The act changes terminology related to child prostitution to commercial sexual activity with a child in the crimes of soliciting for child prostitution, pandering of a child, keeping a place of child prostitution, pimping a child, inducement of child prostitution, and patronizing a prostituted child, including changing the name of the offenses for soliciting for child prostitution, keeping a place of child prostitution, inducement of child prostitution, and patronizing a prostituted child. A court is required to sentence an offender convicted of one of the listed offenses, other than soliciting for commercial sexual activity with a child, to at least the minimum of the presumptive range for the level of offense associated with the crime. For an offense of soliciting for commercial sexual activity with a child, if the court sentences the person to probation, the court shall order as a condition of probation that the person serve 364 days in the county jail. In the crime of soliciting for commercial sexual activity with a child, the act adds knowingly soliciting a child for commercial sexual activity as a means of committing the offense and requires that when arranging or offering to arrange a meeting, the offender must know that meeting will facilitate commercial sexual activity with a child. The act removes the spousal exception from the crime of engaging in commercial sexual activity with a child. The act makes the penalty for internet luring of a child a class 3 felony when the offense is committed with the intent to meet for the purpose of engaging in commercial sexual activity. In this circumstance, a court is required to sentence the offender to at least the minimum of the presumptive range for the class 3 felony.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act makes various updates to language in the 'Workers' Compensation Act of Colorado' to align with technology changes in the division of workers' compensation in the department of labor and employment. These updates include changing current statutory language requiring mailing of documents to allow for electronic mailing or filing of the documents. The act also changes the fund into which an employer or employer's insurance carrier makes payments to the state for a compensable injury resulting in death of a minor without surviving parents from the subsequent injury fund to the Colorado uninsured employer fund.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Beginning in state fiscal year 2027-28, the act requires the department of public safety (department) to submit a budget request for community corrections and to include in its budget request information regarding projected community corrections program needs, including certain data points and analysis related to residential and nonresidential bed capacity, the per diem reimbursement rate for each bed type, and other guideposts related to community corrections appropriations. The department must include information on the budget request in its yearly 'SMART Act' hearing.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates a process for employers and licensed insurance producers to update an employer's experience modification factor when:An open claim is reported by an insurance carrier to the rating bureau with a higher open claim amount than the amount after the claim was closed; andThe lower claim amount would reduce an employer's experience modification factor at least .05 compared to the previously released experience modification factor or from above 1.0 to 1.0 or below. The employer must notify the insurance carrier between the time the claim is reported to a rating bureau and 31 days after the employer's rating effective date. The insurance carrier is required to credit the employer for a premium change resulting from the revised experience modification factor.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act defines 'first responder' to include:A peace officer;A firefighter;A volunteer firefighter;An emergency medical service provider; orA mental health professional who responds in a professional capacity to a justifiable medical emergency. Existing law requires the emergency medical and trauma services advisory council (council) to review and approve new rules and modifications to rules prior to the adoption of such rules or modifications by the state board of health. The act requires the council to make recommendations for, instead of approve, rules and modifications to rules concerning emergency medical and trauma services prior to the adoption of such rules or modifications by the state board of health. Beginning January 1, 2027, the act requires the department of health care policy and financing (state department) to reimburse the following entities under the 'Colorado Medical Assistance Act':An ambulance service for ground transportation by an ambulance or other vehicle to a hospital or other destination as deemed appropriate by the ambulance service's medical director;An ambulance service for treatment on the scene of a medical emergency, which treatment does not result in ground transportation; andA qualified provider, an ambulance service, or an agency for evaluation by telemedicine of a person being treated by an ambulance service or an agency for the purpose of preventing the need to transport the person to a hospital.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act allows the division of fire prevention and control to seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations to implement the requirements of the firefighter behavioral health benefits program.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
In current law, a person who is a member of the Colorado National Guard who is accepted for enrollment at a designated institution of higher education (member) has all their tuition costs waived. All tuition waiver costs are currently funded by the state from money in the Colorado National Guard tuition fund. The act changes the funding mechanism of the Colorado National Guard tuition waiver program by requiring each designated institution of higher education to waive the remaining balance of a member's tuition cost in excess of the amount of any private, state, or federal financial assistance received. The act requires the department of military and veterans affairs to reimburse each institution for 50% of the cost of tuition waived by the institution and requires the general assembly to appropriate money to the Colorado National Guard tuition fund to cover the reimbursement.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act extends the availability of the conservation easement tax credit from income tax year 2031 through income tax year 2036. The act also prohibits the division of conservation from issuing any additional credit certificates or amending previously issued credit certificates as a result of the additional authority granted by the act for a donation made prior to the effective date of the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
For state fiscal year 2026-27, the act appropriates $5,000,000 from the species conservation trust fund (trust fund) in the state treasury for various wildlife conservation programs directed at conserving candidate species or species that are likely to become candidate species, as determined by the United States fish and wildlife service. The executive director of the Colorado department of natural resources, after consulting with the Colorado water conservation board, the parks and wildlife commission, and the director of the division of parks and wildlife, has submitted to the general assembly a list of programs and associated costs that are eligible to receive funding from the trust fund as follows:$2,380,000 for the upper Colorado river endangered fish recovery program and San Juan river basin recovery implementation program;$60,000 for Rio Grande native fish protection and habitat improvements;$60,000 for selenium management, research, monitoring, evaluation, and control;$1,250,000 for native terrestrial wildlife conservation; and$1,250,000 for native aquatic wildlife conservation. Trust fund money made available for native terrestrial wildlife conservation is not available for purposes of importing new wolves for reintroduction into the state for state fiscal year 2026-27.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires a volunteer lobbyist to register and file a registration statement attesting they are not being compensated. The act exempts volunteer lobbyists from registration fees. The act provides that the judicial department may designate one individual for the judicial department and one individual for each independent agency in the judicial department who may lobby on behalf of the judicial department or an independent agency in the judicial department (judicial lobbyist). A person designated by a principal executive department to be responsible for lobbying a state official or employee on behalf of the department (legislative liaison), a judicial lobbyist, or an individual who lobbies on behalf of the offices of the governor or lieutenant governor as a member of the governor's cabinet or as a personal staff employee in the offices of the governor or the lieutenant governor (governor's lobbyist) must register with the secretary of state annually. In addition to annually registering with the secretary of state, a legislative liaison, judicial lobbyist, or a governor's lobbyist must file a monthly disclosure statement with the secretary of state (disclosure statement). The act provides that a legislative liaison, judicial lobbyist, or a governor's lobbyist must indicate on the disclosure statement the bill number of any legislation for which they have lobbied or will lobby a covered official and their position regarding the legislation. The legislative liaison, judicial lobbyist, or a governor's lobbyist must update their position on the disclosure statement within 72 hours of a change in position. The act prohibits a statewide elected official or member of the general assembly from being a legislative liaison or governor's lobbyist for a period of 2 years following vacation of office. $91,000 is appropriated from the department of state cash fund to the department of state.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)