Rep. Julie McCluskie

Maddy summarySJR 2 is a procedural resolution titled "State of the State," which authorizes the Governor to deliver the annual State of the State address to the legislature. It does not create new laws or affect specific groups; it serves as a formal legislative procedure for convening the address. The resolution follows standard procedural steps (introduction, readings) without substantive policy content. As a routine procedural measure, it has no concrete policy changes or direct impact beyond facilitating the Governor's annual report to lawmakers.

Maddy summarySJR 3 is a procedural resolution scheduling a joint meeting of Colorado's Senate and House of Representatives on January 16, 2026, to hear a message from representatives of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Council and Southern Ute Tribal Council. It directs the appointment of a six-member committee (three from each chamber) to escort tribal representatives to the session. The resolution recognizes the tribes' historical and cultural contributions to Colorado but does not create new laws or policies. This is a formal procedural step to facilitate the tribal message, not a substantive legislative change.

The state allows a student pursuing higher education who satisfies statutorily specified eligibility criteria to claim an income tax incentive for amounts paid for tuition and fees for qualifying academic semesters or terms that the student completes. The act clarifies the statute that provides for the income tax incentive to improve the administration, including data tracking and reporting, of the incentive. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, $135,446 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of revenue for use by the taxation business group to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act modifies the "Revised Uniform Unclaimed Property Act" (RUUPA) as follows: Sections 1, 2, 6, and 7 clarify the treatment under RUUPA of legacy preneed contracts, which are preneed contracts for funeral services entered into before August 10, 2022; Sections 2, 3, and 8: Modify the definition of virtual currency; Specify that virtual currency is presumed abandoned 3 years after the latest indication of interest by its apparent owner; Require a holder of unclaimed property (holder) that is reporting unclaimed virtual currency to the state treasurer (administrator) to liquidate the virtual currency within 30 days of filing the report and remit the liquidation proceeds to the administrator unless the virtual currency cannot be liquidated, in which case the administrator may require the holder to transfer the virtual currency to an administrator-selected custodian or continue to hold the virtual currency until it can be liquidated or until an apparent owner expresses interest in it; and Specify that the owner of the virtual currency has no recourse against either the holder or the administrator for any gain in value of the virtual currency after liquidation; Section 4 modifies the circumstances under which a tax-deferred retirement account is presumed abandoned so that abandonment is presumed if the account is unclaimed by the apparent owner 3 years after it becomes payable or distributable if the owner has not accepted the distribution, corresponded in writing concerning the distribution, or otherwise indicated an interest as evidenced by a memorandum or other record on file with the fiduciary of the trust or custodial fund or the administrator of the plan under which the trust or fund is established; Section 5 shortens the period for which a holder required to file a report regarding property that is presumed abandoned must retain records from 10 to 6 years; Section 9 requires a holder that pays money to the administrator to file a claim for reimbursement from the administrator of the amount paid within 2 years of remitting and reporting the money paid; Section 10 reduces the amount of time after a duty of a holder arises that the administrator has to commence an action, proceeding, or examination with respect to the duty from 10 years to 6 years; Section 11 clarifies the authority of the administrator with respect to the sale or other disposition of unclaimed thinly traded securities; If the administrator determines that a county or a municipality owns unclaimed property in the possession of the administrator, section 12 authorizes the administrator to issue a warrant to or transfer the property to an operating account of the county or the municipality; Section 13 acknowledges that the administrator may require a person making a claim for unclaimed property to supply any documents, including nonpublic and nonredacted documents, that are necessary to prove ownership of the property; Section 14 reduces the maximum amount of compensation allowed to be paid under an agreement to recover or assist in recovering an unclaimed overbid transferred to the administrator from either 30% or 20% of the amount of the overbid depending on when the agreement is entered into to 10% of the amount of overbid without regard to when the agreement was entered into; Section 15 clarifies that unless another provision of RUUPA provides otherwise, all records, documents, and information submitted by a claimant to the administrator or the administrator's agent to enable the administrator or agent to determine whether the claimant is the owner of the property are confidential and exempt from public inspection or disclosure; and Section 16 repeals a statutory exemption from RUUPA for a local government that is a holder of property and satisfies specified conditions because few local governments have met the specified conditions.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the state auditor to conduct or cause to be conducted performance audits (audits) of the air pollution control division in the department of public health and environment and the division of unemployment insurance in the department of labor and employment (divisions). The audits will determine whether each of the divisions effectively and efficiently performs and fulfills its statutory obligations. In addition, as part of the audits, the state auditor is required to: Determine whether a division complies with statute and its statutory purpose; Assess the impact of a division's processes on providing access to program benefits and, for the labor and employment division audit only, identify any division processes that may be unnecessary, unreasonable, or cause delays; Determine whether a division's staffing and funding levels are sufficient for it to efficiently and effectively perform its statutory duties and responsibilities, which, in for the air pollution control division audit only, must include assessment of how funding or staffing changes made at the state level might impact local governments; and Determine whether a division requested and was appropriated additional resources and whether the approval or denial of such a request impacted program implementation and timing of implementation. The initial audit of the air pollution control division must begin and be completed in calendar year 2026, with an additional audit occurring in calendar year 2031. The initial audit of the division of unemployment insurance must begin and be completed in calendar year 2027, with an additional audit occurring in calendar year 2032. Upon completion of an audit, the state auditor is required to submit a written audit report to the legislative audit committee. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act establishes visitation as a right for a person confined in a correctional facility (confined person). The department of corrections (department) may: Limit visitation for a confined person who is in restrictive housing or as a sanction following a conviction for a class 1 code of penal discipline violation; Reduce, but not eliminate, the number of visits available per week to a confined person as a result of an increase in the person's custody classification level; Temporarily deprive visitation as necessary for facility operations or for the safety of the facility, persons in the facility, and the general public; and Deny or cancel visitation for a confined person at any time as necessary to comply with requirements imposed by a court order, for victim safety, to prevent communication with a co-defendant, to preserve the integrity of a criminal investigation, to comply with treatment protocols, or for any other reason required by law. Video visits may supplement, but must not take the place of, in-person visits when in-person visits are permitted. If a confined person provides the department with reasonable notice that a requested visitation is for virtual attendance at a funeral or during or immediately following the birth of a child in the person's family, the act requires the department to make all reasonable efforts to allow the person to participate in the visitation via virtual attendance, or, if virtual attendance is not possible, via telephone. The department may adopt policies to govern visitations, including policies necessary to allow visitation as part of routine facility operations. The act states that it does not create a private right of action. The act permits a confined person to file a grievance with the department if the confined person alleges deprivation of visitation. The department is required to include information about visitation and grievances in its annual SMART Act hearing. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 20 of article X of the state constitution (TABOR) defines "fiscal year spending" as not including either "damage awards" or "property sales". Although TABOR does not define either "damage award" or "property sale", the TABOR implementing statutes do. The act clarifies both of these definitions for state fiscal years commencing on or after July 1, 2024. The act clarifies that "damage award", as used for the purpose of determining whether specific money received by the state is subject to the TABOR limitation on state fiscal year spending, includes certain fines and monetary penalties imposed by the state. The act also clarifies that "property sale", as used for the purpose of determining whether specific money received by the state is subject to the TABOR limitation on state fiscal year spending, includes certain specified types of sales by the state. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act modifies certain processes for statewide ballot measures as follows: Requires proponents of citizen-initiated ballot measures (initiatives) to submit a chart describing or otherwise visually demonstrating the differences between their initiatives when they submit 5 or more versions of an initiative to the title board within the same initiative cycle, with at least one of the same designated representatives of proponents, and on the same subject matter; Requires the director of research of the legislative council of the general assembly (director), when preparing an estimate of the fiscal impact of an initiative that proposes a tax increase, to include an estimate of the maximum dollar amount of the change in state and local government revenue and fiscal year spending, as defined in the state constitution, for the first and, if phased in, final full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase; Directs the title board, when setting a title for an initiative, to indicate in the title whether the proposed law modifies, extends, or repeals existing law or creates new law and, for initiatives that propose a tax increase, to use the estimate prepared by the director of the maximum dollar amount of the change in state and local government revenue and fiscal year spending for the first or, if phased in, final full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase; Requires a person filing a motion for rehearing of a title board decision to file the motion with the title board by 5 p.m. on the seventh day following the title board's decision that is the subject of the motion; With regard to the petition circulation process for statewide ballot measures, requires a designated representative for the proponents to notify the secretary of state when an initiative or referendum petition that is being circulated has received 75% of the required number of signatures and authorizes the secretary of state to impose a fine on any designated representative who does not comply with the reporting requirement; Requires the director to prepare for the ballot information booklet for a proposed tax increase estimates of both the maximum dollar amount of the change in state and local government revenue and fiscal year spending, as defined in the state constitution, for the first full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase and state and local government fiscal year spending, as defined in the state constitution, without the proposed tax increase; and Requires the fiscal note for any legislative measure that proposes a tax increase to include the estimate of the maximum dollar amount of the change in state and local government revenue for the first and, if phased in, final full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase and requires the ballot question for such a legislative measure to include the estimate of the maximum dollar amount of the change in state and local government revenue for the first or, if phased in, final full fiscal year of the proposed tax increase.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act prohibits residential rental agreements, in relation to a tenant's death, from requiring acceleration of rent beyond the end of the month or more than 10 business days after the dwelling unit is vacated after notice to the landlord of the tenant's death, whichever is later. Further, the act prohibits the enforcement of terms in rental agreements that authorize liquidated damages or other penalties if the rental agreement is terminated before the end of its term due to the death of a tenant. The act authorizes a landlord to take possession of the dwelling unit without filing an eviction action or otherwise obtaining a court order if the personal representative of the tenant's estate notifies the landlord of the surrender of the premises or,30 days after the death of the tenant, rent remains unpaid or substantially all of the tenant's property has been removed. In addition, a landlord may retain a security or damages deposit sufficient to cover costs of damages caused by the death of the tenant. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act incorporates the federal "Uniform Code of Military Justice" (federal code) into the "Colorado Code of Military Justice" (state code), including specifically the punitive articles and general article of the federal code, which describe punishable offenses, and the statute of limitations that applies to charges brought pursuant to the state code. The act repeals sections of the state code that are duplicative of the incorporated federal code. Additionally, the act: Applies the state code to a member of the state military forces (member) at all times, except when the member is ordered to active federal service pursuant to title 10 of the United States Code; Clarifies a commanding officer's authority to impose nonjudicial punishment under the state code; Makes changes to the procedures that govern courts-martial, the punitive authority of courts-martial, and the review of the decisions of courts-martial; and If concurrent civilian and military jurisdiction exists over the same offense and a district attorney has filed felony charges against a member for the offense, requires the state military forces to defer felony prosecution of the member to the district attorney.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)