Rep. Tammy Story

The act creates the Colorado wildlife safe passages fund (fund) within the state treasury and transfers $5,000,000 from the general fund to the fund. Money in the fund is continuously appropriated to the department of transportation (department) to provide funding for projects that provide safe road crossings for connectivity of wildlife and reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions, for the full range of wildlife crossing project needs, and for matching requirements for federal grant programs relating to wildlife crossing projects. The department must consult with the division of parks and wildlife and the Colorado wildlife and transportation alliance regarding the disbursement of money from the fund and must annually report on the disbursement of such money. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

For the 2021-22 and 2022-23 school years, the act prohibits a school district or board of cooperative services from using measures of student academic growth derived from the Colorado growth model or from considering the performance plan type implemented by the school district or board of cooperative services or by a school in determining evaluation ratings for licensed personnel. For the 2022-23 budget year, the act appropriates $21,265 from the general fund to the department of education to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The creative industries division in the office of economic development is authorized to spend money credited to the creative industries cash fund from the capital construction fund for the purposes of the art in public places program that is unexpended and unencumbered at the end of a fiscal year in the next 2 fiscal years, rather than in the next fiscal year only, without further appropriation. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill makes the following modifications to statutory provisions governing special districts to increase the accountability of special districts to taxpayers: If a separate legal entity established by contract includes one or more special districts, requires the separate legal entity to file with the division of local government in the department of local affairs certain financial information pertaining to the special district. In such circumstances, the directors of the special district are also required to comply with oath and bond requirements for directors of special districts.Expands existing requirements on the information a metropolitan district must include on its public website to include information that is required by the service plan of the metropolitan district, by an ordinance or resolution adopted by the board of commissioners of a county, or by the governing body of a municipality, as applicable;Expands the applicability of statutory provisions governing the approval and oversight of special districts to specify that these provisions do not apply when a special district that was originally approved at any time thereafter becomes wholly included within the boundaries of one or more municipalities;Specifies information to be included in the financial plan that a new district submits along with its service plan;Removes an existing cap on the amount of the fee that a special district must pay the board of county commissioners for processing review of a service plan; For any proposed special metropolitan district that has any property within its boundaries that is zoned or valued for assessment as residential, enumerates certain acts that are disallowed for any service plan required to be filed by the district. A local government acting on a service plan is prohibited from approving a service plan for a special metropolitan district that permits any of these same acts the purchase of district debt by any entity with respect to which any director of the district has a conflict of interest necessitating disclosure .Clarifies requirements affecting the oversight by a municipality that is wholly contained within the boundaries of the municipality, especially in connection with an annexing municipality;Expands the circumstances under which material modifications of a special district's service plan are approved by the county or municipality, as applicable, to include the situation when the special district after initial approval of the plan becomes wholly included within the boundaries of a newly annexed municipality;Specifies that approval is also required for any action or omission of a special district that is materially inconsistent with the district's service plan. Expands the list of examples of acts or omissions necessitating approval.Authorizes a board of county commissioners for a district that lies entirely within the territorial boundaries of a county or the governing body of a municipality for a district that lies entirely within the boundaries of a municipality to impose a fee to offset the costs incurred by the county or municipality, as applicable, in reviewing the operations of the district and the district's compliance with its service plan. The fee is not payable more than once annually. Prohibits a member of the board of a district that approved the issuance of any debt while the member was serving on the board from thereafter acquiring any interest in the debt individually or on behalf of any organization or entity for which the board member is engaged as an employee, counsel, consultant, representative, or agent; except that this requirement does not apply to debt acquired indirectly through an investment fund if the member has no input into or control over the individual securities that the fund purchases; Prior to issuing debt to a director of a metropolitan district or to an entity with respect to which a director of a metropolitan district must make disclosure of a conflict of interest, the bill requires the board of the metropolitan district to receive a statement of a registered municipal advisor certifying that the interest rate of the debt does not exceed the lesser of: The interest rate allowed under a method of calculation specified in the bill; or The current market interest rate for the debt based on criteria determined by the municipal advisor, examples of which are listed in the bill; Requires all meetings of a board of a special district that are held solely at physical locations to be held at physical locations that are within the boundaries of the district or that are within the boundaries of any county in which the district is located, in whole or in part, without exceptions or the possibility of a waiver;Clarifies that the powers of the board of directors of any metropolitan district are limited by the district's service plan;On and after September 1, 2022, prohibits a metropolitan district from entering into any new contract or agreement as of that date to furnish covenant enforcement and design review services. On and after September 1, 2022, the bill prohibits a metropolitan district from renewing any existing agreement entered into prior to that date to furnish covenant enforcement and design review services. Upon the expiration of the agreement, the master association or similar entity contracting with the metropolitan district is required to assume covenant enforcement and design review services.Under current law, under specified circumstances, the board of county commissioners or the governing body of the municipality that has adopted a resolution of approval of the special district may require the board of the special district to file an application for a finding of reasonable diligence every 5 years. The bill makes this an annual requirement. Makes proof of the commission of such act by a preponderance of the evidence proof that the director has breached the director's fiduciary duty and the public trust. (Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.) (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill requires an electric or gas utility to determine if a forecasted severe weather event (event) warrants notification to its customers located in the path of the event. If the utility determines notification is warranted, the utility shall send notification to its customers to inform customers of the event, provide specific suggestions for how to conserve energy, alert customers to the potential electricity or fuel price increase resulting from the event, and provide customer service contact information for the utility. A utility shall send notification to customers by 2 or more types of immediate communication, including text messages or alerts, e-mails, or telephone calls. Additionally, the utility may issue a public service announcement on one or more television or radio stations.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current law states that, with certain exceptions, a unit owners' association (association) of a common interest community (community) may regulate the use of common elements of the community (common elements). The act states that, in regulating the use of common elements, an association shall preserve and protect unit owners' ability to use and enjoy common elements and shall not unreasonably restrict or prohibit unit owners' access to, or enjoyment of, any common element. During maintenance, repair, replacement, or modification of a common element, an association may restrict or prohibit unit owners' access to, and enjoyment of, a common element only to the extent and for the length of time necessary to: Protect the safety of any individuals, including unit owners and individuals performing the maintenance, repair, replacement, or modification of the common element; or Preserve the structural integrity or condition of a repair, replacement, or modification. If an association must restrict or prohibit unit owners' access to one or more common elements for more than 72 hours, the association shall provide an electronic or written notice to each unit owner and post a visible, clearly legible notice at each physical access point to the common element, which notice includes: A simple explanation of the reason for the restriction or prohibition; An indication of the estimated time or date upon which the restriction or prohibition will no longer exist; and A telephone number or e-mail address whereby a unit owner may pose questions or concerns about the restriction or prohibition for the consideration of the association.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act authorizes a board of education of a school district and the governing body of a district charter school or of an institute charter school to meet in executive session to discuss negotiations for an employment contract with one or more finalists for the position of chief executive officer, as long as the following conditions have been satisfied: The board or governing body has named more than one candidate as a finalist for the position of chief executive officer; and The board or governing body holds a public forum to conduct interviews with each of the finalists. The act defines "chief executive officer" as a superintendent of a school district or a chief executive officer of a charter school. The act clarifies that the board or governing body may, in addition to interviewing finalists in a public forum, interview finalists in executive session and instruct personnel and representatives to begin contract negotiations with one or more candidates in executive session, including the necessary process to prioritize, for the purposes of negotiation, one or more finalists after public forums have been completed. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Beginning January 1, 2023, the act increases the salary of full-time newly elected or reelected category II county coroners to match the salary of category II county treasurers, assessors, clerks, and commissioners. The act allows the board of county commissioners to decline the full-time status of a category II county coroner for cause, but only after the coroner is given notice and an opportunity to be heard by the board of county commissioners in a public hearing. The act allows category III and category IV county coroners to work full-time if full-time work is agreed upon in consultation with and approved by the county commissioners. For a category III or category IV county that has a full-time county coroner only, the act increases the salary of a newly elected or reelected county coroner to match the salary of the county treasurer, assessor, clerk, and commissioner. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act excludes a special district director (director) who begins service as a director on or after July 1, 2022, from becoming eligible for membership in the public employees' retirement association (PERA) due to the director's service as a director. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill clarifies the purposes of licensed educator performance evaluations. The bill directs the state board of education (state board) to adopt rules as necessary to ensure that: Beginning in the 2022-23 school year, student academic growth is considered, without a percentage, along with the quality standards as part of a comprehensive evaluation of a teacher's or principal's performance; and Student assessment scores may be used collectively at a particular grade level or the school-building level solely for specified purposes, and collective measures may not be used beyond the school level. The bill specifies the measures a school district or board of cooperative services may consider in determining student academic growth for purposes of evaluating teacher performance. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)