Residential mental health facility - pilot program - appropriation. The act creates a new 3-year mental health facility pilot program to provide residential care, treatment, and services to persons with either a mental health diagnosis or a physical health diagnosis. It contains requirements for applicants and directs the department of public health and environment (department) to select one or 2 applicants for the pilot program. The act appropriates $30,370 to the department for use by the health facilities and emergency medical services division. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Competency to proceed - timing - services - reports - tracking system - placement guidelines - training - immunity - appropriations. When a defendant's competency to proceed is raised, the act: Changes the timing of various matters; Clarifies where restoration services are to be provided; Expands the requirements for a competency evaluation report; and Clarifies when defendants are to be released following an evaluation or restoration services. The act requires the department of human services to: Develop an electronic system to track the status of defendants for whom competency to proceed has been raised; Convene a group of experts to create a placement guideline for use in determining where restoration services should be provided; and Partner with an institution of higher education to develop and provide training in competency evaluations. On and after January 1, 2020, except for certain certified or certification-eligible evaluators, competency evaluators are required to have attended training. District attorneys, public defenders, and alternate defense counsel are also to receive training on competency to proceed. The act also provides that a competency evaluator is not liable for damages in any civil action for failure to warn or protect a specific person or persons against the violent behavior of a defendant being evaluated. The act appropriates $10,983,000 from the general fund to pay for fines, liquidated damages, costs, attorney fees, and special master compensation due to a consent decree agreed to by the state. It also appropriates additional money from the general fund and from reappropriated funds to the department of human services and the judicial department to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Dialysis care - hemodialysis clinics and technicians - continuation under sunset law - regulation - supervision by licensed professional nurses. The act implements recommendations in the 2018 sunset review and report by the department of regulatory agencies by continuing the regulation of dialysis clinics and hemodialysis technicians by the department of public health and environment for 7 years, until 2026. The act deletes obsolete language in the law regulating dialysis treatment clinics and hemodialysis technicians and updates references to nurses who are permitted to supervise hemodialysis technicians. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Advisory council for parent involvement in education - continuation - appropriation. The act continues the state advisory council for parent involvement in education ("council") for five years. The act changes the number of persons appointed to the council from 5 parents to one parent from each congressional district. The council is scheduled for a sunset review prior to repeal in September 2024. The act appropriates $2,000 to the department of education from the general fund for accountability and improvement planning. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Registration - special license plates - professional fire fighters - appropriation. The act creates a Colorado professional fire fighters license plate. To be issued the plate, a qualified applicant must pay 2 one-time $25 fees and make a donation to a nonprofit organization selected by the department of revenue. To implement the act, $56,364 is appropriated to the department of revenue. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Child welfare - permanency hearing - burden of proof - clarifications. The act repeals and reenacts the provisions related to child welfare permanency hearings to reorganize the statutes and use consistent terminology related to permanency hearings. The act clarifies the burden of proof at permanency hearings. The act includes recent federal law changes.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Regulation of public livestock markets - continuation under sunset law - licensure. The automatic termination date of the regulation of public livestock markets is extended until 2034 pursuant to sunset law. Section 3 repeals a requirement that an applicant for a license prove financial stability, business integrity, and fiduciary responsibility and to provide a statement of assets and liability. Section 4 repeals a requirement that a licensed livestock market meet several size and premises standards. Section 4 replaces this with a requirement that a premises have adequate facilities necessary to operate a public livestock market. Sections 5 and 6 repeal provisions that imply that the state board of stock inspection commissioners regulate the sanitation of public livestock markets. Section 7 clarifies that the veterinarian who inspects livestock at a public livestock market is not employed by the department of agriculture and that livestock is inspected, not examined, for clinical signs of injury or disease. Section 7 also requires the veterinarian to be accredited. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Motor vehicle registration - license plates - women veterans - appropriation. The act creates a license plate to honor women veterans of the United States armed forces. To be issued the plate, an applicant must pay 2 one-time $25 fees. To implement the act, $14,771 is appropriated to the department of revenue from the license plate cash fund and the Colorado DRIVES vehicle services account. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
State board of parole - membership - appropriation. The act increases the state board of parole's (board) membership by 2, for a total of 9 members. The 2 additional members must have experience in a field relevant to the work of the board. $293,774 is appropriated to the department of corrections to implement this act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Public employees' retirement association - employer contribution rates - local government division. The 2% increase in the member contribution rate for members in the local government division of the public employees' retirement association that was enacted during the 2018 legislative session is eliminated.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Colorado secure savings plan - board - studies and analyses - report - appropriation. The Colorado secure savings plan board (board) is established to study the feasibility of creating the Colorado secure savings plan and other appropriate approaches to increase the amount of retirement savings by Colorado's private sector workers. The board consists of the state treasurer or the treasurer's designee and 8 additional trustees with certain experience who are appointed by the governor. The board is required to conduct the following 4 analyses or assessments by a specified date: A detailed market and financial analysis to determine the financial feasibility and effectiveness of creating a retirement savings plan in the form of an automatic enrollment payroll deduction IRA, to be known as the Colorado secure savings plan; A detailed market and financial analysis to determine the financial feasibility and effectiveness of a small business marketplace plan to increase the number of Colorado businesses that offer retirement savings plans for their employees; An analysis of the effects that greater financial education among Colorado residents would have on increasing their retirement savings; and An analysis of the effects that not increasing Coloradans' retirement savings would have on current and future state and local government expenditures. The board may accept any gifts, grants, and donations, or any money from public or private entities to pay for the costs of the analyses. The board may delay implementation of one or more of the analyses if it does not obtain adequate money to conduct the analyses. If after conducting the analyses, the board finds that there are approaches to increasing retirement savings for private sector employees in a convenient, low-cost, and portable manner that are financially feasible and self-sustaining, the board is required to recommend a plan to implement its findings to the governor and the general assembly. For the 2019-20 state fiscal year, $800,000 from the general fund is appropriated to the department of the treasury for the purpose of conducting the analyses or assessments, including operating expenses. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Sunset - cold case task force. The act continues the cold case task force until 2026.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
