Rep. Lesley Smith

The act implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies (DORA) in its sunset review and report concerning the regulation of outfitters and guides by the division of professions and occupations (division) within DORA. Specifically, the act: Continues the regulation of outfitters and guides for 9 years, until 2034; Allows the director of the division to take disciplinary action against an owner of an outfitter entity regardless of the owner's ownership share percentage; Credits one-half of the money that is collected as fines to the general fund rather than to the division; Exempts motor carriers and third-party booking agencies from regulation under the outfitters act; Adds provisions prohibiting an individual from working as a guide or receiving or renewing a registration as an outfitter if the individual has a license or registration suspended or revoked by the division of parks and wildlife or by an agency of any member state of the "Wildlife Violator Compact" for a violation of a law concerning wildlife; and Repeals certain language concerning the punishment for a person that engages or offers or attempts to engage in activities as an outfitter without an active registration.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act removes the term "homosexuality" from the definition of sexual conduct in the sexually explicit materials harmful to children part of the "Colorado Criminal Code". (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the work-based learning consortium pilot program (pilot program) in the department of higher education (department). The purpose of the 3-year pilot program is to: Demonstrate the value of work-based learning in postsecondary curricula by studying the impact of industry-sponsored projects on course objectives and learning outcomes; Promote the adoption of work-based learning in higher education by working with faculty at institutions of higher education (institutions) that participate in the pilot program (participating institutions) to embed project-based learning opportunities into credit-bearing programs; Provide broader access to collegiate work-based learning for students; Measure the impact of work-based learning on participating students; and Learn how institutions can increase the value of postsecondary education through career exposure and preparedness. Pending the receipt of sufficient funds, the department shall convene a consortium (consortium) of representatives from participating institutions, the commission on higher education (commission), the department of labor and employment, the department of education, and a subject matter expert with experience implementing work-based learning. The consortium shall: Work with each participating institution's faculty to embed industry-sponsored projects in course curriculum that meet the work-based learning quality standards; Work with the department to determine the impact of industry-sponsored projects; Work with a third-party platform to connect faculty from participating institutions to employers for the purpose of developing high-quality, project-based learning opportunities for classroom instruction; Advise the commission on strategies to improve student access to high-quality, work-based learning opportunities for students based on participating faculty members' experience embedding industry-sponsored projects into curriculum; Develop best practices for institutions to expand access to work-based learning in the classroom through industry-sponsored projects; and Develop findings and recommendations. Subject to available appropriations, at the end of the pilot program, the act requires the consortium to complete and submit a report to the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate, or their successor committees. The report must include: A description of the consortium's findings and recommendations; Details on the consortium's impacts on participating institutions and the effects of creating additional work-based learning activities on students, faculty, and employers; and Recommendations for statutory changes, financial resources, department policy changes, and policy changes in institutions that are necessary to improve successful work-based learning opportunities for students in institutions. The department may seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations from private or public sources for the pilot program. The department shall transmit all gifts, grants, or donations to the state treasurer, who shall credit the money to the higher education work-based learning consortium fund (fund). If, by June 30, 2028, the money in the fund has never reached or exceeded $2 million dollars, the state treasurer shall return each grantor's or donor's gift, grant, or donation. On or before November 1, 2026, the commission shall recommend a list of terms used by institutions related to work-based learning to the Colorado workforce development council for inclusion in the talent development glossary (glossary). The purpose of the list of terms is to: Augment the glossary so that collegiate work-based learning activities are accurately reflected in statewide efforts to promote work-based learning; and Demonstrate to institutions relevant opportunities to participate in statewide efforts to promote work-based learning. On or before July 1, 2026, the commission shall work with institutions, the Colorado workforce development council, the department of education, the consortium, nonprofit organizations, industry associations, and businesses to develop recommendations on how to best embed work-based learning opportunities into current degree pathways. On or before December 31, 2026, the department shall work with institutions to identify which work-based learning activities are measurable and how to best report work-based learning activities. Institutions that are eligible for the work-study program may use work-study program money to cover the costs of work-based learning credits for students who are required to complete credit-bearing work-based learning requirements to graduate from an institution. The office of economic development (office) administers the universal high school scholarship program (program). The act allows the office to spend unexpended or unencumbered money appropriated in the 2023-24 state fiscal year through the 2025-26 state fiscal year without further appropriation. The act requires that expenditures for the administrative costs of the program not exceed $1.5 million. The act extends the date for the state treasurer to transfer all unexpended and unencumbered money in the universal high school scholarship cash fund from December 30, 2026, to June 30, 2027. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Beginning January 1, 2027, the act: Allows a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) to earn income derived from the assessment of a flat-dollar service fee for the provision of a prescription drug; Prohibits a PBM from earning income based on the price or cost of a prescription drug; Prohibits a PBM from designing a formulary to favor a certain branded pharmaceutical or biologic; Requires a PBM to be reimbursed by a health benefit plan for lowering the plan's prescription drug spending over a given period of time and for the direct services the PBM provides to the plan; Sets the amount that a PBM shall reimburse an unaffiliated pharmacy or a PBM-affiliated retail, mail order, or specialty pharmacy for a prescription drug; and Requires a contract between a PBM and a health benefit plan to contain a provision where the PBM discloses prescription drug cost information to the health benefit plan and a provision authorizing the health benefit plan to execute an audit to validate compliance with the contract.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that, for health insurance policies providing maternity coverage, policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2027, must include prenatal care coverage without cost sharing for up to 3 office visits. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

For ground ambulance services (ambulance services), the act: Allows a political subdivision or an ambulance service providing ambulance services on behalf of the political subdivision to submit to the division of insurance (division) the established rates for the ambulance services, if the rates meet specified conditions; Requires the division to publish reimbursement rates on the division's public-facing website; Establishes reimbursement rates for ambulance services that are out of network; and Prohibits an out-of-network ambulance service from billing an individual covered under a health insurance coverage plan (covered person) any outstanding balance for a covered service not paid for by an insurance carrier, except for any coinsurance, deductible, or copayment amount required to be paid by the covered person. If a covered person makes a payment for an out-of-network ambulance service, the payment must be applied to the covered person's in-network deductibles and in-network out-of-pocket maximum amounts. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, $38,149 is appropriated from the division of insurance cash fund to the department of regulatory agencies for use by the division to implement the act. VETOED by Governor 5/29/2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 1 of the act creates the prescribed fire claims cash fund (fund) in the state treasury and requires the state treasurer to transfer $250,000 from the general fund to the fund on July 1, 2025. Subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly, the division of fire prevention and control (division) shall expend money from the fund to pay claims for damages related to prescribed burns that are certified by the division in accordance with new guidelines as specified in the act and as adopted by the director of the division. The division shall authorize a payment in the amount certified in a claim; except that the maximum payment that the division may authorize for a singular burn is equal to the greater of $20,000 or 10% of the amount of money in the fund at the time the claim is filed. Subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly of money for the division to administer the fund, the division shall certify a claim that meets the following guidelines: The claim demonstrates, in sufficient detail, the costs or damages that resulted from the prescribed burn; The prescribed burn that resulted in the costs or damages was conducted in full compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements for prescribed burning; Before conducting the prescribed burn, the certified prescribed burn manager registered the written prescription plan for the prescribed burn with the division and paid an administrative fee; and No more than 60 days have passed between the completion of the prescribed burn and the date upon which costs and damages were incurred. The act authorizes the director of the division to adopt rules and guidelines for the implementation and administration of the program and permits the division to contract with a third party to administer, certify, and pay the claims. The act also requires a claimant who accepts a payment that covers the full amount certified in the claim to waive all future claims related to the prescribed burn against the certified prescribed burn manager that conducted the burn; any organization, entity, or individual with whom the certified prescribed burn manager worked to conduct the burn; any individual or entity that provided funding for the burn; and any landowner on whose behalf the burn was conducted. Sections 2 and 3 expand the definition of a "certified burner" in the state to include an individual who has not completed the Colorado division's training and certification program but who meets reciprocity requirements and possesses a valid Colorado certification number. An individual seeking certification through reciprocity may receive a certification number from the division by: Applying for certification to the division, according to the rules and standards of the division, including the payment of any associated fee; and Submitting evidence to the division, according to the rules and standards of the division, that the individual holds a valid certification from a state government or other entity. The required rules and standards adopted by the director of the division, in consultation with the Colorado state forest service, pertaining to the qualification for and the terms and durations of certification, are required to include certification through reciprocity. Section 4 adds pretax costs associated with the implementation of an approved program or project to mitigate the effects of extreme weather, wildfires, climate change, or other hazards to the definition of Colorado energy impact costs. For the 2025-26 fiscal year: $250,000 is appropriated from the fund to the department of public safety for use by the division for prescribed fire claims; and $153,025 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of public safety for implementation of the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that, in addition to notice requirements under the Colorado open meetings law, notice of annual public meetings held by metropolitan districts be mailed, at the lowest-cost option, to eligible electors within the metropolitan district or sent by email to any email addresses that eligible electors have provided to the metropolitan district for the purpose of receiving communication from the metropolitan district. Additionally, notice of the annual meeting must be either posted on the homepage of the metropolitan district's website or accessible by a link on the homepage. The act also requires, for any special district, that, if the annual meeting is held at a physical location and in a year immediately preceding a year in which a regular special district election will be held, there be available hard copies of self-nomination and acceptance forms, which are forms required to be filed for an eligible elector to be a candidate for a board position at a special district election. The act also requires that metropolitan districts that are required to have a publicly accessible website must establish a system or a process for residents to contact someone associated with the metropolitan district during regular business hours to address any questions or concerns regarding services of the metropolitan district. Further, these metropolitan districts must establish a system or process for residents to contact someone associated with the metropolitan district outside of regular business hours or when metropolitan district personnel are otherwise unavailable or unreachable to address emergent matters that cannot wait to be addressed until regular business hours resume. For a metropolitan district that is required to have a publicly accessible website, the act requires the following additional information to be provided on the website: The date, time, and location of the annual public meeting; An explanation of what a metropolitan district is, its services, debt, and public infrastructure, and how a resident can serve on its board; The names of the governmental entities that overlap the metropolitan district's boundaries; The name of the county or municipality with which the metropolitan district must file its annual report; and The name and contact information of someone who residents can contact with questions or concerns about the services of the district during regular business hours and outside of regular business hours or when district personnel are otherwise unavailable or unreachable for emergent matters. The act also specifies that the following information must be provided on the home page of the metropolitan district's website: The names, terms, and contact information of individuals serving on the board of directors and of any manager of the metropolitan district; The date, time, and location of scheduled regular meetings, including the annual meeting; The call for nominations for candidates to run for election to the board of directors; The names of the governmental entities that overlap the metropolitan district's boundaries; and The name and contact information of who residents can contact with questions or concerns about the services of the district during regular business hours and outside of regular business hours or when district personnel are otherwise unavailable or unreachable for emergent matters. The act adds to the requirements of what a metropolitan district must include in its service plan when seeking approval of the service plan a requirement to include the maximum term for imposing a debt service mill levy on any property developed for residential purposes after the initial year of imposition of such debt service mill levy. The act requires certain disclosures be made by all sellers of any residential real property located within the boundaries of a metropolitan district, including access to the annually required notice to electors and the metropolitan district's service plan; information on the authority the metropolitan district has to issue debt, levy property taxes, and impose fees, rates, tolls, penalties, or other charges; an estimate of property taxes levied by the metropolitan district for collection during the year the sale occurs; and a copy of the most current certificate of taxes due or tax statement to provide an estimate of the sum of additional mill levies levied by other taxing entities that overlap the property. Additionally, the act requires a written statement be included in the required disclosures that certain actions that the metropolitan district is authorized to take may increase costs to residents living in the metropolitan district, and the property tax estimate disclosure requirement is modified to require that the estimate be given in a dollar amount. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the state board of education (board) to adopt high school health education standards regarding drug overdose risks, identification of a drug overdose event, and drug overdose prevention and response. The act authorizes the board to seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations for the purpose of adopting these standards. The board must adopt the standards on or before July 1, 2028, if, the board receives by July 1, 2026, $20,000 from gifts, grants, or donations to adopt the standards. If sufficient money is not received, the board is required to adopt the standards on or before July 1, 2032, pursuant to the general standards schedule. Under current law, a school district, the state charter school institute (institute), or the governing board of a nonpublic school may adopt and implement a policy allowing an employee or agent of the school to furnish an opioid antagonist to any individual, including a student, but only if the student has received appropriate school-sponsored training. The act repeals the required condition that a student must receive appropriate school-sponsored training. The act authorizes a school district, the institute, a public school, or a nonpublic school to seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations for purposes related to acquiring, maintaining, and providing training for administering opioid antagonists. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act allows a health-care provider to, under certain circumstances, adjust the dose or frequency of a chronic maintenance drug without needing prior authorization from an insurance carrier. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)