Rep. Dafna Michaelson Jenet

The act allows a district charter school or an institute charter school, upon approval of the authorizing school district board of education or the state charter school institute (CSI), respectively, to develop and administer an enrollment preference plan to give enrollment preference to children with disabilities. In exercising the enrollment preference plan for children with disabilities, a district charter school and an institute charter school shall ensure compliance with the obligation to provide a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment pursuant to the federal "Individuals with Disabilities Education Act". A district charter school or an institute charter school may allow parents to voluntarily provide information regarding the existence of a child's disability. The act allows the department of education (department) to designate a charter school network or charter school collaborative that meets specified criteria as an administrative unit for the purpose of providing special education services to children with disabilities. If the department designates a charter school network or charter school collaborative as an administrative unit, a district charter school or institute charter school that is within the charter school network or is participating in the charter school collaborative is required to amend its district charter contract or institute charter contract, respectively, to reflect that the district charter school or institute charter school is participating in the administrative unit of the charter school network or charter school collaborative. If the parents of a child with a disability remove the child from enrollment in the alternative administrative unit in which a district charter school or institute charter school participates after the annual count date to determine state funding for children with disabilities, that alternative administrative unit continues to be deemed the child's administrative unit of residence for the remainder of the school year and may be required to pay the tuition charge for excess costs to the administrative unit of attendance that enrolls the child for the remainder of the school year. The act further clarifies provisions concerning the payment of tuition for excess costs when a child with a disability is enrolled in a district charter school or institute charter school that participates in an alternative administrative unit that is a charter school network or charter school collaborative. The act further clarifies that if a child with a disability who is enrolled in an alternative administrative unit is placed by an IEP team in an approved facility school or other private setting for special education purpose, the child continues to be enrolled in the alternative administrative unit until certain circumstances occur. The act allows a district charter school or an institute charter school, upon the department's approval of the administrative unit of a charter school network or charter school collaborative, to enter into an agreement to participate in the existing alternative administrative unit. After the department approves an application for the reorganization of the administrative unit to include the district charter school, the district charter school is required to amend its district charter contract to reflect that the district charter school is participating in the existing alternative administrative unit of the charter school network or charter school collaborative. The institute charter school is required to amend its institute charter contract to reflect that the institute charter school is participating in the existing alternative administrative unit of the charter school network or charter school collaborative. The act allows a district charter school, upon approval of the CSI, to enter into an agreement with the CSI to participate in the CSI's administrative unit. After the department approves an application for the reorganization of the CSI's administrative unit to include the district charter school, the district charter school is required to amend its charter contract to reflect that it is participating in the CSI's administrative unit. The act clarifies that a school district or the CSI shall not require a district charter school or an institute charter school, respectively, to participate in an alternative administrative unit as a condition of approval of its application or approval or renewal of its contract with the school district or the CSI. The act specifies that a charter school collaborative may provide special education and related services to participating schools as authorized by the contract creating the charter school collaborative. Participating charter schools of the charter school collaborative shall share costs and financial support for special education and related services. The act clarifies that a district charter school is not required to pay its authorizing school district for federally required educational services that are not available to the district charter school. The act appropriates $375,000 from the general fund to the department for use by the CSI to distribute to eligible institute charter schools. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

On or before January 1, 2023, the act requires each managed care entity, administrative service organization, and managed service organization that has 25% or more ownership by providers of behavioral health services to comply with certain conflict of interest policies in order to promote transparency and accountability. The act appropriates $42,658 from the general fund to the department of health care policy and financing to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act establishes the preventing identity-based violence grant program (grant program) to provide grants for programs that focus on building strong communities and preventing acts of violence that threaten human life or critical infrastructure, venues, or key resources in which actors or groups intentionally target a discernible population of individuals in a manner that poses a threat to homeland security (identity-based violence). A project funded with a grant award must build awareness for the prevention and intervention of identity-based violence within Colorado communities, strengthen local collaboration and capabilities for prevention and intervention of identity-based violence, or build sustainable support for the prevention and intervention of identity-based violence. The act requires the department of public safety (department) to annually evaluate environmental factors that lead to, and challenges to reducing, identity-based violence and permits the department to establish annual priorities for the grant program that address the identified factors and challenges. A project funded with a grant award must not infringe on individual privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties. A grant recipient that is not a law enforcement agency is prohibited from collecting or maintaining intelligence information about an individual or group, association, corporation, business partnership, or other organization. The act requires a law enforcement agency to comply with federal regulations regarding the collection, maintenance, and use of intelligence information learned by the agency though a program funded with a grant award. The office of prevention and security within the department reviews grant applications and awards grants in accordance with department rule. The act requires the general assembly to annually appropriate one million dollars to implement the program. For the 2022-23 state fiscal year, the act appropriates one million dollars from the general fund to the department for the grant program. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements the recommendations of the behavioral health transformational task force concerning youth and family residential care. Specifically, the act: Provides operational support for psychiatric residential treatment facilities and qualified residential treatment programs for youth; Creates in-home and residential respite care in up to 7 regions of the state for children and families; and Provides funds to build and staff a neuro-psych facility at the Colorado mental health institute at Fort Logan. The act makes the following appropriations to the department of human services from the behavioral and mental health cash fund: $11,628,023 is appropriated for respite and residential programs; $7,500,000 is appropriated for use by the behavioral health administration to expand substance use residential treatment beds for adolescents and for crisis response service systems; and $539,926 is appropriated for use by the behavioral health administration and is for building maintenance costs associated with the youth neuro-psych facility at the Colorado mental health institute at Fort Logan. An additional $35,000,000 is appropriated for capital construction costs related to the construction of a youth neuro-psych facility at the Colorado mental health institute at Fort Logan.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill creates the healthy school meals for all program (program) in the department of education (department) to reimburse school food authorities for free meals provided to students who are not eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the federal school meals programs. The program begins operating in the 2023-24 budget year, subject to the state being selected to participate in the federal demonstration project to use medicaid eligibility to identify students who are eligible for the federal school meals programs (demonstration project). A school food authority that chooses to participate in the program (participating school food authority) must: Provide free meals to all students enrolled in the public schools that the participating school food authority serves; Provide to the department annual notice of participation; and Maximize the amount of federal reimbursement by participating in the federal community eligibility provision to identify students who are eligible for the federal school meals programs. The amount of reimbursement distributed pursuant to the program is equal to the federal free reimbursement rate multiplied by the total number of meals served, minus any other federal or state reimbursement the school food authority receives for providing meals. The bill requires the department to: Participate in the federal community eligibility provision for the state as a whole, if that option is available; and Apply to participate in the demonstration project. Under the bill, a participating school food authority that creates a parent and student committee to advise on food purchasing (advisory committee) is eligible to receive a local food purchasing grant (grant) to purchase Colorado grown, raised, or processed products for school meals. Each eligible participating school food authority must comply with reporting requirements. The bill establishes the amount of the grants, limits on how the grant money may be spent, and the required membership of the advisory committee. The department must annually review a sample of the invoices for purchases made using grant money to ensure compliance with purchasing requirements. Under the bill, a participating school food authority may receive an additional amount to increase the wages for individuals employed to prepare and serve food. The bill creates the local school food purchasing technical assistance and education grant program (grant program), under which a statewide nonprofit organization distributes grants to promote the purchase of Colorado grown, raised, or processed products by participating school food authorities and to assist participating school food authorities in preparing meals using basic ingredients rather than processed products. The nonprofit organization must report annually to the department concerning implementation of the grant program. The department must submit to committees of the general assembly a biennial report concerning implementation of the program. The department must contract with an independent auditor to conduct a biennial financial and performance audit of the program. The report and the audit must include implementation of the program, implementation of the local food purchasing grants, use of the additional amount for increasing wages, and implementation of the grant program. The bill directs the general assembly to appropriate annually, by line item in the annual appropriation bill, the amount necessary to implement the program, including a specified amount for the grant program. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Under current law, sexual assault can be committed by means of sexual intrusion or penetration when the actor causes submission of the victim by means sufficient to cause submission against the victim's will. The act changes that element to when the actor causes sexual intrusion or sexual penetration knowing the victim does not consent. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that when a physician applies to be credentialed as a participating physician in a health insurance carrier's (carrier's) provider network, the carrier must conclude the process of credentialing the applicant within 60 calendar days after the carrier receives the applicant's completed application. A carrier must provide each applicant written or electronic notice of the outcome of the applicant's credentialing within 10 calendar days after the conclusion of the credentialing process.Within 7 calendar days after a carrier receives an application, the carrier must provide the applicant a receipt. If a carrier receives an application but fails to provide the applicant a receipt within 7 calendar days, the carrier shall consider the applicant a participating physician, effective no later than 53 calendar days following the carrier's receipt of the application.A carrier may not deny a claim for a medically necessary covered service provided to a covered person if the service:Is a covered benefit under the covered person's health coverage plan; and Is provided by a participating physician who is in the provider network for the carrier's health coverage plan and has concluded the carrier's credentialing process. A carrier may not require a participating physician to submit an application or participate in a contracting process in order to be recredentialed.With certain exceptions, a carrier must allow a participating physician to remain credentialed and include the participating physician in the carrier's provider network unless the carrier discovers information indicating that the participating physician no longer satisfies the carrier's guidelines for participation.The commissioner of insurance is required to enforce the new requirements. A carrier that fails to comply with the act or with any rules adopted pursuant to the act is subject to such civil penalties as the commissioner may order.To implement the act, for the 2021-22 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $52,505 to the department of regulatory agencies from the division of insurance cash fund. Of this amount, $21,268 is reappropriated to the department of law for legal services.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act adds a requirement, as part of mandatory health insurance coverage of preventive health care services, that health plans cover an annual mental health wellness examination of up to 60 minutes that is performed by a qualified mental health care provider. The coverage must:Be comparable to the coverage of a physical examination; Comply with the requirements of federal mental health parity laws; and Not require any deductibles, copayments, or coinsurance for the mental health wellness examination. The coverage applies to large employer plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2022, and to individual and small group plans issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2023, if the commissioner of insurance determines, and the United States department of health and human services confirms or fails to timely respond to a request for confirmation, that the coverage for an annual mental health wellness examination does not require state defrayal pursuant to the federal "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act". Additionally, the division of insurance (division) is directed to conduct an actuarial study to determine the effect of the coverage on insurance premiums.The act appropriates $26,353 to the division to conduct reviews of health plans to ensure compliance with the coverage required by the bill.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates a statutory cause of action for a victim of sexual misconduct that occurred when the victim was a minor. The victim may bring a civil claim against the actor who committed the sexual misconduct and against an organization that operates or manages a youth-related activity or program (youth program) if the organization knew or should have known of a risk of sexual misconduct against minors and the sexual misconduct occurred while the victim was participating in a youth program managed by the organization. The act waives sovereign immunity for the claim so a victim may bring a claim against a public employee or public entity that operates a youth program, including an educational entity operating an educational program or a district preschool program.The cause of action is available to a victim of sexual misconduct that occurred on or after January 1, 1960. A person who was the victim of sexual misconduct that occurred between January 1, 1960, and January 1, 2022, must commence an action before January 1, 2025. There is no limitation on the time to bring a claim for sexual misconduct that occurs on or after January 1, 2022. A person may not, prior to an incident of sexual misconduct, waive the right to bring a civil action; any purported pre-incident waiver is void as against public policy.A court or jury shall not allocate any damages awarded in the civil action in any proportion against the victim of the sexual misconduct. Any pre-judgment interest on the claim does not begin to accrue until the claim is filed.The maximum amount that may be recovered for a claim against a public employee or public entity is the limitation on damages set forth in the "Colorado Governmental Immunity Act". For all other claims, the maximum amount recoverable is $500,000; except that if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant failed to take remedial action against a person that the defendant knew or should have known posed a risk of sexual misconduct against a minor and the court finds that the application of the limitation would be unfair, the court may increase the award to up a maximum of $1,000,000.The act appropriates $1,198,355 from the general fund to the department of personnel for risk management and reappropriates $1,137,838 of that appropriation and provides 5.9 FTE to the department of law to provide legal services.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act defines "respite child care centers" and includes them in the overall definition of "child care center" for licensing purposes.For the 2021-22 state fiscal year, $14,092 is appropriated to the department of human services for use by the office of information technology services. This appropriation is from the general fund. To implement this act, the office may use this appropriation for Colorado trails.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)