In order to recompense the public employees' retirement association (PERA) for the cancellation of a previously scheduled July 1, 2020, direct distribution of $225 million, the act requires an additional direct distribution to PERA of $380 million to be made on the effective date of the act or as soon as possible thereafter. The act also reduces the $225 million July 1, 2023, direct distribution to PERA that is scheduled under current law by at least $155 million but no more than $190 million, depending upon the amount of investment income earned by PERA on the additional $380 million direct distribution so that the July 1, 2023, direct distribution will be between $35 million and $70 million. Finally, the act reduces the $225 million July 1, 2024, direct distribution to PERA that is scheduled under current law by the lesser of an amount equal to 7.25% multiplied by $380 million or an amount equal to PERA's annual rate of return on investments as reported in PERA's 2022 annual report multiplied by $380 million; except that there is no reduction if the rate of return is zero or less. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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Under the law, a business entity submits filing documents that concern the creation, organization, and operations of an entity to the secretary of state through an online filing system. By submitting a document, an individual affirms under penalty of perjury that the individual is authorized to file the document, the facts in the document are true, and the document otherwise complies with the secretary of state's filing requirements. The secretary of state saves the document in an online database as a ministerial act and does not independently verify whether the document is accurate. The act creates a complaint process for a person whose business identity or personal identifying information has been used in the filing of these documents with the secretary of state without authority or for fraudulent activity. If a complaint is submitted with the secretary of state, the secretary must forward the complaint to the attorney general for further investigation. The attorney general may investigate the complaint and refer the complaint to an administrative law judge. If an administrative law judge determines that an entity has been created fraudulently or without authorization, the secretary of state is required to: Mark the business record with a notice that the entity is fraudulent or unauthorized; Redact each address that was used without authorization from the entity's filing and from any other relevant filings; and Disable additional filing functionality on the entity's records. If an administrative law judge determines that an unauthorized filing was made for a legitimate entity, the secretary of state is required to: Mark each unauthorized filing for the entity to notify the public that the filing is unauthorized; Redact from the entity's filing and from the relevant filings each address and name that was used without authorization; and Mark the business record on the entity's filing to notify the public that the entity has been the victim of fraudulent or unauthorized acts. If a person alleged to have committed fraud or unauthorized acts fails to respond to the complaint, the allegations are deemed conceded, and the secretary of state is directed to take the appropriate steps listed above in the same manner as if the finding had been made by an administrative law judge. The act creates a working group to study measures to counteract and prevent fraudulent filings in the online business filing system. The working group has 11 persons who represent the affected state agencies, businesses, and the Colorado bar association. The working group is directed to submit a report to the general assembly by January 31, 2023, containing potential legislative provisions to counteract and prevent fraudulent filings, as well as the costs and benefits associated with each potential legislative provision. The report may include specific recommendations to the general assembly. Fraudulent filings are made an unfair or deceptive trade practice under the "Colorado Consumer Protection Act" and as such are subject to enforcement by the attorney general's office. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of human services (department) to renovate a building at the mental health institute at Fort Logan to create at least 16 additional inpatient beds for persons in need of residential behavioral health treatment. The act authorizes the new beds to be used for persons needing competency services until the backlog of such persons is eliminated, and at that point the beds may begin to serve civil patients. The act also directs the department and the department of health care policy and financing to create, develop, or contract to add at least 125 additional beds at mental health residential facilities (mental health facilities) throughout the state for adults in need of ongoing supportive services. For the new beds, the act requires the department, in collaboration with the behavioral health administration, the department of health care policy and financing, and relevant stakeholders, to establish criteria for admissions and discharge planning, quality assurance monitoring, appropriate length of stay, and compliance with applicable federal law. The act requires mental health facilities to be licensed by the department of public health and environment as an assisted living facility or by the department as a behavioral health entity during the 2022-23 state fiscal year. Starting in the 2023-24 state fiscal year, the mental health facilities must be licensed by the behavioral health administration. The act appropriates to the department from the behavioral and mental health cash fund: $728,296 for use by administration and finance; $39,854,179 for use by the office of behavioral health for contract beds and renovations in mental health residential facilities, costs associated with additional beds in department facilities, and oversight of the additional beds; $6,578,266 for costs associated with the operation of additional beds at the Colorado mental health institute at Fort Logan; $6,991,567 for capital construction at the mental health institute at Fort Logan; and $3,692,111 for capital construction at three existing department facilities to create mental health residential facilities. The act also appropriates $91,938 to the department of health care policy and financing. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill establishes the CARE center in the Colorado Springs campus of the university of Colorado (center). The purpose of the center is to provide accessible substance use prevention and treatment services to the community, train competent and culturally responsive substance use counselors, and collect data that will contribute to research regarding the efficacy of substance use interventions. The center shall submit a report on its work and data collected to the health and human services committee of the senate and the public and behavioral health and human services committee of the house of representatives, or any successor committees, on or before December 30, 2027.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The bill prohibits an employer from taking adverse action against an employee or an applicant for employment based on the employee's or applicant's COVID-19 immunization status. The bill allows an aggrieved employee or applicant for employment to file a civil action for injunctive, affirmative, and equitable relief and, if the employer acted with malice or wanton or willful misconduct or has repeatedly violated the law, the court may also award punitive damages and attorney fees and costs. Additionally, the bill specifies that the COVID-19 vaccine is not mandatory, that the state cannot require any individual to obtain a COVID-19 vaccine, and that government agencies and private businesses, including health insurers, cannot discriminate against clients, patrons, or customers based on their COVID-19 vaccination status. A person aggrieved by a violation of these prohibitions may file a civil action for injunctive and other appropriate relief and may be awarded punitive damages and attorney fees and costs for wanton, willful, or repeated violations. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The fire and police pension association (association) administers a number of retirement plans for police officers and firefighters throughout the state, including the statewide defined benefit plan, the statewide hybrid plan, and the social security supplemental plan. Effective January 1, 2023, the act merges these 3 plans into separate components of a new plan to be known as the "statewide retirement plan". The act provides for the following with respect to the statewide retirement plan: The administration of the plan by the association; The deposit and investment of funds for the plan; Membership requirements; Employer and member contribution rates for each component of the plan, including phased future increases for specified rates; The purchase of service credit by members; Vesting and retirement eligibility requirements; Annual actuarial valuation of the plan; Actions that may be taken by the board of the association to ensure that the plan is fully funded on an actuarially sound basis; Pension and optional survivor benefits; Late and deferred retirement options; Cost of living adjustments; Refunds of contributions to members; and Modification of the plan by the board of the association. The act also: Provides for the confidentiality of information contained in the records of members of the association; Extends the deadline to file an application for disability; and Makes conforming amendments to and repeals portions of the existing statutes governing the statewide defined benefit plan, the statewide hybrid plan, and the social security supplemental plan.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill extends the right to use deadly physical force against an intruder under certain conditions to include owners, managers, and employees of a business. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
Subject to available appropriations, the act requires the department of corrections to create a brain injury pilot program to evaluate outcomes for offenders with a brain injury who received screening and support while in the criminal justice system.The act creates in the department of human services the brain injury support in the criminal justice system task force to develop a plan to integrate into the criminal justice system a model to identify and support individuals with a brain injury who are in the criminal justice system.The act appropriates $144,409 and an additional 0.9 FTE to the department of corrections.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates the Colorado prescription drug affordability review board (board) in the division of insurance (division) in the department of regulatory agencies as an independent unit of state government, requires the board to perform affordability reviews of prescription drugs, and authorizes the board to establish upper payment limits for prescription drugs the board determines are unaffordable for Colorado consumers. The board is also required to promulgate rules as necessary for its purposes.The board shall determine by rule the methodology for establishing an upper payment limit for a prescription drug. An upper payment limit applies to all purchases of and payer reimbursements for the prescription drug dispensed or administered to individuals in the state in person, by mail, or by other means. Any savings generated for a health benefit plan as a result of an upper payment limit established by the board must be used by the carrier that issued the health benefit plan to reduce costs to consumers, prioritizing the reduction of out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs.On and after January 1, 2022, the act prohibits, with certain exceptions, any purchase or payer reimbursement for a prescription drug at an amount that exceeds the upper payment limit established by the board for that prescription drug.A person aggrieved by a decision of the board may appeal the decision within 60 days. The board shall consider the appeal and issue a final decision concerning the appeal within 60 days after the board receives the appeal. Final board decisions are subject to judicial review.Any prescription drug manufacturer (manufacturer) that intends to withdraw from sale or distribution within the state a prescription drug for which the board has established an upper payment limit must notify, at least 180 days before the withdrawal:The commissioner; The attorney general; and Each entity in the state with which the manufacturer has contracted for the sale or distribution of the prescription drug. The commissioner may impose a penalty of up to $500,000 on a manufacturer that fails to comply with the notice requirement. The board is directed to adopt rules regarding notice to consumers of a manufacturer's intent to withdraw a prescription drug from sale or distribution in the state.Beginning in the 2022 calendar year, for all prescription drugs dispensed at a pharmacy and paid for by a carrier during the immediately preceding calendar year, the act requires each carrier and each pharmacy benefit management firm acting on behalf of a carrier to report certain information to the all-payer health claims database.The act creates the Colorado prescription drug affordability advisory council to provide stakeholder input to the board.The board must submit an annual report to the governor and to subject matter committees of the general assembly summarizing the activities of the board during the preceding calendar year, and the chair of the board must present to those committees information concerning any prescription drug for which the board established an upper payment limit during the preceding calendar year. Upon approval of a majority of the committee members, any member of the committees may pursue legislation to discontinue the upper payment limit for a particular prescription drug, and the legislation does not count against the limit on the number of bills the member may introduce in a regular legislative session.The board and its functions are repealed, effective September 1, 2026, following a sunset review by the department of regulatory agencies.For the 2021-2022 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $730,711 from the division of insurance cash fund to the department of regulatory agencies. Of this amount, $325,297 is appropriated for use by the division for personal services, $22,650 is appropriated for use by the division for operating expenses, and $382,824 is appropriated for the purchase of legal services, which amount is reappropriated to the department of law for providing legal services.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)