Rep. Kim Ransom

Capital-related transfers of money. For the 2019-20 state fiscal year, the act transfers: $90,695,989 from the general fund to the capital construction fund; $42 million from the general fund to the controlled maintenance trust fund; $12,342,676 from the general fund to the information technology capital account of the capital construction fund; $500,000 from the general fund exempt account of the general fund to the capital construction fund; and $1 million from the preservation grant program account of the state historical fund to the capital construction fund for repainting of the interior of the dome of the state capitol building.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Juvenile detention beds - cap reduction - report - appropriation. Under current law, the cap on the number of juvenile detention beds is 382. For the 2019-20 and future state fiscal years, the act lowers the cap to 327. The division of youth services is directed to submit a report to the joint budget committee concerning statutory and rule changes and the financing necessary to create flexibility in the allocation of juvenile detention beds among judicial districts. The act reduces appropriations to the department of human services to reflect the lowering of the cap. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Medical marijuana - disabling medical conditions - autism spectrum disorders. The act adds autism spectrum disorders to the list of disabling medical conditions that authorize a person to use medical marijuana for his or her condition. Under current law, a child under 18 years of age who wants to be added to the medical marijuana registry for a disabling medical condition must be diagnosed as having a disabling medical condition by 2 physicians, one of whom must be a board-certified pediatrician, a board-certified family physician, or a board-certified child and adolescent psychiatrist who attests that he or she is part of the patient's primary care provider team. The act removes the additional requirements on specific physicians to align with the constitutional provisions for a debilitating medical condition. The act states if the recommending physician is not the patient's primary care physician, the recommending physician shall review the records of a diagnosing physician or a licensed mental health provider acting within its scope of practice. The act encourages the state board of health, when awarding marijuana study grants, to prioritize grants to gather objective scientific research regarding the efficacy and the safety of administering medical marijuana for pediatric conditions, including but not limited to autism spectrum disorder. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

Respondent parents' counsel - access to judicial department information - representation in reinstatement petition. The act adds to the list of agencies and attorneys authorized to have statewide read-only access to the name index and register of actions for the judiciary department those attorneys who are either under contract with or authorized by the office of the respondent parents' counsel. The act clarifies that a parent whose rights in a parent-child relationship have been terminated and who has filed a petition to reinstate the rights of a parent-child relationship is entitled to appointed counsel through the office of the respondent parents' counsel, if income eligibility criteria are satisfied. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More

The bill establishes a bill of rights for persons who are protected through a legal guardianship relationship. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

Currently, "United States Mountain Standard Time" (MST) is the standard time within Colorado, except during the period of daylight saving time (i.e., the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November) when time is advanced one hour. The bill exempts the state from observing daylight saving time, making MST the standard time year-round. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

The bill prohibits an employer from requiring union membership or payment of union dues as a condition of employment. The bill creates civil and criminal penalties for employer violations regarding union membership and authorizes the attorney general and the district attorney in each judicial district to investigate alleged violations and take action against a person believed to be in violation. The bill states that all-union agreements are unfair labor practices.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

The bill requires an entity that provides electronically accessible educational materials to a public school or school district to equip the materials with computer software or a filter service that prohibits access to material that is harmful to children or obscene. A parent or legal guardian may bring a civil action against an entity that provides electronically accessible educational materials and that violates this requirement if the parent's child viewed material that is harmful to a child or obscene through the material provided by the entity. The parent or legal guardian is entitled to injunctive relief, the greater of a fine in the range of $1,000 to $5,000 for each violation or actual damages incurred as a result of each violation, exemplary damages, and reasonable attorney fees and costs. It is an affirmative defense if the entity equips the materials with computer software or a filter service that prohibits access to material that is harmful to children or obscene. The bill requires each school district or public school to ensure that any database provided by an entity accessible to students is equipped with computer software or a filter service that prohibits access to material that is harmful to children or obscene by that entity, and each computer or other electronic device that a student may have access to is equipped with computer software or a filter service that prohibits access to material that is harmful to children or obscene. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More

The bill permits a student in an educator preparation program who is seeking field experiences in a school (student) to submit his or her fingerprints to the Colorado bureau of investigation (bureau) for the purpose of performing a fingerprint-based criminal history record check for the student. Upon completion of the fingerprint-based criminal history record check, the bureau must forward the results to the department of education (department). If the fingerprint-based criminal history record check of a student performed pursuant to this section reveals a record of arrest without a disposition, the department is required to perform a name-based criminal history record check of that student. The department must provide the results of the background checks to the educator preparation program in which the student is enrolled and make the results available to schools and school districts. When the department receives an update from the bureau, the department must provide that update to each education preparation program, school district, and charter school in which the student has been placed for field experiences. The department may charge a fee to cover the actual costs of administering a student's criminal history record check. School districts or charter schools that require a criminal history record check for students are required to accept the results of a criminal history record check performed by the bureau or department. If the student has continuously resided in Colorado, the fingerprints may be used by the student to satisfy the existing fingerprint submission requirements for teacher licensure. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More

The bill creates a voluntary option for interested custodial parents who are experiencing a crisis whereby they may enter into an authorization agreement (agreement) with certified family caregiver (caregiver) to temporarily care for their child or children. Caregivers are considered mandatory reporters of child abuse and neglect by law and must receive the training provided to mandatory reporters. The agreement is not a termination of parental rights, nor is it considered abandonment of the child or children or placement in the custody of a county department of human or social services for the purposes of foster care. The agreement is valid for no longer than 6 months, with an option to renew the agreement, unless the parent or parents are deployed or called to active duty in the United States military, in which case the agreement is valid for the length of the deployment plus 30 days. The terms of each agreement are specific to the parents who are entering into the agreement. It grants the caregiver the right to perform certain parental functions as specifically outlined in the agreement, and the agreement may be revoked at any time by a custodial parent. A substitute care organization (organization), which must be a tax-exempt charitable or social welfare organization, shall assist both parties in the creation and implementation of an agreement. The state department of human services (department) shall license any organization that wishes to serve in this capacity prior to the date at which the organization begins providing services to families. The department shall promulgate rules for the licensing requirements for organizations, after working collaboratively to receive recommendations for such rules from interested and affected parties. The rules must include requirements for various fingerprint-based criminal history record checks and child abuse and neglect background checks on the state's TRAILS system. The organization shall ensure that adequate notice of a child's placement with a caregiver is given to both parents. The organization is responsible for conducting a fingerprint-based criminal history record check on each adult in the nonparent's household, as well as a child abuse and neglect background check on the state TRAILS system for both the parent and each adult in the caregiver's household. The organization is responsible for ensuring that the caregiver is fully trained in the rights, duties, and limitations regarding the care of a child pursuant to the agreement. Organizations are required to collect data on agreements, caregivers, and outcomes and report aggregate data to the department. The bill establishes a provision for a parent of a minor child to create a custodial power of attorney that grants to another person certain of the parent's rights and responsibilities regarding the care, physical custody, and control of the minor child. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) , Read More