Rep. Monica Duran

The act requires, on or before July 1, 2026, the Colorado school for the deaf and the blind, and each institute charter school, district charter school, and a local board of education for its schools that are not district charter schools, to adopt, implement, and post on its website a policy concerning student communication device possession and use during the school day. At a minimum, the policy must describe the prohibitions and exceptions, if any, regarding student communication device possession and use during the school day. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act expands the veterans mental health services program to provide grants to local nonprofit organizations to establish and expand community behavioral health programs that provide behavioral health services to service members, veterans, and family members of service members and veterans. The act reduces the reappropriated funds appropriation made in the long bill to the department of military and veterans affairs for use by the division of veterans affairs for veterans mental health services by $5,000,000; except that the reduction is not made if: The amount of reappropriated funds made in the long bill to the department of military and veterans affairs for use by the division of veterans affairs for veterans mental health is less than $5,000,000; or The long bill does not include an appropriation to the department of military and veterans affairs for use by the division of veterans affairs for veterans mental health.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, a parent who wants to relinquish their child must satisfy certain requirements. If the parent who wants to relinquish their child is a victim of sexual assault that resulted in the conception of the child to be relinquished, the act: Allows the relinquishment petitioner (petitioner) to provide the juvenile court with documentation concerning the sexual assault or conception, including a sworn affidavit; Exempts the petitioner from having to satisfy certain relinquishment requirements if the court finds that the petitioner is a victim of sexual assault that resulted in the conception of the child to be relinquished; and Exempts the petitioner of all legal obligations they may have with respect to the child if the court grants a final order of relinquishment. On or before January 1, 2026, the state court administrator shall develop a, or modify an existing, standardized form for a petitioner to file to terminate another person's parent-child legal relationship because the child was conceived as a result of sexual assault. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act suspends legislative interim committee activities during the 2025 legislative interim (interim). Specifically, the act: Prohibits the legislative council of the general assembly from prioritizing any requests for interim committees, including task forces, for the 2025 interim; For an interim committee that meets during 2025 interim, limits the number of bills the committee can request to be drafted to 5 and can recommend for introduction to 3; Prohibits meetings, field trips, and legislative recommendations and reports by, and suspends for one year certain reports required to be submitted to, existing interim committees, including the legislative emergency preparedness, response, and recovery committee; legislative oversight committee for Colorado jail standards; statewide health care review committee; Colorado health insurance exchange oversight committee; opioid and other substance use disorders study committee; pension review commission and pension review subcommittee; legislative oversight committee concerning tax policy; and sales and use tax simplification task force; and Prohibits members serving on statutorily created interim committees from receiving per diem and travel expenses for attending interim committee meetings during the 2025 interim except for attendance at a meeting of the wildfire matters review committee, the water resources and agriculture review committee, and the transportation legislation review committee. The act removes the authority of the Colorado youth advisory council review committee to recommend legislation through the interim committee process. The act reduces appropriations made in the legislative department's budget bill by $272,355. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the department of corrections (department) to search all information available to the department to determine whether an offender held at a correctional facility is subject to an outstanding warrant or if the offender has a pending case in a Colorado court. The department is required to conduct the search when the department conducts the initial comprehensive evaluation of the offender's sentence and 3 to 8 months prior to the offender's community correction eligibility date. The act requires the department to establish guidelines and policies that address requests for additional searches as may be needed by the public defender liaison to the department. If the department determines that an offender is subject to a warrant or has a pending case in a Colorado court, the department shall notify the offender, the public defender liaison to the department, and the court that issued the warrant or in which the case is pending, as applicable. The general assembly encourages a court to ensure the offender appears before the court, is assigned counsel if the defendant is eligible for court-appointed counsel, allows the offender to resolve the warrant in a timely manner, and facilitates virtual appearance for the offender. The act does not prohibit the department from searching for outstanding warrants at any other time. The act requires the office of state public defender to designate an email address for the public defender liaisons to the department of corrections to receive notifications from the department. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

For school districts and the state charter school institute (institute), the act requires the department of education (department) to develop a streamlined format for a performance, improvement, priority improvement, or turnaround plan (plan) that consolidates various state, federal, and grant reporting requirements and allows a school district or the institute to attach a locally developed action portion of the plan that addresses action steps, resources, and any other plan components identified in state board of education (state board) rule. For schools of a school district or district charter schools (district public schools) or institute charter schools, the act requires the department to develop a streamlined format for a plan that consolidates various state, federal, and grant reporting requirements and allows a local school board for the district public school, or the institute if the public school is an institute charter school, to attach a locally developed action portion of the plan that addresses action steps, resources, and any other plan components identified in state board rule. The department shall maintain a centralized system for plan submissions so the department can conduct a statewide analysis in order to determine how to best distribute state resources and supports. On or before August 31, 2025, and regularly thereafter, the department must collect user feedback to assess the extent to which the streamlined format for plans is used, whether it is helpful, and how to use this feedback to improve the centralized system. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act permits a state-owned psychiatric residential treatment facility to use a secure perimeter fence around the facility. The act clarifies that placement of a juvenile in a state-owned psychiatric residential treatment facility is not considered detention and placement in a state-owned psychiatric residential treatment facility is not considered restraint. The state board of health is required to adopt rules for admission to the facility in compliance with other applicable regulations. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

In 2021, Senate Bill 21-108 "Concerning gas pipeline safety" was enacted, requiring the public utilities commission (commission) to adopt rules related to gas pipeline safety and repair, including rules related to advanced leak detection technology. The act requires the commission to adopt the rules regarding advanced leak detection technology on or before November 1, 2025. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the state board of education to adopt rules that consider a number of factors in determining the amount of money each school participating in the K-5 social and emotional health pilot program will receive in order to carry out the pilot program. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill designates Colorado American Indian Recognition Day as an observed, but not a legal, state holiday. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)