Rep. Brianna Titone

Individuals applying for hunting or fishing licenses in Colorado must also purchase a Colorado wildlife habitat stamp. The division of parks and wildlife in the department of natural resources uses the money collected from the Colorado wildlife habitat stamp for the benefit of wildlife habitat or access to wildlife habitat in the state. The Colorado wildlife habitat stamp program (program) is scheduled to repeal, subject to a sunset review by the department of regulatory agencies, on July 1, 2027. The act continues the program indefinitely. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act appropriates the following amounts for the 2025-26 state fiscal year from the Colorado water conservation board (CWCB) construction fund to the CWCB or the division of water resources in the department of natural resources for the following projects: Continuation of the satellite monitoring system, $380,000 (section 1 of the act); Continuation of the floodplain map modernization program, $500,000 (section 2); Continuation of the weather modification permitting program, $500,000 (section 3); Continuation of the Colorado Mesonet project, $200,000 (section 5); Continuation of the water forecasting partnership project, $2,000,000 (section 6); Continuation of the Arkansas river decision support program, $300,000 (section 7); Continuation of technical assistance for the federal irrigation improvement cost-sharing program, $500,000 (section 8); Decision support systems model enhancements to support the Colorado water plan, $1,000,000 (section 9); Support for the basin implementation plan analysis and updates, $4,500,000 (section 10); Continuation of the Colorado watershed restoration and wildfire ready watershed programs, $5,000,000 (section 11); Support for a statewide turf analysis, $1,400,000 (section 12); Support for the Yampa river and Walton creek confluence restoration project, $2,000,000 (section 14); and Support for the south fork focus zone irrigated acreage retirement, $6,000,000 (section 15). Section 4 directs the state treasurer to transfer up to $2,000,000 from the CWCB construction fund to the CWCB litigation fund on July 1, 2025. Section 13 directs the state treasurer to transfer $500,000 from the CWCB construction fund to the plant health, pest control, and environmental protection cash fund on July 1, 2025, and makes an appropriation of that amount to the department of agriculture for use by the conservation services division for the Colorado soil health program. Section 16 authorizes the CWCB to make a loan in an amount of $12,978,500 from the severance tax perpetual base fund to the North Poudre Irrigation Company to support the park creek expansion project. Section 17 appropriates $29,200,000 from the water plan implementation cash fund to the CWCB to award grants that will help implement the state water plan. Sections 18, 19, 20, and 21 eliminate the office of water conservation under the CWCB and the water efficiency grant program, transfer remaining money from the water efficiency grant program cash fund to the severance tax perpetual base fund, and make conforming amendments accordingly. Current law authorizes the governor to appoint a director of compact negotiations. Section 22 states that the governor or the executive director of the department of natural resources shall appoint the director of compact negotiations within 30 days after a vacancy of the position. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates a permit that is issued by the department of transportation (department). The permit authorizes the holder to, for a fee, install or remove tire chains or alternate traction devices at a location designated in the permit. The department may place conditions on the permit concerning the safe and orderly movement of traffic. The department is instructed to avoid issuing permits in a manner that creates a monopoly-type situation for a permit holder at a specific location. The department may charge a fee to issue a permit to an applicant. The fee must be set in an amount to offset the direct and indirect costs of issuing these permits. The department will adopt rules to implement the act. The rules must include: The procedures for issuing a permit, the procedures for revoking a permit, and the qualifications to be issued a permit; and A requirement that the individuals installing tire chains or alternate traction devices wear reflective clothing and use appropriate signs and traffic control devices. A rental car company is required to notify its car renters of the requirements of and penalties for violating the chain law. Colorado law already authorizes the department to close roads during winter weather conditions unless a motor vehicle meets traction equipment requirements. The act also authorizes a 4-wheel-drive vehicle with tires that are imprinted by a manufacturer with a mountain-snowflake, "M&S", "M+S", or "M/S" symbol or that are all-weather rated by the manufacturer to travel on roads that the department restricts for winter weather conditions. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the future of severance taxes and water funding task force (task force). The department of natural resources is required to contract with a third party to conduct a study on severance taxes and water funding and develop recommendations for ways to continue funding water needs and energy impact grants in the face of decreasing severance tax revenue (study). The study must focus on identifying ways to alleviate the need to transfer revenues derived from severance taxes to the general fund and to replace severance tax revenue that was previously transferred to the general fund. The purpose of the task force is to work with the third party to conduct the study and develop recommendations. No later than January 15, 2026, the third party must submit a draft report, detailing the results of the study and any recommendations, to the department of natural resources and the task force for review. The task force is required to provide input on the draft report. No later than July 15, 2026, the third party must submit a final report, which incorporates the input of the task force, to the water resources and agriculture review committee (committee). The task force must present the final report to the committee during the 2026 legislative interim. The act changes the manner in which a credit allowed against severance tax in taxable years commencing January 1, 2026, but prior to January 1, 2028, is calculated. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, $198,592 is appropriated from the severance tax operational fund to the department of natural resources to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires all commercial vehicles to have a muffler. The muffler must be located so that it may be visually inspected to ensure it is present, intact, and functioning properly; except that a muffler need not be visible for inspection if certain documentation is present in the commercial vehicle and available for inspection by a peace officer. Standards are set for the necessary documentation. The act increases the fine for a violation from $500 to $1,000. The fine is not imposed if the owner or operator can show that a muffler was installed before the citation was issued and that the muffler complied with the manufacturing noise standards for the model year of the commercial vehicle. The fine is decreased by 50% if a muffler is installed within 30 days after the citation is written. The act applies to commercial vehicles with an internal combustion engine and does not apply to farm vehicles. State agencies must include language in construction contracts stating that a contractor's or subcontractor's commercial vehicle that enters a public project site is required to comply with the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires hospitals, freestanding emergency departments, and licensed health-care facilities that hold themselves out to the public as providing emergency care (facility) to provide emergency medical services to a person who presents to the facility when the person requests or a request is made on the person's behalf for emergency medical services. For each person who presents to a facility and requests emergency medical services or for each request made on the person's behalf for emergency medical services, the act requires the facility to input into a central log whether the person refused treatment or was denied treatment; whether no treatment was required; or whether the person was transferred, admitted and treated, stabilized and transferred, or discharged. The act prohibits a facility from: Denying or discriminating in providing emergency medical services to a patient for a discriminatory or unlawful reason; Penalizing or taking adverse action against a health-care provider for refusing to transfer a patient with an emergency medical condition that has not been stabilized; Delaying providing emergency medical services to a person in order to inquire about the person's ability to pay for the services; and Transferring or discharging a patient with an emergency medical condition unless certain conditions are met. A facility or health-care provider does not violate the act's requirements if certain conditions are met. The act authorizes the department of public health and environment to investigate a facility that negligently violates the requirements of the act. A physician who negligently violates the act engages in unprofessional conduct and is subject to professional discipline. If a civil monetary penalty is imposed, the act requires the maximum civil monetary penalty to be reduced by any civil monetary penalty imposed pursuant to the federal "Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act" for the same violation. The act appropriates $82,768 from the health facilities general licensure cash fund to the department of public health and environment for use by the health facilities and emergency medical services division. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Dependent upon sufficient gifts, grants, and donations received by the Colorado school of public health (school) and the department of health care policy and financing, the act requires the school to: Analyze draft model legislation for implementing a single-payer, nonprofit, publicly financed, and privately delivered universal health-care payment system for Colorado that directly compensates providers (analysis);and Submit a report detailing its findings to the health and human services committees of the house of representatives and the senate by December 31, 2026. The act also creates the statewide health-care analysis collaborative (collaborative) for the purpose of advising the school during the analysis. The collaborative is repealed, effective December 1, 2027. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Currently, a lobbyist may be either a professional lobbyist or a volunteer lobbyist. A professional lobbyist must register with the secretary of state before conducting lobbying activities with one or more covered officials. For each month in which a professional lobbyist lobbies one or more covered officials, a professional lobbyist must complete and submit a disclosure statement to the secretary of state. The bill creates a new category of lobbyist for nonprofit lobbyists and exempts nonprofit lobbyists from the registration and disclosure statement requirements for professional lobbyists. A nonprofit lobbyist is a lobbyist who is exclusively employed by a single nonprofit entity and who lobbies as an incidental part of the lobbyist's duties with the nonprofit entity. A nonprofit entity may use a nonprofit lobbyist to lobby a maximum of 30 days during a state fiscal year, with a maximum of 20 of those days occurring when the general assembly is in session. A nonprofit entity that employs a nonprofit lobbyist must report to the secretary of state the following information within 72 hours of engaging in lobbying of one or more covered officials: The name of the nonprofit lobbyist; The full legal name of the nonprofit entity on whose behalf the nonprofit lobbyist lobbied; The date on which the nonprofit lobbyist engaged in lobbying; Any matter about which the nonprofit lobbyist lobbied for the reported day; and The bill number of the legislation about which each nonprofit lobbyist lobbied for the reported day and whether the nonprofit entity is supporting, opposing, requesting amendments, or monitoring the legislation. A nonprofit entity may submit a single form for more than one nonprofit lobbyist if more than one nonprofit lobbyist lobbied for the nonprofit entity on the same day. A lobbyist who was a nonprofit lobbyist but no longer qualifies as a nonprofit lobbyist or who is employed by a nonprofit entity that does not comply with the timing limitations, and who meets the requirements of a professional lobbyist, must register and file disclosure statements with the secretary of state beginning in the month in which the lobbyist first lobbied as a professional lobbyist and must comply with the regulations imposed on a professional lobbyist. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Subject to local voter approval, the act increases the maximum allowed rate of a county lodging tax levied on the purchase price paid or charged to persons for rooms or accommodations from 2% to 6% and expands the allowed uses of lodging tax revenue to include: Public infrastructure maintenance or improvements; or Enhancing public safety measures by funding local law enforcement, fire protection services, and emergency medical services. If a county received voter approval before January 1, 2025, to specifically allocate portions of revenue from the lodging tax to allowed uses for designated purposes, the act clarifies how those previously approved allocations are preserved and how revenue attributable to an increase in the tax rate may be allocated by the county. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Joint Technology Committee. Section 1 of the bill authorizes the joint technology committee to conduct an annual review of all rates that the office of information technology (office) charges when billing users for the office's services. Section 2 requires that budget requests submitted to the joint technology committee include: Information and responses from a request for information for any budget request related to a major information technology project; and Formal market research for any budget request that is not related to a major information technology project. Section 3 provides that money in the information technology revolving fund, which the office expends to pay the costs of consolidation and information technology maintenance and upgrades, is no longer continuously appropriated to the office and instead is subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly. Section 4 repeals the office's ability to approve procurement contracts related to information technology resources on behalf of state agencies. The office may be a party to a procurement contract related to the procurement of information technology resources for a state agency if the state agency requests that the office be a party to the contract. Section 5 provides that state agencies are not required to obtain approval from the office before commencing work on a major information technology project or planning to make significant changes to the major information technology project or budget, and makes other conforming changes. Section 6 requires certain governmental bodies to issue a request for information prior to awarding a contract related to a major information technology project, and requires that the request for information be submitted to the joint technology committee as part of any budget request related to a major information technology project. Responses to a request for information related to a contract for a major information technology project must be presented to the joint technology committee if requested by the committee, and the committee shall meet in executive session to review the responses. Section 6 also requires certain governmental bodies to conduct market research prior to awarding a contract related to an information technology project that is not a major information technology project, and requires the market research to be submitted to the joint technology committee as part of any budget request related to the project.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)