To recompense the public employees' retirement association (PERA) for the cancellation of a previously scheduled July 1, 2020, direct distribution of $225 million, House Bill 22-1029, concerning a requirement that the state make an additional direct distribution to the public employees' retirement association to fully recompense the association for the cancellation of a previously scheduled July 1, 2020, direct distribution, required an additional direct distribution to PERA. However, the additional direct distribution did not fully recompense PERA for the cancellation of the previously scheduled direct distribution. To fully recompense PERA, the act requires the state treasurer to issue a warrant to PERA that consists of the balance of the PERA payment cash fund plus $10 million paid from the general fund. The PERA payment cash fund is repealed, effective July 1, 2023. APPROVED by Governor June 2, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 2, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act creates the "In God We Trust" license plate for motor vehicles. In addition to the normal fees for a license plate, a person must pay 2 additional one-time fees of $25 for the issuance of the plate. One of these fees is credited to the highway users tax fund and the other fee is credited to the Colorado DRIVES vehicle services account. To implement the act, $31,212 is appropriated to the department of revenue for use by the division of motor vehicles. The appropriation consists of $4,293 from the general fund and $26,919 from the license plate cash fund. APPROVED by Governor June 2, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The justice reinvestment crime prevention initiative (initiative) is administered by the division of local government (division) in the department of local affairs (department) to expand small business lending and provide grants aimed at reducing crime and promoting community development. The initiative consists of the targeted crime reduction grant program, which provides funding to eligible entities for programs, projects, or direct services aimed at reducing crime and promoting community development in certain target communities, and a statewide business and entrepreneurship training and grant program for justice-system-involved persons. The targeted crime reduction grant program cash fund (fund) was continuously appropriated to the department for the purposes of these 2 grant programs. The act specifies that for state fiscal year 2023-24 and subsequent fiscal years, the department may expend money from the fund subject to annual appropriation and that the department may use any remaining appropriated money during the year following the year for which the general assembly appropriated the money. The act specifies that the statewide business and entrepreneurship training and grant program for justice-system-involved persons will be repealed on September 1, 2024. The department may expend money from the justice reinvestment initiative expansion account (account) in the fund for the purposes of expanding the targeted crime reduction grant program to Grand Junction and Trinidad and to implement the grant program for justice-system-involved persons. The law required the state treasurer to transfer any money remaining in the account to the general fund on July 1, 2023 and specified that the account will repeal on September 1, 2023. The act changes the repeal date of the account to September 1, 2024, and requires the state treasurer to transfer any money remaining in the account to the fund on July 1, 2024. The act specifies that the department may expend the transferred money for the targeted crime reduction grant program and the grant program for justice-system-involved persons. The act clarifies that the initiative is repealed, effective September 1, 2027, and that the department of regulatory agencies will review the initiative for repeal, continuation, or reestablishment before the initiative is repealed. For the 2023-24 state fiscal year, $3,000,000 is appropriated from reappropriated funds in the fund to the department of local affairs to fund crime prevention initiative grants. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act changes the date upon which the department of public health and environment must begin providing reimbursements to eligible schools that serve students in sixth, seventh, or eighth grade for costs associated with the testing of drinking water from March 15, 2024, to June 1, 2023. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of health care policy and financing (state department) to study the feasibility of extending continuous medical coverage for additional children and adults. The state department is required to submit a report detailing its findings and recommendations from the feasibility study to the joint budget committee of the senate and house of representatives, the governor, and to the house of representatives public and behavioral health and human services committee and the senate health and human services committee, or any successor committees, by January 1, 2026, and also make the report publicly available. No later than April 1, 2024, the state department must seek federal authorization to extend continuous eligibility coverage for children under 3 years of age, including children who would be eligible for medical assistance coverage but are not because of their immigration status, and to extend eligibility coverage for 12 months for adults who have been released from a Colorado department of corrections facility, regardless of any change in income during that time. Upon approval of the federal authorization, the state department shall implement continuous eligibility coverage by January 1, 2026. The act appropriates $337,765 from the general fund to the state department for use by the executive director's office (office). From this appropriation the office may use $192,915 for personal services, $20,050 for operating expenses, and $124,800 for general professional services and special projects. The act anticipates that the state department will receive $337,765 in federal funds to implement this act. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act eliminates the requirement that a local government that offers police or fire protection services (employer) must contribute to the law enforcement officers' and firefighters' continuation of benefits fund (fund) to be eligible to have the continuation of medical and dental benefits for dependents of an employee who died in a work-related death paid for from the fund for one year. Instead, the act makes any employer eligible to have the continuation of benefits paid for from the fund for one year when an employee dies in a work-related death. To provide for the costs of ongoing claims, the state treasurer is directed to transfer $150,000 from the general fund to the fund on July 1, 2023, and on July 1 each year thereafter through July 1, 2025. For the 2023-24 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $150,000 from the fund to the department of the treasury to be used for the implementation of the act. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of health care policy and financing (department) to: At least quarterly, publish on its website an audit activity report detailing current and recently completed recovery audits and summaries of the findings of recovery audits; When the department enters into a new contract for recovery audits, post on its website a copy of the contract, scope of work, and information regarding supervision of contractor deliverables for such audits; At least quarterly, conduct trainings for providers and hold stakeholder meetings; and Create a provider advisory group to advise the department on issues that providers have concerning the recovery audits. The act requires the office of the state auditor to: During the 2023-24 state fiscal year, contract for an independent review of the department's recovery audit contractor program for compliance with requirements of the federal recovery audit contractor's program, coding practice standards, and state law; and Contract with an entity to assess federal flexibilities to improve the recovery audit contractors program and assist the department in pursuing those flexibilities. The act appropriates from the general fund $39,287 to the department and $850,000 to the legislative department for use by the office of the state auditor. APPROVED by Governor June 1, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of health care policy and financing (department) to seek federal authorization through an amendment to the state medical assistance plan to implement the community first choice option. The act requires the state plan amendment to include personal care services, homemaker services, health maintenance activities, personal emergency response systems and other emergency back-up services, and voluntary training on how to select, manage, and dismiss an attendant. The act authorizes the department to provide permissible services and supports that are linked to an assessed need or goal in an individual's person-centered service plan, including transition costs and expenditures relating to increasing an individual's independence or reducing reliance on human assistance. To be eligible for the community first choice option, an individual must: Be eligible for the state medical assistance program; Be in an eligibility group under the state medical assistance program that includes nursing facility services, or if in an eligibility group that does not include nursing facility services, have an income that is at or below 150% of the federal poverty level; or Receive an annual determination that in the absence of home- and community-based attendant services and supports, the individual would require the level of care furnished in certain care settings. The act makes conforming amendments to remove the services provided through the community first choice option from other long-term care waiver programs. APPROVED by Governor May 25, 2023 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE May 25, 2023 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE July 1, 2025 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates the accountability, accreditation, student performance, and resource inequity task force (task force) to study academic opportunities, inequities, promising practices in schools, and improvements to the accountability and accreditation system. The act requires the speaker and minority leader of the house of representatives, the president and minority leader of the senate, the governor, and the department of education (department) to appoint members to the task force no later than July 1, 2023. The task force consists of 26 members, including members who represent statewide education organizations, the department, the state board of education (state board), school district board of education members, charter schools, superintendents, principals, and teachers. The act requires the department to enter into a contract with a facilitator to guide the work of the task force no later than August 15, 2023. The act requires the department to enter into a contract with a third party to draft an interim report and final report. The task force is required to submit an interim report by March 1, 2024, and a final report by November 15, 2024, reflecting its findings and recommendations to the education committees of the house of representatives and senate, the governor, the state board, the commissioner of education, and the department. The act appropriates $300,709 from the general fund to the department to implement the task force. APPROVED by Governor May 24, 2023 EFFECTIVE May 24, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act specifies that when a property tax assessor values real property, the property tax assessor shall consider: The current use; Existing zoning and other governmental land use or environmental regulations and restrictions; Multi-year leases or other contractual arrangements affecting the use of or income from real property; Easements and reservations of record; and Covenants, conditions, and restrictions of record. Beginning January 1, 2024, the act requires counties with a population greater than 300,000 to use an alternative procedure to determine objections and protests of property tax valuations in any year of general reassessment of real property that is valued biennially. At the request of a taxpayer, the law requires a property tax assessor to provide the taxpayer with certain data that the assessor used to determine the value of the taxpayer's property. The act clarifies that the data the assessor is required to provide must include the primary method and rates the assessor used to value the property. APPROVED by Governor May 24, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)