The department may begin issuing the Colorado nurses license plate if a nurses foundation obtains commitments for the purchase of at least 3,000 Colorado nurses license plates and provides to the department a list of the names and addresses of persons requesting such plates by January 15, 2022. The nurses foundation may design the Colorado nurses license plate, but the license plate must conform with standards established by the department. A person may apply for a Colorado nurses license plate if the person pays the required taxes and fees and provides to the department a certificate issued by the nurses foundation confirming that the applicant has made a donation to the nurses foundation in an amount that the nurses foundation may determine but that may not exceed $100. |
| Status: | 6/18/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1232 | Standardized Health Benefit Plan Colorado Option |
| Position: | Actively Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | Colorado’s legislative session is wrapping up. Here’s what lawmakers are passing. |
| Sponsors: | D. Roberts (D) | I. Jodeh (D) / K. Donovan |
| Summary: | The bill requires the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) in the department of regulatory agencies to establish a standardized health benefit plan (standardized plan) by rule to be offered by health insurance carriers (carriers) in the individual and small group markets. The standardized plan must: Offer health-care coverage at the bronze, silver, and gold levels; Be offered through the Colorado health benefit exchange; Be a standardized benefit design created through a stakeholder engagement process; Provide first-dollar, predictable coverage for certain high value services; and Comply with state and federal law. Beginning January 1, 2023, and each year thereafter, the bill encourages carriers that offer: An individual health benefit plan in Colorado to offer the standardized plan in the individual market; and A small group health benefit plan in Colorado to offer the standardized plan in the small group market. For 2023, each carrier shall set a goal of offering a standardized plan premium that is at least 10% less than the premium rate for health benefit plans offered by that carrier in the 2021 calendar year in the individual and small group market. For 2024, each carrier shall set a goal of offering a standardized plan premium that is at least 20% less than the premium rate for health benefit plans offered by that carrier in the 2021 calendar year in the individual and small group market. For 2025 and each year thereafter, carriers are encouraged to limit annual premium rate increases for the standardized plan to no more than the consumer price index plus one percent, relative to the previous year. The Colorado option authority (authority) is created for the purpose of operating as a carrier to offer the standardized plan as the Colorado option if the carriers do not meet the established premium rate goals. The authority shall operate as a nonprofit, unincorporated public entity. The authority is required to implement a provider fee schedule as established by the commissioner in consultation with the executive director of the department of health care policy and financing. Health-care providers and health facilities are required to accept consumers who are enrolled in any health benefit plan offered by the authority. The bill creates an advisory committee to make recommendations to the authority concerning the development, implementation, and operation of the authority. The commissioner is required to apply to the secretary of the United States department of health and human services for a waiver and include a request for a pass-through of federal funding to capture savings as a result of the implementation of the standardized plan. The commissioner is required to disapprove of a rate filing submitted by a carrier if the rate filing reflects a cost shift between the standardized plan and the health benefit plan for which rate approval is being sought. The bill makes the failure to accept consumers who are covered through the Colorado option or the balance billing of a patient in violation of this bill grounds for discipline under specified practice acts. The bill repeals the authority and its functions if the United States congress establishes a national public option program that meets or exceeds the premium rate goals set forth in and health-care coverage pursuant to this bill. |
| Status: | 6/16/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1233 | Conservation Easement Tax Credit Modifications |
| Position: | Actively Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Roberts (D) | P. Will (R) / K. Donovan | F. Winter (D) |
| Summary: | The bill makes the following changes affecting claims for an income tax credit allowed for the donation of a perpetual conservation easement in gross (tax credit): Specifies that the division of conservation can be a holder of a conservation easement in gross; Eliminates a requirement that amounts deducted for federal income tax purposes for the donation of a conservation easement be added back for purposes of calculating Colorado taxable income; Modifies the definition of "taxpayer" to clarify the applicability of the tax credit to donations made by certain nonprofit and governmental entities; Modifies the process for filing conservation easement tax credit certificates with income tax returns; Eliminates the authority of the executive director of the department of revenue to require additional information regarding the amount and validity of tax credits and to resolve disputes regarding the credits; Establishes a process for the department of revenue to track the transfer of and certify the ownership of tax credits; Modifies the formula used to calculate the amount of the tax credit; Modifies the manner in which the amount of a tax credit is allocated among owners, partners, members, or shareholders of certain legal entities; Modifies certain provisions regarding the number of tax credits that may be claimed and the manner of claiming the credits; Eliminates the requirement that the donor of an easement is the tax matters representative for purposes of resolving issues and disputes relating to a transferred credit; and Eliminates obsolete reporting requirements. |
| Status: | 6/30/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1247 | Colorado Department Of Public Health And Environment Contract Pay To Grantees Up Front |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Jackson | H. McKean / J. Danielson (D) |
| Summary: | The bill allows the department of public health and environment, in contracting with certain grantees for the provision of services, to dispense up to 25% of the total value of the payments under the contract to the grantee immediately upon the execution or renewal of the contract. |
| Status: | 6/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1250 | Measures to Address Law Enforcement Accountability |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (32) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | L. Herod (D) | S. Gonzales-Gutierrez / R. Fields (D) | B. Gardner (R) |
| Summary: | The bill makes changes to the provisions of Senate Bill 20-217, enacted in 2020, (SB 217) to provide clarity and address issues discovered since the passage of the bill. SB 217 used the term "exonerated", but never defined it; the bill defines "exonerated". The bill clarifies some of the circumstances when a body-worn camera must be operating and provisions related to the release of the footage. The bill requires an officer to comply with the body-worn camera requirements if the officer is wearing a body camera, even though the requirement for all officers to wear a body camera does not take effect until July 1, 2023. SB 217 required law enforcement to report certain information related to each contact an officer has with a person beginning January 1, 2023. The bill changes the start date of the reporting requirement to January 1, 2022. The bill expands the definition of "contact" to include welfare checks. The bill clarifies and adds to some of the information that must be reported. SB 217 required the peace officers standards and training (P.O.S.T.) board to permanently decertify a peace officer if the officer failed to intervene and serious bodily injury or death occurred. The bill changes the penalty to a suspension of the officer's certification for one year. Under current law, there is a civil action that permits suit against employers of local law enforcement officers for misconduct. The bill permits the Colorado state patrol to also be sued via that civil action. The bill also requires the employer to conduct an investigation of an officer prior to determining if the officer acted in good faith. If a person believes that a law enforcement agency has violated the investigation requirement, the person must submit a complaint to the P.O.S.T. board, which shall refer the complaint to an administrative law judge to determine whether a violation occurred. The administrative law judge shall notify the P.O.S.T. board chair of a finding that a violation occurred. If a violation is found, the P.O.S.T. board shall not provide P.O.S.T. cash fund money to the employer for one full year from the date of the finding. The bill requires a peace officer to use de-escalation techniques prior to the use of physical force and requires the use of physical force to be objectively reasonable. The bill requires that prior to hiring a new employee, appointing a new employee, or transferring an existing employee to a position requiring P.O.S.T. certification, a law enforcement agency shall determine if the person has a record contained in the P.O.S.T. misconduct database. If the person is listed in the database and the law enforcement agency proceeds to employ the person in a position requiring P.O.S.T. certification, the agency shall notify the P.O.S.T. board of the hire, appointment, or transfer. The bill clarifies and adds to some of the information required to be included in the P.O.S.T. board database related to peace officer misconduct. |
| Status: | 7/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1264 | Funds Workforce Development Increase Worker Skills |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (19) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | T. Sullivan (D) | M. Young (D) / C. Kolker (D) | D. Hisey |
| Summary: | The bill creates the stimulus investments in reskilling, upskilling, and next-skilling workers program (program) as an initiative of the state work force development council (state council) to facilitate training for unemployed and underemployed workers in the state during times of substantial unemployment, defined as a statewide unemployment rate that exceeds 4%. The bill appropriates $25 million for the program and directs the state council to use the money to support individuals in need of: * Reskilling, which supports unemployed and underemployed workers to change industries in order to return to work or obtain more appropriate work based on their skills; * Upskilling, which assists workers in increasing skill levels to retain or advance in their employment; or * Next-skilling, which supports workers in developing future-ready skills necessary for employment in the twenty-first century. The state council, in collaboration with the department of labor and employment, is directed to allocate funding to local work force development areas and to develop a grant program to award grants to other partners to provide reskilling, upskilling, and next-skilling supports to eligible individuals for up to 13 months. Starting in 2022, as part of the Colorado talent report, the state council is directed to report on the activities and outcomes resulting from the program. The program repeals on June 30, 2024 |
| Status: | 6/23/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1266 | Environmental Justice Disproportionate Impacted Community |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 THIRD READING OF BILLS - FINAL PASSAGE (5) in senate calendar. |
| News: | Colorado legislators passed a law to cut pollution from industry, but regulators have yet to deliver |
| Sponsors: | D. Jackson | M. Weissman (D) / F. Winter (D) | J. Buckner (D) |
| Summary: | Section 3 of the bill defines "disproportionately impacted community".Section 4 requires the air quality control commission to promote outreach to and engage with disproportionately impacted communities by creating new ways to gather input from communities across the state, using multiple languages and multiple formats, and transparently sharing information about adverse effects resulting from its proposed actions.Section 5 creates the environmental justice action task force (task force) in the department of public health and environment (department), the goal of which is to propose recommendations to the general assembly regarding practical means of addressing environmental justice inequities. The task force will: Hold meetings to solicit public comment concerning the development of a state agency-wide environmental justice strategy and a plan to implement that strategy, including ways to address data gaps and data sharing between state agencies and the engagement of disproportionately impacted communities; Evaluate and propose recommended revisions to the definition of "disproportionately impacted community" and the state agencies and their proposed actions that are subject to section 3; and File a final report by November 14, 2022, regarding its recommendations. The department will report on the task force during the department's "SMART Act" presentations. |
| Status: | 7/2/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1274 | Unused State-owned Real Property Beneficial Use |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Titone (D) / R. Zenzinger (D) | D. Hisey |
| Summary: | The bill requires the department of personnel (department) to create and maintain an inventory of unused state-owned real property and to determine whether the unused state-owned real property identified is suitable for construction of affordable housing or placement of renewable energy facilities, or if such property is suitable for other purposes. The department is authorized to seek proposals from qualified developers to construct affordable housing or to place renewable energy facilities on unused state-owned real property that the department has deemed suitable. The department is authorized to enter into contracts with qualified developers for proposals to construct affordable housing or to place renewable energy facilities on unused state-owned real property that the department has deemed suitable, subject to available appropriations. The bill creates the unused state-owned real property cash fund to which the state treasurer is required to credit all proceeds from the sale, rent, or lease of unused state-owned real property. |
| Status: | 6/18/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1285 | Funding To Support Creative Arts Industries |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (30) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | A. Benavidez | L. Herod (D) / S. Jaquez Lewis (D) | J. Buckner (D) |
| Summary: | The bill: Transfers $5 million from the general fund to the Colorado office of film, television, and media operational account cash fund and appropriates that amount to the governor's office for use in the 2021-22 state fiscal year by the Colorado office of film, television, and media in awarding performance-based incentives for film production in Colorado and for the loan guarantee program to finance production activities; For the 2020-21 state fiscal year, appropriates $3.5 million, in addition to the amount appropriated pursuant to Senate Bill 20B-001, from the general fund to the creative industries cash fund for the arts relief program and removes the prohibition against an applicant that received a relief payment from the small business relief program from also receiving a relief payment under the arts relief program; For the 2020-21 state fiscal year, appropriates $1.5 million from the general fund to the creative industries cash fund for allocation by the creative industries division to a nonprofit organization that administers grants to certain cultural facilities that focus on programming for and have board representation from defined historically marginalized and under-resourced communities; and Transfers any money appropriated for the small business relief program that is not encumbered or expended by June 30, 2021, to the creative industries cash fund for the arts relief program. |
| Status: | 6/14/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1288 | Colorado Startup Loan Program |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (9) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Bacon (D) | M. Duran (D) / J. Coleman (D) |
| Summary: | The bill creates the Colorado startup loan program (program) in the office of economic development (office) as a revolving loan program to provide loans and grants to businesses seeking capital to start, restart, or restructure a business. The office may contract with a business nonprofit organization, bank, nondepository community development financial institution, or other entity to administer the program. The office or an administrator is required to establish policies for the program, including: The process and deadlines for applying to the program; The eligibility criteria for businesses; Maximum assistance levels for loans and grants; Loan terms, program fees, and underwriting and risk management policies; and Reporting requirements for recipients. The policies must be developed with the goal of generating enough return to replenish the Colorado startup loan program fund (fund) for further loan allocations. In determining the eligibility of applicants and the size and terms of loans and grants, the office or an administrator must consider: The need of the business to restructure as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic or the ability of the business to fill gaps left by closures resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic; The financial losses or other impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic that may inhibit an entrepreneur from obtaining capital through traditional sources; Whether the applicant or the applicant's community faces other barriers to accessing capital from traditional sources; and The applicant's financial needs and repayment ability and any technical assistance the applicant is receiving. The office is required to work with the minority business office and other stakeholders to promote the program to businesses that are owned by women, minorities, and veterans and to businesses in rural and underserved communities. The bill creates the fund. The state treasurer is required to transfer $30 million to the fund on the effective date of the bill. The money in the fund is continuously appropriated to the office for the program. |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1289 | Funding For Broadband Deployment |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 CONSIDERATION OF SENATE AMENDMENTS TO HOUSE BILLS (21) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kennedy | M. Baisley (R) / J. Bridges (D) | K. Priola (D) |
| Summary: | Sections 1 and 2 of the bill extend the grant award distribution and reporting dates for the connecting Colorado students grant program.Section 4 creates the Colorado broadband office (broadband office) in the office of information technology (office) as a type 1 entity. Section 4 also creates the digital inclusion grant program fund and directs the state treasurer to transfer $35 million from the general fund to the fund for use by the broadband office to implement the digital inclusion grant program to award grant money to proposed broadband deployment projects throughout the state. Grant recipients other than Indian tribe or nation recipients are prohibited from using the grant money for last-mile broadband deployment. Section 3 requires the chief information officer in the office to appoint a director of the broadband office.Section 5 defines "community anchor institution", "critically unserved", and "income-qualified plan" in relation to grants awarded by the broadband deployment board (board) for proposed broadband deployment projects throughout the state.Section 6 creates the broadband stimulus grant program (grant program) and requires the board to implement the grant program by awarding grant money from the broadband stimulus account created in the broadband administrative fund. The state treasurer is directed to transfer $35 million from the general fund to the account for this grant program. The board is encouraged to award money under the grant program to applicants that previously applied for broadband deployment grants from the board but were denied due to insufficient funding. An applicant seeking money under the grant program must submit an income-qualified plan to the board.Section 7 updates the legislative declaration related to the division of local government in the department of local affairs (division) to include language indicating the importance of broadband deployment, and section 8 defines terms related to the division's work in deploying broadband.Section 9 requires the division to submit a copy of any application it receives for broadband deployment grant money to the board for the board to review and provide a recommendation regarding the application within 30 days after the division sends the copy to the board. Section 9 also creates the interconnectivity grant program and requires the division to implement the grant program by awarding grant money for proposed projects that seek to achieve regional broadband deployment and provide interconnection between communities. Projects awarded money under this grant program, except for projects awarded to Indian tribes or nations, cannot use the money awarded for last-mile broadband deployment. To finance this grant program, section 9 also creates the interconnectivity grant program fund into which the state treasurer is directed to transfer $5 million from the general fund. Section 10 appropriates: $35 million from the digital inclusion grant program fund to the office of information technology for use by the Colorado broadband office to implement the digital inclusion grant program; $35 million from the broadband stimulus account in the broadband administrative fund to the department of regulatory agencies for use by the board to implement the broadband stimulus grant program; and $5 million from the interconnectivity grant program fund to the department of local affairs for use by the division of local government to implement the interconnectivity grant program. |
| Status: | 6/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1302 | Continue COVID-19 Small Business Grant Program |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | L. Herod (D) | L. Daugherty (D) / F. Winter (D) |
| Summary: | Senate Bill 20-222, enacted in 2020, created a grant program financed through the federal "Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act" to support small businesses suffering from economic impacts of COVID-19 and related public health restrictions. The bill appropriates $15 million from the general fund to continue the grant program and modifies the criteria pursuant to which grants are awarded. |
| Status: | 6/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1311 | Income Tax |
| Position: | Amend |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | E. Sirota (D) | M. Weissman (D) / C. Hansen (D) | D. Moreno |
| Summary: | Section 2 of the bill modifies how taxable income is determined for individuals for purposes of the state income tax. Specifically, it: Imposes a cap for taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes equal to or exceeding $400,000 on certain itemized deductions claimed under the internal revenue code; Repeals, for social security income that is included in federal taxable income only, the cap on the deduction for pension and annuity income received; Adds a cap, per taxpayer per beneficiary, on the deduction for contributions made to 529 plans; Requires individual taxpayers to add amounts of federal taxable income that are equal to the enhanced federal deductions for food and beverage in a restaurant for the 2022 income year; and Extends the limit on the federal deduction allowed under section 199A of the internal revenue code. Section 3 increases the earned income tax credit to 20% for income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2022, and applies the lowered minimum age for individuals without a qualifying child in the federal "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" to the state credit for income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2022.Section 4 funds the child tax credit for income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2022, and allows a child tax credit in the state regardless of the federal requirement that a qualifying child must have a social security number for the federal child tax credit. Section 4 also specifies that if the changes to the federal child tax credit in the "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" are no longer in effect, the percentages of the state child tax credit are increased.Sections 5 through 7 make the state's corporate income tax more uniform compared to other states by replacing the current combined reporting standard with the multistate tax commission's standard. In addition, these sections modify the computation of the receipts factor to make it more congruent with the unitary business principle. In addition to making the state's corporate income tax more uniform compared to other states, section 6 also prevents corporations from using tax shelters in foreign jurisdictions for the purpose of tax avoidance.Section 7 also modifies how taxable income is determined for C corporations for purposes of the state income tax. Specifically, it requires corporate taxpayers to add amounts of federal taxable income that are equal to the enhanced federal deductions for food and beverage in a restaurant for the 2022 income year.Section 8 repeals a state subtraction for certain capital gains incurred.Section 9 creates a temporary income tax credit for a business for a percentage of the conversion costs to convert the business to a worker-owned coop, an employee stock ownership plan, or an employee ownership trust.Sections 10 through 13 address the avoidance of income tax by certain captive insurance companies. |
| Status: | 6/23/2021 Governor Signed |
| HB21-1312 | Insurance Premium Property Sales Severance Tax |
| Position: | Actively Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | M. Weissman (D) | E. Sirota (D) / C. Hansen (D) | D. Moreno |
| Summary: | The bill makes changes to several state and local government taxes. Insurance premium tax. Currently, the insurance premium tax is equal to 2% of premiums collected or contracted for covering property or risks in this state; except that a company that is deemed to maintain a home office or regional home office in this state pays tax of 1%. Section 2 of the bill requires a company to have at least 2.5% of its total domestic workforce in the state in order for the company to be deemed to maintain a home office or regional home office. This section also narrows the tax exemption for annuities considerations to those that are purchased in connection with a qualified retirement plan, a Roth 401(k), or an individual retirement account. For the purpose of auditing a company's tax statement, section 2 also authorizes the commissioner of insurance to appoint an independent examiner to conduct an examination on behalf of the commissioner.Property tax. For purposes of imposing the property tax, section 4 requires the actual value of real property to reflect the value of the fee simple estate. Section 5 requires that the actual value of personal property be determined based on the property's value in use, which will be defined by the property tax administrator. There is an exemption from property tax for business personal property that would otherwise be listed on a single personal property if the property is less than a certain amount, which increases with inflation each property tax cycle. For the next property tax cycle, section 6 increases the exemption from $7,900 to $50,000. Similar to the reimbursement for the homestead exemption, the state is required to reimburse local governments for lost property tax revenue caused by the increase. The first reimbursement will be based on actual property tax schedules filed, and future reimbursements will be adjusted estimates based on the initial amount.Sales and use tax. The state sales and use tax is imposed on the sale and use of tangible personal property. Section 7 codifies the department of revenue rule that the definition of "tangible personal property" includes "digital goods". Section 8 specifies that the state sales tax applies to amounts charged for mainframe computer access, photocopying, and packing and crating. A retailer who collects state sales tax is currently allowed to retain 4% of the state sales taxes collected, with a monthly cap of $1,000, as compensation for the retailer's expenses incurred in collecting and remitting the tax (vendor fee). Beginning January 1, 2022, section 9 eliminates the vendor fee for any filing period that the retailer's total taxable sales were greater than $1 million.Severance taxes. The severance tax on oil and gas is currently imposed on gross income, which is equal to the net amount realized for the sale of the oil and gas. The net amount realized is equal to the gross lease revenues, less deductions for any transportation, manufacturing, or processing costs by the taxpayer borne by the taxpayer (netback deductions). Section 10 limits the netback deductions to direct costs actually paid by the taxpayer for those purposes, which disallows costs of capital and other indirect expenses. Currently, the first 300,000 tons of coal produced in each quarter is exempt from the property tax. There is also a tax credit equal to 50% for coal produced from underground mines and another credit in the same amount for lignitic coal. Beginning with the 2022 taxable year, section 11 phases out the quarterly exemption and both tax credits. The additional severance tax that results from these changes is credited to the just transition cash fund under section 12. |
| Status: | 6/23/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-001 | Modify COVID-19 Relief Programs For Small Business |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | F. Winter (D) | K. Priola (D) / L. Herod (D) | S. Sandridge |
| Summary: | The bill moves the COVID-19 relief program for minority-owned businesses from the minority business office to the Colorado office of economic development and expands the scope of the program to allow relief payments, grants, loans, and technical assistance and consulting support to small businesses disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the bill extends the deadlines for allocating and distributing relief payments under the small business relief program. |
| Status: | 1/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-022 | Notification Requirements For Health Care Policy And Financing Audit |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Bridges (D) | J. Smallwood (R) / M. Snyder (D) | H. McKean |
| Summary: | The bill requires that, prior to initiating a review or audit of a medicaid provider, a reviewer or auditor shall confirm receipt of the written request to perform the audit or review. |
| Status: | 5/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-027 | Emergency Supplies For Colorado Babies And Families |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Pettersen | J. Danielson (D) / S. Gonzales-Gutierrez | K. Tipper |
| Summary: | The bill requires the department of public health and environment to select one or more nonprofit organizations to administer diaper distribution centers that provide diapering essentials to eligible individuals. Diapering essentials must be made available to all Colorado residents. |
| Status: | 7/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-029 | Colorado American Indian Tribes In-stateTuition |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Fenberg (D) / A. Garnett | A. Benavidez |
| Summary: | The bill requires a state institution of higher education (institution) to offer in-state tuition classification to students who would not otherwise qualify for in-state tuition if the student is a member of an American Indian tribe with historical ties to Colorado. The institution shall not count the student as a resident student for any other purpose. The student is eligible for the Colorado opportunity fund stipend and may be eligible for state-funded and private financial aid programs. |
| Status: | 6/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-039 | Elimination Of Subminimum Wage Employment |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | R. Zenzinger (D) | D. Hisey / Y. Caraveo | R. Pelton (R) |
| Summary: | The bill phases out subminimum wage employment for employers that hold a special certificate from the United States department of labor that authorizes the employers to pay less than the minimum wage to employees whose earning capacity is impaired by age, physical or mental disability, or injury. The bill requires each employer that holds a special certificate to submit a transition plan to the Colorado department of labor and employment detailing how the employer plans to phase out subminimum wage employment. The bill requires the employment first advisory partnership in the Colorado department of labor and employment (partnership) to: * Develop actionable recommendations to address structural and fiscal barriers to phasing out subminimum wage employment and successfully implementing competitive integrated employment; and * Report the recommendations to the general assembly. The bill continues operation of the partnership, which is scheduled to repeal on July 1, 2021, indefinitely. The bill requires the department of health care policy and financing to add employment-related services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. |
| Status: | 6/29/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-060 | Expand Broadband Service |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 THIRD READING OF BILLS - FINAL PASSAGE (6) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | K. Donovan / D. Roberts (D) |
| Summary: | Section 1 of the bill amends the definition of "broadband network" to increase downstream and upstream speed requirements and adds a definition of "critically unserved", which means a household or area that lacks access to at least one provider of nonsatellite broadband service delivered at measurable speeds of at least 10 megabits per second downstream and one megabit per second upstream. Section 2 reduces the membership of the broadband deployment board (board) in the department of regulatory agencies from 16 members to 9 members. The board is required to develop a reimbursement program to reimburse certain households for up to $600 per year for broadband service. A household is eligible to apply for reimbursement if the household: * Includes children enrolled in grades K-12 who receive free or reduced-price lunch through a school's lunch program; or * Has an income that does not exceed the higher of the federal poverty level or 30% of area median income. The board is also required to develop a request for proposal process through which the board will solicit bids for proposed projects to serve areas of the state that the office of information technology has determined lack access to broadband service at measurable speeds of at least 10 megabits per second downstream and one megabit per second upstream. Each year, the board is required to reserve at least 50% of the money from the high cost support mechanism that is allocated for broadband deployment to award grants to proposed projects solicited through the request for proposal process. Section 2 also limits the notice and comment period for a local entity's review of an application from 60 days to 30 days and removes provisions requiring the board to apply for specific types of federal funding because the board has completed those applications. Section 2 further requires the public utilities commission, in consultation with the board, to: * Adopt rules establishing speed testing protocols by which broadband grant applicants must abide; and * Consider, on a biennial basis starting in 2023, whether to modify by rule the definitions of "broadband network" and "critically unserved" and certain aspects of the reimbursement program, including eligibility for reimbursement and the maximum amount of money that the board may annually reimburse a household. Section 3 repeals the current board composition requirements on August 31, 2021. |
| Status: | 6/27/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-063 | Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements Offer Insurance |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Sonnenberg | R. Fields (D) / E. Hooton | R. Pelton (R) |
| Summary: | Current law allows an existing association consisting of multiple employers, referred to as a "multiple employer welfare arrangement" (MEWA) to offer health care benefits to the association's members only if, among other requirements, the MEWA has been in existence continuously since at least January 1, 1983. The bill changes that date to January 1, 2010 |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-070 | County Authority To Register Businesses |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Moreno / S. Bird (D) |
| Summary: | The bill authorizes a board of county commissioners to require the registration of businesses in the unincorporated portions of the county. |
| Status: | 4/8/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-073 | Civil Action Statute Of Limitations Sexual Assault |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Danielson (D) | D. Coram / D. Michaelson Jenet (D) | M. Soper (R) |
| Summary: | Under existing law, the statute of limitations to bring a civil claim based on sexual assault or a sexual offense against a child is 6 years, but the statute is tolled when the victim is a person under disability or is in a special relationship with the perpetrator of the assault. The bill defines sexual misconduct and removes the limitation on bringing a civil claim based on sexual misconduct, including derivative claims and claims brought against a person or entity that is not the perpetrator of the sexual misconduct. The statutory period to commence a civil action described in the bill applies to a cause of action that accrues on or after January 1, 2022, or a cause of action accruing prior to January 1, 2022, so long as the applicable statute of limitations has not yet run as of January 1, 2022. The bill removes the provision that a plaintiff who is a victim of a series of sexual assaults does not need to establish which act in the series caused the plaintiff's injuries. Under existing law, the filing of a claim alleging sexual misconduct by a person under disability is deemed a limited waiver of the doctor- or psychologist-patient privilege. The bill eliminates the limited waiver. Under existing law, a plaintiff who brings a civil action alleging sexual misconduct 15 years or more after the plaintiff turns 18 is limited to recovering only certain damages. The bill eliminates this restriction. Under existing law, a victim who is a person under disability or is in a special relationship with the perpetrator of the assault may not bring an action against a defendant who is deceased or incapacitated. The bill eliminates this restriction. Under existing law, a claim for negligence in the practice of medicine that is based on a sexual assault is exempt from the statute of limitations for claims involving sexual assault and instead is subject to the same limitation as any other claim for negligence in the practice of medicine. The bill removes this exemption |
| Status: | 4/15/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-077 | Remove Lawful Presence Verification Credentialing |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Gonzales (D) / A. Benavidez | C. Kipp (D) |
| Summary: | The bill eliminates the requirement that the department of education and each division, board, or agency of the department of regulatory agencies verify the lawful presence of each applicant before issuing or renewing a license. The bill also specifies that lawful presence is not required of any applicant for any license, certificate, or registration. The bill affirmatively states that the bill is a state law within the meaning of the federal law that gives states authority to provide for eligibility for state and local public benefits to persons who are unlawfully residing in the United States. |
| Status: | 5/27/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-087 | Agricultural Workers' Rights |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Danielson (D) | D. Moreno / K. McCormick (D) | Y. Caraveo |
| Summary: | The bill: * Removes the exemption of agricultural employers and employees from the Colorado "Labor Peace Act" and authorizes agricultural employees to organize and join labor unions; engage in protected, concerted activity; and engage in collective bargaining; * Removes the exemption of agricultural labor from state and local minimum wage laws; * Requires the director of the division of labor standards and statistics to promulgate rules to establish the overtime pay of agricultural employees for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week or 12 hours in one day; * Grants agricultural employees meal breaks and rest periods throughout each work period, consistent with protections for other employees; * Requires agricultural employers to provide agricultural employees with access and transportation to key service providers; * Authorizes agricultural employees to have visitors at employer-provided housing without interference from other persons; * Requires agricultural employers to provide overwork and health protections to agricultural employees; * Prohibits the use of the short-handled or long-handled hoe for agricultural labor except in specific circumstances; * During a public health emergency, requires an agricultural employer to provide extra protections and increased safety precautions for agricultural employees; * Creates the agricultural work advisory committee to study and analyze agricultural wages and working conditions; and * Creates rights, remedies, and enforcement actions for aggrieved agricultural employees, whistleblowers, relators, and key service providers. |
| Status: | 6/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-088 | Child Sexual Abuse Accountability Act |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 THIRD READING OF BILLS - FINAL PASSAGE (2) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Danielson (D) | R. Fields (D) / D. Michaelson Jenet (D) | M. Soper (R) |
| Summary: | The bill creates a statutory cause of action for a victim of sexual misconduct when the victim was a minor against the actor who committed the sexual misconduct and against an organization that operates or manages a youth program if the sexual misconduct occurred while the victim was participating in a youth program. The victim may bring the claim against the organization if the organization knew or should have known of a risk of sexual misconduct against minors participating in the program and the organization did not take action to address the risks or warn participants of the risk. The victim may bring a claim against a public employee or public entity that operates a youth program, including an educational entity operating an educational program or a district preschool program. The cause of action applies retroactively and is available to a victim of sexual misconduct that occurred before, on, or after January 1, 2022. A person may not waive the right to bring a civil action, and any purported waiver is void as against public policy. A court or jury shall not allocate any damages awarded in the civil action in any proportion against the victim of the sexual misconduct. A victim may be awarded treble damages under certain circumstances. |
| Status: | 7/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-090 | Small Group Health Insurance Plan Renewal |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Smallwood (R) / E. Hooton |
| Summary: | The bill clarifies that if a small employer has been issued a health benefit plan subject to small group insurance laws and rules, and then following the issuance date no longer meets the definition of "small employer", the small group insurance laws and rules continue to apply to the plan as long as the employer renews the current health benefit plan. If the employer opts to renew its current plan, the bill requires an insurance carrier to offer the employer the same small group health benefit plan or, if the same plan is no longer available, a similar plan that the carrier offers to other small employers. The bill requires an insurance carrier to notify the employer that the small group insurance laws and rules will no longer apply if the employer fails to renew the current plan or elects to enroll in a different health benefit plan. |
| Status: | 3/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-096 | Sunset Workers' Compensation Classification Appeals Board |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kolker (D) | K. Priola (D) / S. Bird (D) |
| Summary: | Sunset Process - Senate Business, Labor, and Technology Committee. Current law requires the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) to appoint 2 members to the workers' compensation classification appeals board who are salaried employees of an insurance company that issues workers' compensation insurance policies in this state or who are representatives of Pinnacol Assurance. The bill gives the commissioner the additional option to appoint insurance agents to these 2 seats and to appoint an insurance agent to serve as an alternate member if one of the appointed members recuses himself or herself. The bill continues the workers' compensation classification appeals board until 2032. |
| Status: | 4/15/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-099 | Sunset License Plate Disability Support Act |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Danielson (D) / M. Young (D) | T. Van Beber |
| Summary: | Sunset Process - Senate Health and Human Services Committee. The bill implements the recommendation of the department of regulatory agencies in its sunset review and report on the "Laura Hershey Disability Support Act" by continuing the act for 5 years. This continues the Colorado disability funding committee, which auctions motor vehicle license plate numbers to raise money to aid persons with disabilities in accessing disability benefits. |
| Status: | 5/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-110 | Fund Safe Revitalization Of Main Streets |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | R. Zenzinger (D) | K. Priola (D) / L. Herod (D) | T. Exum (D) |
| Summary: | The bill transfers $30 million from the general fund to the state highway fund to provide additional funding for the department of transportation's revitalizing main streets and safer main streets programs. |
| Status: | 3/19/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-133 | Donated Alcohol Beverages For Special Events |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Coram / M. Catlin (R) | P. Will (R) |
| Summary: | The bill authorizes a person with a club license (licensee) that allows the sale of alcohol beverages by the drink to members of the club and their guests for consumption on the premises of the club to: * Commingle any donated alcohol beverages with the licensee's inventory of alcohol beverages; and * Retain and sell donated alcohol beverages that remain on the licensee's premises after a special event. |
| Status: | 5/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-137 | Behavioral Health Recovery Act |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 THIRD READING OF BILLS - FINAL PASSAGE (3) in house calendar. |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Pettersen | F. Winter (D) / D. Michaelson Jenet (D) | C. Kennedy |
| Summary: |
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| Status: | 6/28/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-145 | Extending Expiring Tax Check-offs |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Simpson (R) / D. Valdez |
| Summary: | he voluntary contribution to the Colorado healthy rivers fund, the Alzheimer's Association fund, the military family relief fund, the Colorado cancer fund, the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Colorado fund, and the unwanted horse fund are currently scheduled to appear on the state income tax return form for income tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2016, but prior to January 1, 2021. The bill reauthorizes the funds to remain on the form, so long as the funds meet the existing statutory requirement that a voluntary contribution fund must receive at least $50,000 in contributions each tax year. |
| Status: | 4/22/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-162 | Colorado Uniform Trust Code Part 5 |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Gardner (R) / M. Snyder (D) | M. Soper (R) |
| Summary: | the Uniform Trust Code (UTC) as the Colorado Uniform Trust Code. Part 5 of the UTC, which relates to spendthrift provisions in trusts, was not included in the 2018 act. A spendthrift provision in a trust prevents both voluntary and involuntary transfer of a trust beneficiary's interest. The bill enacts part 5 of the UTC, including a number of Colorado-specific amendments. The bill addresses the validity of spendthrift provisions and the rights of creditors, both of the settlor and beneficiaries, to reach a trust to collect a debt. The bill provides certain exceptions that allow children for whom an order or judgment for child support has been entered to reach a trust in order to satisfy the child support order or judgment. |
| Status: | 5/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-169 | Restrict Insurers' Use Of External Consumer Data |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Buckner (D) / N. Ricks (D) | D. Esgar |
| Summary: | An insurer is prohibited from: Considering an individual's race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or transgender status in any insurance practice; or Directly or indirectly using any external consumer data and information source, algorithm, or predictive model (external data source) that unfairly discriminates against an individual based on an individual's race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or transgender status. On and after January 1, 2022, an insurer that uses one or more external data sources in any insurance practice shall submit certain disclosures to the division of insurance. The commissioner of insurance (commissioner) may examine and investigate an insurer's use of an external data source. If the commissioner determines that use of an external data source bears no direct causal relationship to insurance losses or to the condition of a property or applicant to be potentially insured and that the use of the external data source unfairly discriminates on the basis of an individual's membership in a protected class, the commissioner may promulgate rules restricting or prohibiting the use of the external data source. |
| Status: | 7/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-171 | Uniform Fiduciary Income And Principal Act |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | B. Gardner (R) / M. Snyder (D) | M. Soper (R) |
| Summary: | Colorado Commission on Uniform State Laws. The bill repeals the "Uniform Principal and Income Act" and replaces it with the "Uniform Fiduciary Income and Principal Act" (UFIPA), as drafted by the Uniform Law Commission, with Colorado-specific amendments. The UFIPA includes provisions concerning: Duties of fiduciaries; Judicial review of fiduciaries; Trusts in which the beneficiary receives a periodic payout of a percentage of the net value of trust assets, known as "unitrusts"; Allocation of trust receipts and disbursements; and Procedures followed at the termination of a trust or an income interest in a trust. The bill makes additional conforming amendments. |
| Status: | 5/17/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-178 | Extend Care Subfund Deadline For COVID-19 Programs |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | D. Moreno / J. McCluskie (D) |
| Summary: | n 2020, the state received money from the federal coronavirus relief fund for the state to use for necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic that were incurred prior to December 30, 2020, and $70 million of those federal funds were deposited in the care subfund and allocated through legislation enacted in 2020. In conformity with federal law, all of the agencies that received this money were required to use the money on or before December 30, 2020. Subsequent federal legislation extended the expenditure deadline for incurring these expenditures to December 31, 2021. In light of the federal extension, the bill extends expenditure or appropriation deadlines for the following programs for which the departments have not yet expended all of their appropriation from the care subfund: Eviction legal assistance; ( Sections 2 and 7 of the bill) Human services referral services; ( Sections 5 and 8 ) Low-income energy assistance; ( Section 6 ) Behavioral health services; ( Section 9 ) Immunization operating expenses; and ( Section 10 ) Local public health agencies in rural areas. ( Section 10 ) In some cases, related program repeal deadlines are also extended. Section 3 extends the exclusion of the care subfund expenditures from the calculation of the general fund reserve. Section 4 delays a transfer of any unused money from the care subfund to the unemployment compensation fund from December 30, 2020, to December 31, 2021. |
| Status: | 5/13/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-181 | Equity Strategic Plan Address Health Disparities |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | R. Fields (D) | D. Coram / L. Herod (D) | Y. Caraveo |
| Summary: | The bill renames the existing "health disparities grant program" to the "health disparities and community grant program" (program) and expands the program to authorize the office of health equity (office) to: Award grants from money currently transferred from the prevention, early detection, and treatment fund to the health disparities grant program fund (fund) for the purpose of positively affecting social determinants of health to reduce the risk of future disease and exacerbating health disparities in underrepresented populations; and Award grants from any additional money appropriated by the general assembly to the fund to community organizations to reduce health disparities in underrepresented communities through policy and systems changes regarding the social determinants of health. On or before January 1, 2022, and continuing every 2 years thereafter, the office is required to issue a report concerning health disparities in Colorado by race and ethnicity that includes an assessment of the impact of social determinants of health on health disparities and recommended strategies to begin to address such inequities with the collaboration of the health equity commission and other stakeholders. On or before July 1, 2022, the office is required to facilitate a state agency work group to develop an equity strategic plan. Specific state agencies are required to participate in the state agency work group to ensure coordination in equity-related work across state agencies to address social determinants of health in each agency's respective area. The bill adds additional state agency executive directors to the health equity commission. |
| Status: | 7/6/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-188 | Ballot Access For Voters With Disabilities |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Danielson (D) / M. Duran (D) | D. Ortiz (D) |
| Summary: | Current law allows a voter with a disability to use an electronic voting device that produces a paper record to vote in a mail ballot election. If a voter receives a ballot through an electronic voting device, the voter is required to print the ballot to return it to the applicable election official. The bill allows a voter to either print the ballot or return the ballot by electronic transmission if printing the ballot is not feasible. Regardless of the method of return, the bill specifies that to be valid, a ballot must be received by the election official in the applicable jurisdiction before the close of polls on the day of the election. |
| Status: | 5/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-190 | Protect Personal Data Privacy |
| Position: | Amend |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | R. Rodriguez (D) | P. Lundeen (R) / M. Duran (D) | T. Carver |
| Summary: | The bill creates personal data privacy rights and: Applies to legal entities that conduct business or produce products or services that are intentionally targeted to Colorado residents and that either: Control or process personal data of more than 100,000 consumers per calendar year; or Derive revenue from the sale of personal data and control or process the personal data of at least 25,000 consumers; and Does not apply to personal data governed by listed state and federal laws, listed activities, and employment records. Consumers have the right to opt out of the processing of their personal data; access, correct, or delete the data; or obtain a portable copy of the data. The bill defines a "controller" as a person that, alone or jointly with others, determines the purposes and means of processing personal data. A "processor" means a person that processes personal data on behalf of a controller. The bill: Specifies how controllers must fulfill duties regarding consumers' assertion of their rights, transparency, purpose specification, data minimization, avoiding secondary use, care, avoiding unlawful discrimination, and sensitive data; Requires controllers to conduct a data protection assessment for each of their processing activities involving personal data that present a heightened risk of harm to consumers, such as processing for purposes of targeted advertising or processing sensitive data; and May be enforced only by the attorney general or district attorneys. |
| Status: | 7/7/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-199 | Remove Barriers To Certain Public Opportunities |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Jaquez Lewis (D) | F. Winter (D) / D. Esgar | S. Gonzales-Gutierrez |
| Summary: | The bill repeals existing provisions that require a person to demonstrate the person's lawful presence in the United States to be eligible for certain public benefits and requires that lawful presence is not a requirement of eligibility for state or local public benefits, as defined by 8 U.S.C. sec. 1621. The bill amends statutory provisions that still require lawful presence to clarify acceptable documents to demonstrate eligibility. The general assembly shall not allocate additional funding to any state or local public benefit program for this purpose for fiscal year 2021-22. However, starting for fiscal year 2022-23, any additional funding required for a state or local public benefit program for this purpose is subject to the standard budget process for the applicable program. Current law prohibits a state agency or political subdivision from entering into or renewing a public contract with a contractor who knowingly employs or contracts persons who are undocumented. The bill repeals that requirement and associated statutory provisions. Current law requires that state agencies and local governments use secure and verifiable identity documents when providing services or issuing official documents. The bill repeals that requirement and associated statutory provisions. |
| Status: | 6/25/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-204 | Rural Economic Development Initiative Grant Program Funding |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | K. Donovan | B. Rankin / M. Young (D) | T. Van Beber |
| Summary: | In 2020, the Colorado general assembly created the rural economic development initiative (REDI) grant program in the department of local affairs (department). The department, in consultation with the office of economic development, may provide grants to a new employer or the expansion of an existing employer and for projects that create diversity and resiliency in the local economies of rural communities. Or, if the department determines that a rural community needs resources or assistance because it has been impacted by a significant economic event or an anticipated event that has been announced, the department may use all or a portion of the money appropriated for the REDI grant program for the purposes of the "Rural Economic Advancement of Colorado Towns (REACT) Act". Section 2 of the bill appropriates $5 million to the department for the REDI grant program. Section 1 ensures that the department will use all of this appropriation for the purposes of the grants or REACT. |
| Status: | 6/15/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-233 | Colorado Department Of Labor And Employment Unemployment Insurance Division Enterprise |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | R. Rodriguez (D) | C. Hansen (D) / A. Benavidez | S. Gonzales-Gutierrez |
| Summary: | The bill establishes the left-behind workers program (program) in the division of unemployment insurance (division) in the department of labor and employment (department) for the purpose of providing unemployment assistance relief payments to eligible individuals who are unemployed through no fault of their own, who meet specified criteria, and who are ineligible for regular unemployment benefits due to their immigration status. The bill requires the department to contract with a third-party administrator to administer the program. The third-party administrator must provide outreach to unemployed individuals who may be eligible to receive unemployment assistance relief payments, screen applicants for eligibility, and make payments to eligible individuals. The bill establishes the left-behind workers fund (fund) as part of the enterprise that is administered by the division. The fund consists of a percentage of the premium currently assessed by the division and paid by employers. The bill includes the employment support fund as part of the enterprise that is administered by the division. |
| Status: | 7/2/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-239 | 2-1-1 Statewide Human Services Referral System |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | C. Kolker (D) | R. Zenzinger (D) / J. Amabile (D) | M. Young (D) |
| Summary: | he bill expands the necessary human referral services authorized by the Colorado 2-1-1 collaborative (collaborative) to include necessary referrals for behavioral health services and other resources in the state for Coloradans, particularly for individuals who are unemployed, regardless of whether they receive benefits. The bill requires the department of human services' office of behavioral health to contract with the collaborative to hire and train specialized personnel. The bill also requires the office of behavioral health to collaborate with the collaborative to engage in targeted marketing and outreach, and to ensure the marketing and outreach are targeted to traditionally underserved communities, such as immigrant, low-income, and communities of color. The bill also requires the collaborative to coordinate with the department of labor and employment (department) to target, conduct outreach, and market to individuals who are unemployed, regardless of whether they receive benefits, and may need referrals for behavioral health services and other resources. The department is required to update its unemployment application web page and specified websites to include contact information for the collaborative. The bill makes an appropriation. |
| Status: | 6/18/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-245 | Backcountry Search And Rescue In Colorado |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | K. Donovan | B. Rankin / J. McCluskie (D) | P. Will (R) |
| Summary: | The bill defines "backcountry search and rescue" as the utilization, training, and support of responders, with their specialized equipment, to locate, provide assistance to, and remove to safety individuals who are lost, injured, stranded, or entrapped, generally in remote areas of the state. The division of parks and wildlife (division) within the department of natural resources must conduct a study and develop recommendations on the issues related to backcountry search and rescue, including coordination among the local, state, and nonprofit organizations involved in backcountry search and rescue, the adequacy of resources and benefits available to volunteers who provide backcountry search and rescue services, the funding needs for equipment and reimbursement, and the needs for volunteer training and public education. The division must also conduct outreach and training related to the physical and psychological support needs of backcountry search and rescue volunteers, which may include working with consultants, providing programs, or creating a grant program for local governments or nonprofit organizations providing backcountry search and rescue. The bill makes conforming amendments related to the definition of "backcountry search and rescue". |
| Status: | 6/27/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-250 | Elections And Voting |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Fenberg (D) | J. Gonzales (D) / S. Lontine | Y. Caraveo |
| Summary: | The bill amends various laws related to the conduct of elections, including provisions related to: Procedures for registering to vote and for automatic voter registration through voter registration agencies; Requirements related to political party organization, including requirements for precinct caucuses, county assemblies, and vacancy committees; Ballot access for candidates, including repealing the ability of an unaffiliated candidate for president of the United States to be nominated by paying a fee; Requirements for voter service and polling centers, voting in person, and emergency voting; Procedures for challenges to a person's right to vote; Procedures and requirements for circulating recall petitions and the conduct of recall elections, including municipal and local government recall elections; Prohibitions on electioneering in and within 100 feet of a polling place; and Requirements for filing initiative petitions. |
| Status: | 6/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-260 | Sustainability Of The Transportation System |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | Pugliese’s bill to end retail delivery fees killed by committee | FOCUS ON THE SPRINGS Colorado conservatives target transportation funding in TABOR lawsuit |
| Sponsors: | S. Fenberg (D) | F. Winter (D) / A. Garnett | M. Gray |
| Summary: | The bill creates new sources of dedicated funding and new state enterprises to enable the planning, funding, development, construction, maintenance, and supervision of a sustainable transportation system by preserving, improving, and expanding existing transportation infrastructure, developing the modern infrastructure needed to support the widespread adoption of electric motor vehicles, and mitigating adverse environmental and health impacts of transportation system use as follows: Section 6 of the bill creates the community access enterprise within the Colorado energy office (CEO) for the purpose of supporting the widespread and equitable adoption of electric motor vehicles and electric alternatives to motor vehicles in an equitable manner. The community access enterprise is authorized to impose a community access retail delivery fee to fund its business purpose. The governance and powers and duties of the community access enterprise are specified. Section 7 makes various general fund transfers to the state highway fund, the highway users tax fund (HUTF), and the multimodal transportation and mitigation options fund, including limited contingent transfers of a portion of any additional general fund revenue made available due to the restoration of the excess state revenues cap (Referendum C cap) by Section 8. Section 8 restores the Referendum C cap, which the general assembly reduced in 2017, to its maximum voter-approved level. Section 11 creates the clean fleet enterprise within the department of public health and environment (CDPHE) for the purpose of incentivizing and supporting the use of electric motor vehicles and other clean fleet technologies by owners and operators of motor vehicle fleets. The clean fleet enterprise is authorized to impose a clean fleet retail delivery fee to be paid by the purchaser of tangible personal property delivered to the purchaser by motor vehicle and a clean fleet per ride fee to be paid by a transportation network company (TNC) on each ride offered and accepted by the TNC to fund the clean fleet enterprise's business purpose. The governance and powers and duties of the clean fleet enterprise are specified. Section 25 requires the department of revenue (DOR) to collect the per ride fees imposed by the clean fleet enterprise and the nonattainment area air pollution mitigation enterprise as authorized by sections 11 and 50 Both fees are first imposed for rides offered and accepted in state fiscal year (FY) 2022-23 and are annually adjusted for consumer price index (CPI) inflation thereafter. Section 26 indexes the existing $50 registration fee imposed on electric motor vehicles to national highway construction cost index (NHCCI) inflation and imposes additional electric motor vehicle road usage equalization fees on battery electric motor vehicles at a specified level and on plug-in hybrid electric motor vehicles at a lower level, with both additional fees being phased in on a set schedule from state FYs 2022-23 through 2031-32 and thereafter indexed to NHCCI inflation. Section 26 also imposes a commercial electric motor vehicle fee. The increase and new fee revenue is credited to the HUTF for allocation to the state, counties, and municipalities; except that 40% of the revenue generated by inflation indexing of the existing $50 registration fee is credited to the electric vehicle grant fund and 30% of the revenue generated by the commercial electric motor vehicle fee is credited to the state highway fund for freight-related projects. In 2026, specified executive agencies must jointly review the fees and make recommendations to the transportation legislation review committee of the general assembly as to whether the fees should be adjusted to ensure continued equalization of the average aggregate amount of registration fees and motor fuel charges annually paid by owners of electric motor vehicles and owners of motor vehicles powered exclusively by internal combustion engines. Section 33 imposes road usage fees on gasoline and diesel purchases that are phased in from state FYs 2022-23 through 2031-32 and thereafter indexed to NHCCI inflation, with the road usage fees also being adjusted beginning in state FY 2032-33 in a manner calculated to generate the same amount of additional revenue as would be generated by indexing the existing state excise taxes imposed on gasoline and diesel to construction cost inflation. The fee revenue is credited to the HUTF for allocation to the state, counties, and municipalities. Section 33 also imposes a retail delivery fee on retail deliveries by motor vehicle that include tangible personal property subject to the state sales tax, requires the fee to be collected from the purchaser by the retailer, and requires simultaneous collection of community access, clean fleet, bridge and tunnel, clean transit, and air pollution mitigation retail delivery fees imposed, respectively, by the community access, clean fleet, statewide bridge and tunnel, clean transit, and nonattainment area air pollution mitigation enterprises. The fees are first collected in state FY 2022-23 and are annually adjusted for CPI inflation thereafter. Retail delivery fee revenue is credited to the HUTF for allocation to the state, counties, and municipalities and to the multimodal transportation and mitigation options fund and each enterprise's retail delivery fee revenue is collected by DOR on behalf of and credited to the cash fund controlled by the enterprise. Sections 43, 44, and 46 change the name of the statewide bridge enterprise to the statewide bridge and tunnel enterprise, authorize the enterprise to complete tunnel projects, and authorize the enterprise to impose a bridge and tunnel impact fee on diesel fuel and a bridge and tunnel retail delivery fee to fund its business purpose. The bridge and tunnel impact fee is phased in from state FYs 2022-23 through 2031-32 and thereafter indexed to NHCCI inflation. Section 45 indexes the existing $2 short-term daily vehicle rental fee to CPI inflation and, on or after July 1, 2022, requires a car sharing program to collect the daily vehicle rental fee for any short-term vehicle rental of 24 hours or longer that is enabled by the car sharing program. Sections 47 through 49 change the name of the multimodal transportation options fund to the multimodal transportation and mitigation options fund and make greenhouse gas mitigation projects eligible for funding from the fund. Section 50 creates the clean transit enterprise within the department of transportation (CDOT) for the purpose of supporting clean public transit through electrification planning efforts, facility upgrades, fleet motor vehicle replacement, and construction and development of associated electric motor vehicle charging and fueling infrastructure. The clean transit enterprise is authorized to impose a clean transit retail delivery fee of up to a specified amount to fund its business purpose. The governance and powers and duties of the clean transit enterprise are specified. Section 50 also creates the nonattainment area air pollution mitigation enterprise for the purpose of mitigating transportation-related emissions in ozone nonattainment areas. The nonattainment area air pollution mitigation enterprise is authorized to impose air pollution mitigation per ride and retail delivery fees to fund its business purpose. Section 1 makes legislative findings and declarations that explain the purpose of the bill and the reasons why it includes the new sources of dedicated funding and new state enterprises that it does. Section 2 clarifies that an existing fee may be used to fund the functions of the freight mobility and safety branch created in section 27. Sections 3 and 4 respectively clarify that the clean fleet enterprise operates as a type 1 agency within CDPHE and that the clean transit enterprise and the nonattainment area air pollution mitigation enterprise operate as type 1 agencies within CDOT.Section 5 requires the CEO and CDPHE, after consultation with CDOT, to jointly and annually prepare a report for specified legislative committees that details the progress made toward the electric motor vehicle adoption goals set forth in the "Colorado Electric Vehicle Plan 2020" and the transportation sector greenhouse gas pollution reduction goals set forth in the "Colorado Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap". Section 5 also specifies a methodology to be used by the CEO, CDOT, and CDPHE to estimate the social costs of greenhouse gas pollution.Sections 9, 32, 42, and 51 effectuate the repeal of the requirement that a ballot question seeking approval for the issuance of transportation revenue anticipation notes be submitted to the voters of the state at the November 2021 statewide election.Section 10 requires CDOT to comply with specified transparency and contractor short-listing requirements when using the integrated project delivery method of contract procurement for a public project. Section 14 clarifies that sales and use tax is not levied on the retail delivery fees imposed by or as authorized by the bill. Sections 16 through 21 provide legal authority for collection under an existing multistate agreement of the motor fuel road usage and bridge and tunnel impact fees imposed by or as authorized by the bill. Section 22 requires the public utilities commission to conduct a certificated taxi carrier parity study.Section 27 creates the freight mobility and safety branch in CDOT's transportation development division . Section 28 requires CDOT and metropolitan planning organizations to engage in an enhanced level of planning, analysis, community engagement, and monitoring with respect to transportation capacity projects and specifies what that entails and also requires CDOT to conduct a road usage charge study and an autonomous vehicle study. Section 29 allows some of the general fund money transferred to the state highway fund pursuant to section 7 to be used for multimodal transportation projects. Section 31 specifies the manner in which revenue credited to the HUTF as required by the bill is allocated and expended.Sections 34 through 41 authorize a transportation planning organization (TPO), subject to territorial restrictions and TPO member jurisdiction approval requirements, to exercise the powers of a regional transportation authority (RTA). Among other powers, the powers of a RTA include the power to impose various charges, fees, and, with voter approval, visitor benefit, sales, and use taxes to generate transportation funding for the purpose of financing, constructing, operating, and maintaining regional transportation systems. Any additional transportation funding obtained by a TPO exercising the power of a RTA is intended to supplement and not supplant state and federal transportation funding allocated within the boundaries of the TPO. Therefore, the transportation commission and CDOT are prohibited from taking such additional transportation funding into account when determining the amount of state and federal transportation funding to be allocated within the boundaries of a TPO, and CDOT, when submitting its annual proposed budget allocation plan, is required to provide evidence that the proposed allocation of state and federal transportation funding within the boundaries of any TPO that has obtained such additional transportation funding has not been reduced in any way on account of the additional transportation funding. Section 45 reduces the amount of each road safety surcharge imposed on motor vehicle registration for registration periods beginning on or after January 1, 2022, but before January 1, 2024, by $5.55. |
| Status: | 6/17/2021 Signed by Governor |
| SB21-282 | Continue Small Business Destination Sourcing Exception |
| Position: | Support |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | J. Bridges (D) | R. Woodward / M. Snyder (D) | K. Van Winkle (R) |
| Summary: | By enacting House Bill 19-1420 in 2019, the state codified the department of revenue's destination sourcing rule for state sales and use tax collection for sales and use taxes imposed by any statutory incorporated town, city, or county and for special districts. That bill allowed small retailers to source their sales to the business' location regardless of where the purchaser receives the tangible personal property or service until 90 days after a geographic information system provided by the state is online and available for the retailer to determine the taxing jurisdiction in which an address resides. On April 1, 2021, the department of revenue issued a notice that the geographic information system is online and meets the requirements. Therefore, under current law, the small retailer exception to the sales tax destination sourcing rules will repeal on June 30, 2021. This bill allows small retailers to source their sales to the business' location regardless of where the purchaser receives the tangible personal property or service until February 1, 2022. |
| Status: | 6/30/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-291 | Economic Recovery And Relief Cash Fund |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | NOT ON CALENDAR |
| News: | |
| Sponsors: | S. Fenberg (D) | C. Holbert / D. Roberts (D) | K. Van Winkle (R) |
| Summary: | The bill creates the economic recovery and relief cash fund (fund) which consists of money deposited in the fund from the "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" cash fund. To respond to the public health emergency with respect to COVID-19 or its negative economic impacts, the bill allows the general assembly to appropriate or transfer money for specified uses. The bill transfers $40 million to the Colorado economic development fund for the Colorado office of economic development to use $10 million of the appropriated money to incentivize small businesses to locate in rural Colorado and for the location neutral employment incentive program which provides incremental cash incentives per remote employee per year for up to 5 years to small businesses that hire new employees in designated rural areas of the state. The bill specifies that the remaining appropriated money must be used, subject to the fund requirements, to provide grants to small businesses or to undertake any other economic development activity in response to the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill requires the executive committee of the legislative council to create a task force to meet during the 2021 legislative interim and issue a report with recommendations to the general assembly and the governor on policies that use money from the fund to provide a stimulative effect to the state's economy, necessary relief for Coloradans, or that address emerging economic disparities resulting from the pandemic. |
| Status: | 6/21/2021 Governor Signed |
| SB21-293 | Property Tax Classification And Assessment Rates |
| Position: | Monitor |
| Calendar Notification: | Tuesday, June 8 2021 THIRD READING OF BILLS - FINAL PASSAGE (8) in house calendar. |
| News: | Facing a property-tax battle, Colorado lawmakers rush to offer their own solutions |
| Sponsors: | C. Hansen (D) | B. Rankin / D. Esgar | M. Gray |
| Summary: | Section 1 of the bill repeals a moratorium on changing a ratio for valuation for assessment (assessment rate), which is the percentage applied to a property's actual value to determine the taxable amount upon which a mill levy is imposed. Section 2 classifies agricultural property, lodging property, and renewable energy production property as new subclasses of nonresidential property. The assessment rate for agricultural property and renewable energy production property is temporarily reduced from 29% to 26.4% for the next 2 property tax years. The law is restructured so that, if a proposed initiative to reduce the assessment rate for nonresidential property is approved by voters, then it would only apply to lodging property.Section 3 classifies multi-family residential real property as a new subclass of residential real property. The law is restructured so that, if a proposed initiative to reduce the residential assessment rate is approved by voters, then it would only apply to multi-family residential real property. If the initiative fails, then, under section 4 , the assessment rate for multi-family residential real property is temporarily reduced from 7.15% to 6.8% for the next 2 property tax years. The assessment rate for all residential real property other than multi-family property is temporarily reduced from 7.15% to 6.95% for the next 2 property tax years.Sections 5 through 8 expand the property tax deferral program to allow any person to defer the payment of the portion of real property taxes that exceed the tax-growth cap, which is an amount equal to the average of the person's real property taxes paid for the preceding 2 property tax years for the same homestead, increased by 4.6%. The total taxes that a taxpayer may defer under this authorization is $10,000, and the taxpayer is treated like a person called into military service for purposes of the equity the person must have in the homestead to qualify for deferral and surviving-spouse eligibility. |
| Status: | 6/23/2021 Governor Signed |