Rep. Kyle Brown

The act modifies the following statutory requirements for state departments' and agencies' reports. In the division of insurance, the following reports and associated reporting requirements for insurance carriers are eliminated: The annual list of insurance carrier average reimbursement rates that is posted on the division's website; and The annual report on out-of-network use and payment arbitrations. In the department of human services: The annual report, under the supervision of district and county attorneys, on the nature and result of actions taken to recover the cost of the care and maintenance of a child committed to a state institution from the child's parents is to be delivered to the judiciary committees of the house of representatives and of the senate rather than to the governor; and The due date for the annual report on abandoned children surrendered to emergency personnel is changed from January 1 to March 1. In the department of public safety, the annual report on domestic violence-related assaults and deaths is eliminated. In the department of higher education: The annual report on concurrent enrollment, prepared in collaboration with the department of education, is eliminated; The annual report on tuition and fees is due annually rather than every year by January 15; The annual report on the statewide postsecondary education master plan goals and state-supported institutions' progress toward meeting those goals is due annually rather than every year by December 1; The annual reports on the success of high school graduates in postsecondary education are to be submitted annually rather than by specific dates; The annual report on supplemental academic instruction and developmental education courses is eliminated; The annual report on the resident and nonresident makeup of state-supported institutions of higher education is due every 3 years rather than annually; and The due date for the annual report on the implementation and development of open educational resources is changed from October 1 to December 1. In the department of law, the annual report on the insurance fraud unit in the attorney general's office is eliminated. In the department of local affairs, the following reports are to be posted annually on the department's website rather than included in the department's annual SMART Act report and presentation: The report on the effectiveness of the gray and black market marijuana enforcement grant program; The report on the effectiveness of the defense counsel on first appearance grant program; and The report on the activities of the peace officers behavioral health support and community partnerships grant program. In the office of economic development and international trade, the due date of the annual report on the implementation of the venture capital program is changed from February 1 to May 1. In the office of information technology, the annual requirement that counties report to the chief information officer on county budget, revenue, and expenditures is eliminated. In the department of health care policy and financing: The annual report on the accountable care collaborative is combined with the annual report submitted by the department to the joint budget committee and the health and human services committees of the house and senate; The reference to "The ASAM Criteria" that is incorporated into utilization management processes used to determine medical necessity for residential and inpatient substance use disorder treatment is updated to reflect the version of "The ASAM Criteria" used by the department; The quarterly report on residential and inpatient substance use disorder utilization management statistics is eliminated and replaced with a requirement to display the same statistics on the department's website; The due date of the annual report on managed care entity denials for residential and inpatient substance use disorder treatment is changed from December 1 to January 31; and The annual report on community transition services and supports is eliminated. In the department of early childhood: The due date of the report on the evaluation of the child abuse prevention trust fund is changed from November 1, 2026, to November 1, 2029; The due date of the report on the child care services and substance use disorder treatment pilot program is changed from June 30, 2023, to June 30, 2028, and an annual requirement, in effect for four years, to report on the pilot program in the intervening years to the health and human services committees of the house of representatives and of the senate is added; The annual report on early intervention services is eliminated; The due date of the report on the evaluation of the early childhood mental health consultation program is changed from January 2027 to January 2028; The statewide report on the quality improvement of early childhood education programs is eliminated; and The annual report on the infant and toddler quality and availability grant program is eliminated. In the department of natural resources and division of parks and wildlife: The annual report on activities concerning species conservation is eliminated; The annual report on acquisitions of real property or interests in water is modified to include information on acquisitions that are pending or that occurred within the previous 5 years; The annual report on the wildlife for future generations trust fund is eliminated; The report on the progress of the 5-year strategic plan is eliminated; The annual report on the administration of the division of parks and wildlife is eliminated; The annual report on specific noise abatement measures is eliminated; and The annual report on the parks for future generations trust fund is eliminated. In the department of revenue, the following one-time reports are repealed: The 2021 report on medical marijuana delivery; and The 2005 report on the lottery expenditure evaluation. APPROVED by Governor March 22, 2024 EFFECTIVE March 22, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act generally prohibits covenants and other restrictions that disallow the installation, use, or maintenance of fire-hardened building materials in residential real property, including in common interest communities. However, the act allows a unit owners' association of a common interest community to develop reasonable standards regarding the design, dimensions, placement, or external appearance of fire-hardened building materials used for fencing within the community. APPROVED by Governor March 12, 2024 EFFECTIVE March 12, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill allows a board of county commissioners to adopt an ordinance or resolution to: Regulate the distribution of cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products; and Prohibit the distribution or retail sale of cigarettes, tobacco products, or nicotine products, including prohibiting the sale of any or all flavored cigarettes, flavored tobacco products, or flavored nicotine products. (Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.) (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

For small group and individual health benefit plans, if an individual who is entitled to receive benefits or services under a health benefit plan has incurred any out-of-pocket expenses, including payments for a deductible or other coinsurance amount, under the health benefit plan during a plan year, and the individual's health insurance carrier exits the health insurance market and can no longer provide coverage to the individual, the bill requires the individual's new health insurance carrier to credit all of the out-of-pocket expenses paid by the individual in accordance with the original health benefit plan in the given plan year to the new health benefit plan if the individual enrolls in the new health benefit plan in the established special enrollment period. The bill grants rule-making authority to the commissioner of insurance. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Under current law, the borrower in a reverse mortgage transaction is relieved of the obligation to occupy the subject property as a principal residence (principal-residence requirement) if the borrower is temporarily absent for up to 60 days or, if the property is adequately secured, for up to one year. The act adds a third exception to the principal-residence requirement to cover situations in which a natural disaster or other serious incident beyond the borrower's control (force majeure) renders the property uninhabitable, in which case the reverse mortgage does not become due and payable if: The borrower is engaged in repairing the home with the intent of reoccupying the home as a principal residence or selling the home; The borrower stays in communication with the lender while the home is being repaired; The borrower complies with all other terms and conditions of the reverse mortgage; and Repairing or rebuilding of the home does not reduce the lender's security. The act requires that the lender disclose these conditions suspending the repayment requirement on a reverse mortgage due to a force majeure to the borrower in writing at the time of closing. APPROVED by Governor June 7, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 7, 2023(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, a county clerk and recorder may permit the parties to a proposed marriage or civil union to satisfy the requirement to appear before the county clerk and recorder by interactive audiovisual communication technology or online functionality for the purpose of satisfying certain requirements for a marriage license or civil union license. This authority repeals on December 31, 2023. The act extends the authority indefinitely. Under current law, a county clerk and recorder who permits parties to a proposed marriage or civil union to satisfy certain requirements without appearing in person and staff members who carry out duties of the county clerk and recorder shall complete training developed by the human trafficking council concerning human trafficking in Colorado. The act requires this training to be completed at least once every year. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that, on or before January 1, 2024, the commissioner of agriculture adopt rules requiring neonicotinoid pesticides to be designated as limited-use pesticides and authorizing only licensed dealers to sell them. Products containing neonicotinoid active ingredients used in academic research are exempted from the limited-use pesticide designation, as are the following products that contain neonicotinoid active ingredients and for which the product label includes an intended use as: A pet care product; A veterinary product; An indoor pest control product; A personal care product used for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating lice; A product used in structural insulation; A preserved wood product or product used in the manufacturing of wood preservatives; A bait product; or An insect strip. APPROVED by Governor May 17, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act amends the priority of distribution of insurance claims paid from an insurer's estate in the event of the insurer's liquidation to include in the class 1 distribution priority payments that an impaired or insolvent insurer owes to the risk adjustment program that are necessary to prevent another insurer from becoming impaired or insolvent. This prioritization adjustment repeals on July 1, 2026. The act also amends the "Life and Health Insurance Protection Association Act" as follows: Adds health maintenance organizations (HMOs) as members of the association and subjects HMOs to assessments from the association; Allocates responsibility for long-term care insurance assessments between health insurance and life insurance association members; and Specifies that the "Life and Health Insurance Protection Association Act" does not provide coverage to a person that acquires rights to receive, or to a payee or beneficiary that transfers its rights in, a structured settlement factoring transaction, as defined in federal law, regardless of when the transaction occurred. APPROVED by Governor May 15, 2023 EFFECTIVE May 15, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act expands conditions covered under the warranty of habitability for residential premises to include damage due to an environmental public health event. The act requires a landlord to have a residential premises remediated to a condition that complies with applicable standards for the remediation and clean up of residential premises after damage due to an environmental public health event. The act also clarifies landlord responsibilities regarding the warranty of habitability and how a tenant must give notice to a landlord if there are habitability issues with the tenant's residence. The act prohibits a landlord from retaliating against a tenant for making a good faith complaint about the conditions of the residential premises and provides conditions by which a tenant may terminate a lease if a habitability issue is not remediated. The act also specifies conditions by which certain vulnerable populations may terminate a lease if the residential premises has been damaged due to an environmental public health event that would be detrimental to the health, safety, or quality of life of those vulnerable populations. APPROVED by Governor May 12, 2023 EFFECTIVE May 12, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) to prepare an annual report on the cost of reconstructing homes in Colorado. Current law prohibits an insurer from canceling or refusing to renew a policy of homeowner's insurance unless the insurer mails notice to the insured at least 30 days in advance of the effective date of the cancellation of or refusal to renew the policy. The act increases the notice requirement to 60 days in advance of the action. The act specifies the factors an insurer must consider when determining the reconstruction costs of a dwelling and requires insurers to disclose certain information regarding the replacement costs before issuing or renewing a homeowner's insurance policy. Current law requires an insurer to offer an applicant extended replacement cost and law and ordinance coverage before issuing or renewing certain replacement cost homeowner's insurance policies. The act requires the coverage to be: Equal to 20% of the limit of insurance for the dwelling for law and ordinance coverage (changed from 10%); and At least 50% of the limit of the insurance for the dwelling for extended replacement cost coverage (changed from 20%). To implement the act: $109, 955 is appropriated to the department of regulatory agencies for use by the division of insurance; and $38,066 is appropriated to the department of law. APPROVED by Governor May 12, 2023 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE January 1, 2025 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die; except that, section 10-4-110.8 (8), Colorado Revised Statutes, as amended in section 3 of the act, takes effect January 1, 2025. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)