The act implements the recommendation of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the veterans assistance grant program (program) by continuing the program for 7 years, until September 1, 2031. The act requires the adjutant general to promulgate rules that set forth criteria and procedures for identifying underserved veteran populations, with the intent to prioritize allocating program money to improve access to services for underserved veterans. The act requires the department of military and veterans affairs to annually report to the general assembly the criteria used to identify underserved veteran populations and how program money was allocated to meet the needs of underserved veterans. APPROVED by Governor June 4, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act requires towns, cities, school districts, special districts, and other taxing authorities to submit, with their annual certification of levies, the following information for each levy that the taxing authority imposes: The rate of each levy; The prior year levy and revenue collected from the levy; The maximum levy that may be levied without further voter approval; The allowable annual growth in revenue collected from the levy; The actual growth in revenue collected from the levy over the prior year; Whether revenue from the levy is allowed to be retained and spent as a voter-approved revenue change pursuant to section 20 (7)(b) of article X of the state constitution; Whether revenue from the levy is subject to a specified statutory limit on annual revenue growth; Whether revenue from the levy is subject to any other limit on annual revenue growth enacted by the taxing authority or other local government; Whether the levy must be adjusted, or whether a mill levy credit must be allowed, to collect a certain amount of revenue for the tax year and, if applicable, that amount of revenue; and Any other information determined necessary by the department of local affairs. The board of county commissioners or other body authorized by law to levy taxes shall provide this information, along with the identity of the entity that fixes each levy rate, with its annual certification of levies. Counties, in coordination with the property tax administrator, are required to ensure that this information is publicly available. The act also removes the requirement that an annual notice of valuation sent to a property owner by a county assessor contain an estimate or an estimated range of the taxes owed for the current property tax year. The act removes the requirement that the state treasurer reduce a local government entity's reimbursement, as necessary, to prevent the entity from exceeding its fiscal year spending limit under section 20 (7)(b) of article X of the state constitution when calculating reimbursements to local governmental entities for the property tax year commencing on January 1, 2023, to account for the reduction in property tax revenue as a result of the cumulative temporary reductions in valuation for assessment made in Senate Bill 23B-001. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, $50,296 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of local affairs for use by the division of local government, of which $27,198 is reappropriated to the office of the governor for use by the office of information technology to provide information technology services for the department of local affairs. APPROVED by Governor June 3, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 3, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act: Repeals the broadband deployment board (board); Transfers the function of awarding grant money in the high cost support mechanism from the board to the Colorado broadband office (office) and authorizes the office to award grants for middle mile infrastructure; pole replacements, attachments, and other infrastructure; and other underfunded broadband needs throughout the state (grant program); Authorizes the office to conduct or cause to be conducted studies to assess broadband needs in the state; Requires the office to solicit public input regarding the grant program; Requires the office to establish a work group of stakeholders to help review grant applications for the grant program; Authorizes the chief information officer in the office of information technology (OIT) to adopt rules regarding the grant program; and Repeals the grant-making function of the office on September 1, 2030, subject to review by the department of regulatory agencies. The act decreases appropriations made in the annual general appropriation act for the 2024-25 state fiscal year to the office of the governor as follows: The amount from various cash funds for health, life, and dental for the office of information technology is decreased by $25,826; and The amount from various cash funds for enterprise solutions for OIT is decreased by $254,276 and the related FTE is decreased by 2.0 FTE. APPROVED by Governor May 22, 2024 EFFECTIVE September 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
A "youth sports organization" is a private for-profit or not-for-profit organization that, as part of its core function, provides persons who are under 18 years of age the opportunity to participate in scheduled competitive or recreational sporting activities, whether individually or as a team. "Youth sports organization" does not include a neighborhood youth organization, a K-12 school, a licensed child care facility, an institution of higher education, or an organization that provides walk-in-basis sporting activities. A youth sports organization and local government that provides youth athletic activities is required to have at least one adult who possesses a current first aid and CPR/AED education certification present at each youth athletic activity. All youth sports organization coaches who work directly with youth members, and any chaperone who accompanies the youth sports organization on any trip that includes one or more overnight stays, must obtain a criminal history record check prior to employment or approval as a chaperone, and if the coach or chaperone lived outside the U.S. for more than 180 days since the coach's or chaperone's last criminal history record check, the person shall also obtain an international criminal history record check. A volunteer who is not acting in the capacity of a coach or manager and who only occasionally assists with the youth sports organization is not required to obtain a criminal history record check. A youth sports organization shall not hire a person as a coach or approve a person as a chaperone and shall terminate a coach or revoke the approval for a chaperone if a criminal history record check shows that the person has been convicted of felony child abuse, a felony offense involving unlawful sexual behavior, a crime of violence, or any comparable offense committed in another state. A person who takes part in the activities of a youth sports organization but who is not required to obtain a criminal history record check pursuant to this section or is unable to obtain a criminal history record check must at all times be supervised by a person who has been hired or approved after obtaining a criminal history record check. The act requires a local government that provides a youth athletic activity to comply with the criminal history record check requirements. The act creates a cause of action for failing to conduct a background check. A local government offering a local government-sponsored youth athletic activity may charge a person any fees for the required criminal history record check. Information obtained by a local government through the criminal history record check is not subject to the open records act. VETOED by Governor May 17, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Under current law, the independent ethics commission created in article XXIX of the state constitution does not have jurisdiction over officials or employees of special districts or school districts. The bill gives the independent ethics commission jurisdiction to hear complaints, issue findings, assess penalties, and issue advisory opinions on ethics issues concerning a special district official or employee or school district official or employee. Existing law establishes ethical standards for a special district official or employee or school district official or employee. The bill incorporates those standards under the independent ethics commission's jurisdiction and expands the standards to include those described in article XXIX of the state constitution.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
Current law declares void any express waivers of or limitations on the legal rights or remedies provided by the "Construction Defect Action Reform Act" or the "Colorado Consumer Protection Act". Sections 1 and 4 make it a violation of the "Colorado Consumer Protection Act" to obtain or attempt to obtain a waiver or limitation that violates the aforementioned current law. Section 4 also requires a court to award to a claimant that prevails in a claim arising from alleged defects in a residential property construction, in addition to actual damages, prejudgment interest on the claim at a rate of 6% from the date the work is finished to the date it is sold to an occupant and 8% thereafter. Current law requires that a lawsuit against an architect, a contractor, a builder or builder vendor, an engineer, or an inspector performing or furnishing the design, planning, supervision, inspection, construction, or observation of construction of an improvement to real property must be brought within 6 years after the claim arises. Section 2 increases the amount of time in which a lawsuit may be brought from 6 to 10 years. Current law also provides that a claim of relief arises when a defect's physical manifestation was discovered or should have been discovered. Section 2 also changes the time when a claim of relief arises to include both the discovery of the physical manifestation and the cause of the defect. Section 3 voids a provision in a real estate contract that prohibits group lawsuits against a construction professional. Section 5 of the bill prohibits governing documents of a common interest community from setting different or additional requirements than those in current law for a construction defect action.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The act prohibits a person from knowingly affiliating with a public safety radio network without authorization from the network's authorizing entity. Unlawful affiliation with a public safety radio network is a class 2 misdemeanor. APPROVED by Governor May 1, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
For the state fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, and for each state fiscal year thereafter through the state fiscal year beginning July 1, 2033, the bill allows a data center business or a data center operator (taxpayer) to claim a rebate for all state sales and use tax that the taxpayer paid for construction materials or data center equipment that is for the construction or operation of an eligible data center. To be eligible to claim a sales and use tax rebate, a taxpayer is required to obtain certification from the Colorado office of economic development (office) stating that the data center is an eligible data center and that the taxpayer may claim a rebate of state sales and use tax (certification). An "eligible data center" is defined as a data center that creates a specified number of jobs, generates a specified amount of revenue, and requires a specified amount of power. The sales and use tax rebate is allowed only for the sale, storage, or use of construction materials or data center equipment that occurs on or after the date that the taxpayer obtains certification from the office. When a taxpayer believes that the data center that will be identified in a sales and use tax rebate application satisfies the criteria to be an eligible data center, the taxpayer may apply to the office for the certification. The taxpayer must demonstrate in the certification application that the data center is an eligible data center, and the taxpayer is required to submit any documentation or proof that the office deems necessary to determine whether a data center satisfies the criteria to be an eligible data center. Before issuing a certification, the office shall provide the application to the Colorado economic development commission (commission) to determine whether the data center satisfies the criteria to be an eligible data center, and the commission shall approve or deny the certification. When approving an application for certification as an eligible data center, the commission may limit a certification by specifying that an eligible data center may claim a rebate only up to a specified dollar amount based on specified economic development priorities. The commission may issue certification for up to 3 data centers to claim a sales and use tax rebate in any fiscal year. If the commission determines that a data center satisfies the criteria to be an eligible data center, the office is required to notify the department of revenue (department) and issue a certification to the taxpayer. To claim a sales and use tax rebate, a taxpayer must submit a rebate application and a copy of the certification from the office to the department. A taxpayer is required to submit certain documentation with the application. The bill allows a taxpayer to assign a certification to specified types of parties after it is awarded. The bill requires the office and the department to prepare an annual report including information regarding eligible data centers and state sales and use tax rebates allowed. The office is required to submit the report to the finance committees of the house of representatives and senate. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The act establishes a statutory bill of rights for children and youth (youth) in foster care in Colorado, including youth participating in the foster youth in transition program but excluding youth detained by or committed to the care and physical custody of the division of youth services. The office of the child's representative shall develop a written notice of the rights, and a county department of human or social services shall provide each youth who is 5 years of age or older with the written notice in the youth's primary language at the time of the youth's initial placement in foster care, at each placement change, and at least annually. APPROVED by Governor April 24, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act applies conduct pertaining to false slates of electors to 5 existing crimes that make it unlawful for an individual to: Offer a false instrument for recording; Commit forgery; Conspire to offer a false instrument for recording or to commit forgery; Commit perjury; or Commit subornation of perjury. Each crime is punishable by a fine of no more than $10,000. In addition, a defendant who is convicted of the crime of perjury or subornation of perjury for knowingly and falsely swearing or attesting to the oath required by law for presidential electors or inducing another to knowingly and falsely swear or attest to the oath required by law for presidential electors is disqualified, as required by the state constitution, from being a member of the general assembly and from holding any office of trust or profit in the state. APPROVED by Governor April 19, 2024 EFFECTIVE July 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)