Rep. Javier Mabrey

The environmental justice advisory board in the department of public health and environment (advisory board) advises the environmental justice ombudsperson, develops recommendations related to adverse environmental effects on disproportionately impacted communities, and supports the implementation of a grant program to finance environmental mitigation projects. The act adds to the advisory board a voting youth member and a nonvoting youth member, which members are between 14 and 21 years of age. The act also requires the Colorado energy office (office), on or before December 31, 2025, to develop and post on its website best practices for the adoption and financing of clean energy resources in schools. The office is required to periodically update the best practices and post the updates on its website. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act establishes a definition of "mobile food establishment" to mean a retail food establishment that is operated from a vehicle, can change location, and is intended to operate from a commissary kitchen. The act establishes a reciprocal food safety license between the city and county of Denver (Denver) and other local governments throughout the state. The department of public health and environment (CDPHE) issues a statewide health department license (state license) based on the state health code to mobile food establishments that is valid in all local government jurisdictions throughout the state except for Denver. Denver issues a Denver-specific retail food license (Denver license) to mobile food establishments that is based on Denver's health code and that is only valid within Denver's jurisdiction. The act establishes reciprocity between these two licenses so that the state license is valid in Denver and the Denver license is valid across the state. The act requires the owner or operator of a mobile food establishment that wishes to take advantage of this reciprocity to provide a copy of either their Denver license or the state license to the local government in which they intend to operate or to Denver at least 14 days in advance of when they intend to operate. When a mobile food establishment is operating in a local government jurisdiction, including Denver's jurisdiction, the mobile food establishment must comply with all laws of the local government and is subject to inspection and enforcement by the local government. For a mobile food establishment with a state license that intends to operate in Denver, the mobile food establishment must submit certain documentation including, if requested, a summary of any violations within the previous calendar year related to the license or the operation of the mobile food establishment. The act also establishes that a fire safety permit that has been issued to a mobile food establishment by a local government is valid in any other local government jurisdiction if the fire safety permit was issued: By a local government that has adopted the most recent international fire code or a fire code that has incorporated the minimum standards for mobile food establishments developed by the division of fire prevention and control; and After completing an inspection by a certified fire inspector. The act requires that a mobile food establishment send a copy of the fire safety permit to the local government in which they intend to operate at least 14 days in advance of operation. While operating in a local government's jurisdiction, the mobile food establishment must comply with that local government's fire safety code and is subject to inspection and enforcement by the local government. The act authorizes the division of fire prevention and control to adopt minimum codes and standards for the operation of mobile retail food establishments for use by local governments. The act takes effect January 1, 2026. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the legislation inside advisory council (council) to identify, examine, and discuss the issues, interests, and needs affecting people who are incarcerated and to formally advise and make recommendations to the general assembly regarding those issues, interests, and needs. The act: Requires the director of the legislative council to use a request for proposal process to contract with and designate a nonprofit organization to assist the council; Establishes membership requirements of the council; Outlines the duties of the council, including reporting requirements; Requires the council to report during the department of corrections' annual "SMART Act" presentation to the judiciary committees of the senate and house of representatives, or their successor committees, beginning in January of 2027; and Creates an advisory review committee, consisting of 5 voting legislative members and 5 nonvoting council members to meet no more than 3 times during the interim and recommend no more than 3 bills during each interim.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act updates energy use benchmarking and performance standard requirements for owners of certain buildings (covered building owners), including: A requirement to meet 2040 performance standards, as adopted by the air quality control commission (commission), in consultation with the Colorado energy office (office) and in consideration of recommendations made by a task force convened by the office; Authorizing an alternative compliance mechanism for covered building owners to comply with certain performance standards; and Updating civil penalties owed for a violation of the benchmarking requirements to an amount up to $577 for a first violation and up to $2,300 for each subsequent violation and, on and after January 1, 2030, updating civil penalties owed for a violation of the performance standard requirements to an amount up to $2,300 for every 30 days that the covered building owner is in violation and up to $5,800 for every 30 days for a subsequent violation. The commission shall adopt rules to annually adjust the penalty amounts for inflation.The act also creates a building decarbonization enterprise (enterprise) to provide financial assistance, technical assistance, and other programmatic assistance to covered building owners to effectively and efficiently implement building decarbonization measures, including energy efficiency measures, electrification measures, energy upgrades, and participation in utility on-bill repayment programs. The enterprise is authorized to impose and collect from covered building owners an annual building decarbonization fee to cover the enterprise's costs in providing the financial, technical, and programmatic assistance. The fees are credited to the building decarbonization enterprise cash fund (cash fund) for use by the enterprise to implement the act.The act clarifies that a local government is not required to adopt an energy code solely as a result of having adopted a wildfire resiliency code.For state fiscal year 2025-26, $3 million is appropriated from the cash fund to the office of the governor for use by the office for the enterprise's implementation of the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act eliminates the requirement for a second election to negotiate a union security agreement clause in the collective bargaining process. VETOED by Governor 5/16/2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act caps the maximum incarceration sentence for a municipal violation that has a comparable state law crime at the same length as the state-level offense. If a comparable state-level offense does not exist, the maximum period of incarceration is capped at the maximum for a state-level petty offense. Mandatory minimums and increased penalties based on prior convictions are prohibited unless the person is convicted of a municipal offense for which there is a comparable state offense or of an infraction that allows imposition of the same mandatory minimum or increased penalties based on prior convictions. The act also caps a consecutive municipal sentence at 2 times the highest charge in the case. The act clarifies that municipal court defendants have a right to counsel and that municipal defense counsel have the same notice, case information, and opportunity to meet with their clients as do state-level defense counsel. Current law prohibits paying indigent municipal defense counsel on a fixed or flat-fee payment structure if the municipality prosecutes domestic violence cases. The act applies the prohibition to all municipalities. All municipal court proceedings are required to be open to public observation. Virtual observation is required for all in-custody proceedings, and prompt resolution of municipal cases is required. VETOED by Governor 5/16/2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act adjusts several state tax expenditures as follows: Section 2 of the act allows an individual to present a copy of their federal tax return to be exempted from the medical marijuana registry application fee; Section 3 requires insurance companies, when submitting certain filings with the division of insurance, to submit the total annual dollar amount of premiums collected or contracted for on policies or contracts of insurance covering property or risks in Colorado during the previous calendar year from entities that are exempt from taxation; Section 4 ensures that the valuation for assessment for qualified-senior primary residence real property is reduced for the property tax years commencing on January 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026; Section 6 adds the amount of any overtime compensation excluded or deducted from a taxpayer's federal gross income to that taxpayer's federal taxable income for purposes of determining the taxpayer's state taxable income; Section 7 expands the definition of local government to include counties for purposes of the alternative transportation options tax credit; Section 8 modifies the tax credit for qualified costs incurred in preservation of historic structures by removing the 5% increase in the percentage of rehabilitation expenses incurred in a rehabilitation in a disaster area for the rehabilitation of a commercial structure that are applicable for the tax credit; Section 9 extends the tax credit for monetary contributions to promote child care, so that the tax credit is available through income tax years commencing before January 1, 2030, rather than January 1, 2026; Section 10 limits the existing business personal property tax credit so that a taxpayer may only claim the tax deduction for income tax years commencing before January 1, 2026; Section 12 clarifies and modifies definitions for the qualified care worker tax credit; Section 13 allows the executive director of the department of revenue to direct employers who make payments of compensation other than wages to withhold an amount that approximates an employee's income tax due to the state from that employee's compensation; Section 14 expands the definition of agricultural commodities to include products regulated under article 10 of title 44 for purposes of the pesticides, fertilizers, and spray adjuvants wholesale sales tax exemption; Section 15 ensures that, beginning July 1, 2025, interstate telephone and telegraph services are subject to state sales tax; Section 16 exempts the sale of medical marijuana to an individual who presents a valid electronic benefits transfer card or certain other identification from sales tax; and Section 17 modifies the enterprise zone tax credit for income tax years beginning January 1, 2026, by limiting the total amount of the credit that may be claimed to $2 million, providing an exemption process for that limit, and prohibiting certain taxpayers from claiming that credit.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act allows a person who is 72 years of age or older to choose to temporarily or permanently opt out of jury service. The judge or jury commissioner may require documentation in support of the opt-out of jury service. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $10,066 from the general fund to the judicial department for use by the state courts to implement the act. VETOED by Governor May 16, 2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 1 of the act specifies that the short title of the Act is the "Kelly Loving Act". Sections 2 through 5 provide that, if at any point following the issuance of a license to marry or a civil union license, a party to the marriage or civil union presents the issuing county clerk and recorder with appropriate documentation of that party's name change and requests the issuance of a new license to marry or civil union license, the county clerk shall issue a new license to marry or civil union license that reflects the party's name change. After a new license to marry or civil union license is issued, the effective date of the marriage or civil union remains the date listed on the original license to marry or civil union license. Section 6 provides that, if a local education provider, an educator, or a contractor chooses to enact or enforce a policy related to names, that policy must be inclusive of all reasons that a student might adopt a name that differs from the student's legal name. Section 7 requires a dress code adopted by a school district board of education or by an institute charter school board for a charter school authorized by the charter school institute must allow each student to choose from any of the options provided in the dress code policy. Section 8 defines the term "chosen name" for purposes of the "Colorado Anti-discrimination Act" as a name that an individual requests to be known as in connection to the individual's disability, race, creed, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, familial status, national origin, or ancestry, so long as the name does not contain offensive language and the individual is not requesting the name for frivolous purposes. Section 8 also includes "chosen name and how the individual chooses to be expressed" as forms of gender expression for purposes of the "Colorado Anti-discrimination Act." Section 10 repeals a provision of law that limited the state registrar to amending a gender designation for an individual's birth certificate only 1 time upon the individual's request without the submission of a court order. Sections 11, 12 and 13 change the number of times that the department of revenue may amend a sex designation on an individual's driver's license, identification card, or identification document upon the individual's request from 1 to 3. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act authorizes the state treasurer to invest up to $50 million of state money in bonds, which may have below-market interest rates, that are issued by a quasi-governmental authority to create or finance new affordable, income-restricted for-sale housing that would not be made available at similar rates and terms without the state's investment. The housing must remain affordable long-term and be available to borrowers earning no more than 140% of the statewide area median income. The bonds may have a term of up to 45 years and must have at least 2 credit ratings at or above A- or A3 or its equivalent from nationally recognized rating organizations. Money from principal proceeds of such bonds must be reinvested by the state treasurer for the same purpose once the state treasurer has received repayment of 50% of the principal amount invested. The quasi-governmental authority issuing the bonds shall provide an annual report to the treasurer and the general assembly that includes specified information about the affordable housing created with bond proceeds. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)