Rep. Chris Kennedy

The act creates a refundable income tax credit (credit) that is available for the income tax year commencing on January 1, 2022, for a qualifying senior, which means a resident individual who: Is 65 years of age or older at the end of 2022; Has federal adjusted gross income (AGI) that is less than or equal to $75,000; and Has not claimed a homestead property tax exemption for the 2022 property tax year. The amount of the credit is $1,000 for a qualifying senior with federal AGI that is $25,000 or less. For every $500 of AGI above $25,000, the amount of the credit is reduced by $10. In the case of 2 taxpayers who share the same primary residence and who may legally file a joint return but actually file separate returns, both taxpayers may claim the credit, but the maximum credit for each taxpayer is $500 and, for every $500 of adjusted gross income above $25,000, the amount of the credit is reduced by $5. Notwithstanding the income-based reductions in the allowable credit amount, a taxpayer who also qualifies for a property tax and rent assistance grant or heat assistance grant during calendar year 2022 is eligible to receive the full credit. The property tax administrator is required to provide reports from counties related to taxpayers who are eligible for and actually claim the homestead property tax exemption. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act expands the definition of "earmark" for purposes of the "Fair Campaign Practices Act" to include contributions or expenditures greater than $1,000 to support or oppose a specified ballot issue or ballot question. The act also modifies the process to determine whether an organization is an issue committee to include an examination of the organization's pattern of conduct based upon whether the organization: During the combined period of the current calendar year and the preceding 2 calendar years, made either contributions to one or more statewide Colorado issue committees or direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditures, in either support of or opposition to one or more statewide Colorado ballot issues or ballot questions, that exceeded 30% of the total expenditures by the organization for any purpose and in any location during the entire preceding and current calendar years; During the combined period of the current calendar year and the preceding 2 calendar years, made either contributions to a single statewide Colorado issue committee or direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditures, in either support of or opposition to a single statewide Colorado ballot issue or ballot question, that exceeded 20% of the total expenditures by the organization for any purpose and in any location; or Acted as an issue committee's funding intermediary by making contributions to an issue committee from funds earmarked for the issue committee. Further, the act defines "direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditure" as direct spending in support of or opposition to any single ballot issue or ballot question by a person who does not otherwise meet the requirements of an issue committee. Contributions to an issue committee are not direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditures. Any person who expends $5,000 in aggregate in a calendar year on direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditures must report to the secretary of state, and any person who makes a direct ballot issue or ballot question expenditure must disclose their name in certain communications about a ballot issue or ballot question. For the 2021-22 state fiscal year, $30,000 is appropriated from the department of state cash fund to the department of state technology division for information technology personal services to implement the act. For the 2022-23 state fiscal year, $14,309 is appropriated from the department of state cash fund to the department of state election division for personal services, based on an assumption that the division will require an additional 0.3 FTE to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates a new program to regulate a subset of air pollutants, referred to as "toxic air contaminants", which are defined as hazardous air pollutants, covered air toxics, and all other air pollutants that the air quality control commission (commission) designates as a toxic air contaminant. In implementing the program, the commission has the authority to adopt rules that are more stringent than the corresponding requirements of the federal "Clean Air Act". The division of administration (division) in the department of public health and environment (department) will publish an initial list of toxic air contaminants by October 1, 2022. Beginning no later than September 30, 2030, and at least every 5 years thereafter, the commission will review the list of existing toxic air contaminants and determine whether to designate any additional air pollutants as toxic air contaminants. On or before June 30 of each year, beginning on June 30, 2024, owners and operators of certain sources of pollution will submit to the division, and the division will make available to the public, an annual toxic emissions report that reports the levels of toxic air contaminants that were emitted by the source in the preceding calendar year, beginning with January 1, 2023, to December 31, 2023. The division will also conduct a study and prepare a report for the commission on the types of information reported to the division regarding toxic air contaminants, and, no later than April 30, 2025, the commission may require additional types of information to be included in annual toxic emissions reports submitted for calendar year 2025 and each calendar year thereafter. Beginning no later than January 1, 2024, the division will develop a monitoring program to determine the concentration of toxic air contaminants in the ambient air of the state. The monitoring program will establish at least 6 long-term monitoring sites covering urban and rural areas of the state. No later than July 1, 2025, and by July 1 of each year thereafter, the division will provide public notice of and an opportunity to comment on the monitoring program. On or before October 1, 2025, and by each October 1 thereafter, the division will prepare a report summarizing the findings of the monitoring program, post the report on its website, and submit the report to the general assembly. The division will also report on the need for any additional monitoring sites during the hearings held pursuant to the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" prior to the 2027 legislative session. No later than April 30, 2025, the commission will identify by rule up to 5 toxic air contaminants that may pose a risk of harm to public health (priority toxic air contaminants). No later than April 30, 2026, the commission will propose health-based standards for priority toxic air contaminants for approval by the general assembly. On or before September 30, 2029, and at least once every 5 years thereafter, the commission will: Determine whether to identify any additional priority toxic air contaminants; Determine whether to propose revisions to the general assembly to any existing health-based standards; and No more than 12 months after identifying any additional priority toxic air contaminants, propose to the general assembly health-based standards for any additional priority toxic air contaminants. No later than April 30, 2026, the commission will adopt emission control regulations to reduce emissions of each priority toxic air contaminant. For new emission sources of priority toxic air contaminants, the commission will adopt more stringent emission control regulations than those adopted for existing emission sources of priority toxic air contaminants. No later than September 30, 2030, and at least once every 5 years thereafter, the commission will: Adopt emission control regulations for any additional priority toxic air contaminants identified by the commission; and Determine whether to revise existing emission control regulations. No later than December 31, 2025, the division will conduct an assessment to determine the needs of the division to administer an air permitting program to regulate new, modified, and existing stationary sources that emit priority toxic air contaminants. The division will provide public notice and hold at least 2 public meetings at which members of the public have an opportunity to comment on the assessment. The division will report on the assessment during the hearings held pursuant to the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" prior to the 2026 legislative session. For the 2022-2023 state fiscal year,$3,135,853 is appropriated from the general fund to the department to implement the act, of which: $73,928 is reappropriated to the department of law to provide legal services to the department; and $597,228 is reappropriated to the office of the governor for use by the office of information technology to provide information technology services to the department.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act makes changes to the acupuncturists' practice act, including the changes recommended by the department of regulatory agencies' (department) sunset review and report on the licensing of acupuncturists, by: Continuing the licensing requirements for 11 years, until September 1, 2033; Authorizing the director of the division of professions and occupations (director) in the department to impose administrative fines as a disciplinary action; Requiring final actions of the director to be appealed directly to the court of appeals; Modernizing the definition of "acupuncturist" so that it includes only persons licensed under the acupuncturists' practice act and modernizing the titles and designations protected for use by licensed acupuncturists; Authorizing an acupuncturist to supervise unlicensed acupuncture aides in the performance of specific tasks as determined by rule of the director and directing the director to adopt rules specifying the tasks that may be performed by acupuncture aides, the training and supervision required, and the number of acupuncture aides that an acupuncturist may supervise; Replacing the term "oriental", in references to the methods and concepts of acupuncture, with more modern terminology; Requiring each acupuncturist to devise a plan for the safe storage, security, and disposal of patient records; Requiring each applicant for acupuncturist licensure to pass an examination approved by the director; Repealing the reference to the specific national organization that establishes standards for auricular acudetox training and allowing the director to designate a national organization; Making it a unlawful act for a person to use the term "medical acupuncturist" or other similar term unless the person is practicing in accordance with medical practice act; Updating the grounds for discipline of an acupuncturist relating to the use or abuse of alcohol, habit-forming drugs, and controlled substances to align with other regulated professions; Adding as a grounds for discipline the failure to respond to a complaint filed against the acupuncturist in an honest, responsive, and timely manner; and Authorizing the director to adopt rules to establish the appropriate use of telehealth to provide acupuncture services.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act is a referred measure that will, if approved by the voters of the state at the 2022 general election, require the director of research of the legislative council of the general assembly to include a table in the fiscal summary for any initiated measure that would either increase or decrease the individual income tax rate. The table must have 4 columns as follows: A column identifying 8 income categories; A column identifying the current average income tax owed by taxpayers in each income category; A column identifying the average income tax owed by taxpayers in each income category if the initiated measure were to pass; and A column identifying the difference between the average income tax owed by taxpayers in each income category if the initiated measure were to pass and if the initiated measure were not to pass. The ballot title for a measure that either increases or decreases the individual income tax rate must also include the table created by the director of research of the legislative council of the general assembly for the measure's fiscal summary. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act amends the criteria that the department of regulatory agencies and the general assembly must consider in sunset review hearings by removing some of the current criteria, adding new criteria, and modifying the criteria to apply to the regulation of professions and occupations and other governmental programs. The act removes the following criteria: Whether the conditions that led to the initial regulation have changed and whether other conditions have arisen that would warrant more, less, or the same degree of regulation; and Whether entry requirements encourage affirmative action. The act adds the following criteria: Whether the conditions that led to the initial creation of the program have changed and whether other conditions have arisen that would warrant more, less, or the same degree of governmental oversight; Whether regulatory oversight can be achieved through a director model; and Whether entry requirements encourage equity, diversity, and inclusivity.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the primary care and behavioral health statewide integration grant program in the department of health care policy and financing (state department) to provide grants to primary care clinics for implementation of evidence-based clinical integration care models. The act requires the state department, in collaboration with the behavioral health administration and other agencies, to develop a universal contract for behavioral health services. The act requires the state department to undertake efforts to transform the state department's process for clients attempting to receive long-term care in the community to respond to the United States department of justice's letter of findings concerning the investigation of Colorado's use of nursing facilities to serve adults with physical disabilities. The act appropriates to implement the act: $616,968 to the department from the general fund; $986,948 to the department from federal funds; and $31,750,00 to the department from the behavioral and mental health cash fund.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the division of insurance (division) to collaborate with the department of health care policy and financing, the department of personnel, the department of public health and environment, and the primary care payment reform collaborative (collaborative) to develop and promulgate rules for alternative payment model parameters for primary care services offered through health benefit plans. The alternative payment model parameters must: Include transparent risk adjustment parameters that ensure that primary care providers are not penalized for or disincentivized from accepting vulnerable, high-risk patients and are rewarded for caring for patients with more severe or complex health conditions and patients who have inadequate access to affordable housing, healthy food, or other social determinants of health; Utilize patient attribution methodologies that are transparent and reattribute patients on a regular basis, which must ensure that population-based payments are made to a patient's primary care provider rather than other providers who may only offer sporadic primary care services to the patient and include a process for correcting misattribution that minimizes the administrative burden on providers and patients; Include a set of core competencies around whole-person care delivery that primary care providers should incorporate in practice transformation efforts to take full advantage of various types of alternative payment models; and Require an aligned quality measure set that considers the quality measures and the types of quality reporting that carriers and providers are engaging in under current state and federal law and includes quality measures that are patient-centered and patient-informed and address: Pediatric, perinatal, and other critical populations; the prevention, treatment, and management of chronic diseases; and the screening for and treatment of behavioral health conditions. For health-care plans that are issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, each carrier must ensure that the carrier's alternative payment models for primary care incorporate the aligned alternative payment model parameters created by the division. By December 1, 2023, the commissioner of insurance must promulgate rules detailing the requirements for alternative payment model parameters alignment. The division shall allow carriers the flexibility to determine which network providers and products are best suited to achieve the goals and incentives set by the division. Once the division has 5 years of data, the division is required to analyze the data, produce a report on the data, and present the findings to the general assembly during the department of regulatory agencies' presentation to legislative committees at hearings held pursuant to the "SMART Act". To assist carriers with implementing primary care alternative payment models, the division is required to retain a third-party contractor to design an evaluation plan for such implementation and retain a third-party contractor to provide technical assistance to carriers. With regard to the collaborative, the act: Requires the collaborative to annually review the alternative payment models developed by the division and provide the division with recommendations on the models; and Adjusts the date on which the collaborative must deliver its annual reports. With regard to the all-payer health claims database, the act: Requires the administrator to include in the annual primary care spending report data related to the aligned quality measure set determined by the division; and Adjusts the date on which the annual reports are due. For the 2022-23 state fiscal year, $56,328 is appropriated to the department of personnel from the general fund for use by the division of human resources to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 1 of the act changes the date on which Energy Outreach Colorado disburses to the department of human services (department) a portion of the energy assistance system benefit charges that investor-owned electric and gas utilities collect from January 1, 2022, to March 1, 2023. Section 2 requires the public utilities commission (commission) to adopt rules prohibiting electric and gas utilities from disconnecting a customer's service: On Fridays, Saturdays, or Sundays; On state or federal holidays; To the greatest extent practicable, after 11:59 a.m. on a Monday through Thursday that is not a holiday; During an emergency or safety event or circumstance, which includes a manmade or natural emergency or a severe weather event that is likely to affect travel, staffing, or work conditions. Additionally, the commission's rules must require that, under certain circumstances in which a customer makes a request for reconnection of service on a Monday through Friday that is not a holiday, the utility is required to reconnect the customer's service that same day. Section 3 establishes 3 income standards for determining a household's eligibility for utility assistance as follows: A household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty line; A household income at or below 80% of the area median income; or A household income that meets the income eligibility criteria that the department sets by rule. Section 3 also clarifies that the commission may approve a year-round utility preference or advantage given to income-eligible customers. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)