Rep. Jennifer Bacon

Maddy summarySJR 25-004 designates January 22 of each year as "Reproductive Rights and Justice Day" in Colorado. This symbolic resolution does not create new laws or policies but commemorates the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision (January 22, 1973) and acknowledges Colorado's legislative actions to protect reproductive rights, including the Reproductive Health Equity Act and the Safe Access to Protected Health Care Package. The designation serves as a formal observance without imposing legal obligations or altering existing rights.

Maddy summaryHJR 25-1003 is a procedural resolution that schedules a joint session of the Colorado General Assembly for January 16, 2025, to hear a message from representatives of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and Southern Ute Indian Tribe tribal councils. It directs the appointment of a committee consisting of three House members and three Senate members to escort tribal representatives to the session. The resolution does not create new laws or alter policies but formalizes a ceremonial meeting to recognize the tribes' historical and cultural contributions to Colorado. This is a standard procedural step for legislative recognition events, not a substantive policy change.

Maddy summaryHJR 25-1005 is a ceremonial resolution encouraging Colorado communities to observe Martin Luther King Jr. Day on January 20, 2025 - the 41st anniversary of the state holiday. It does not create new laws or alter existing policies but urges cities, schools, counties, and local governments to hold commemorative events. The resolution honors Dr. King’s legacy, noting Colorado’s early adoption of the holiday in 1985 and its ongoing observance through events like the annual Marade. This is a non-binding call for community engagement, not a substantive legislative change.

Maddy summaryThis bill appoints six specific individuals - Senator Marc Snyder, Representative Cecelia Espenoza, Bob Gardner, Claire Levy, Anne McGihon, and Joseph Whitfield - to the Colorado Commission on Uniform State Laws for two-year terms. It directly affects these appointees by granting them membership on the commission, which advises Colorado on adopting uniform state laws. The resolution implements a statutory requirement (C.R.S. § 2-3-601) for filling commission positions, with no policy changes or new provisions beyond the appointments themselves.

Maddy summaryThis bill (SJR 25-002) is a procedural resolution establishing salary grades and pay ranges for specific legislative staff positions within the General Assembly. It directly affects Senate and House staff members by assigning standardized pay grades (e.g., 160SES, H1B5) to roles like Secretaries, Clerks, Policy Analysts, and Sergeants-at-Arms, with the Chaplain compensated at $25 per visit. The key mechanism is defining these compensation structures through detailed position classifications. This resolution does not create new policy but formalizes existing staffing and pay frameworks for legislative operations.

Maddy summaryThis procedural joint resolution (HJR 25-1002) schedules a ceremonial session for January 10, 2025, where Colorado's House and Senate will hear a message from Chief Justice Monica M. Marquez of the Colorado Supreme Court. It directs the appointment of a six-member committee (three from each chamber) to escort the Chief Justice to the session. The bill has no substantive policy impact - it solely establishes a formal procedure for this annual judicial communication event. It directly affects the legislative leadership and the Chief Justice's office by outlining the process for this specific ceremonial meeting.

Maddy summaryThis bill (HR 25-1002) is a procedural measure concerning House officers and employees. The provided context includes no bill text, summary, or specific provisions describing its content or effects. Without the actual text or a substantive description of the bill's requirements, mechanisms, or who it directly affects, a factual summary cannot be generated. The recent actions (introduced, passed, signed) only confirm procedural steps, not the bill's policy content.

The act requires a testing entity to grant an individual's request for a testing accommodation on a licensing exam without requiring the individual to undergo a diagnostic exam or psychological assessment if the individual has a recognized disability, provides proof of having received the testing accommodation on a past standardized exam or high-stakes test, provides a recommendation letter from the individual's treating medical professional supporting the requested accommodations, and requests the same testing accommodation that the individual previously received on a similar standardized exam or high-stakes test. The act allows an individual who is adversely affected or aggrieved by a testing entity's decision regarding the individual's request for a testing accommodation to bring a civil action against the testing entity. The act allows the attorney general to investigate violations of, and allows the attorney general to bring a civil action against, a testing entity for an alleged violation. APPROVED by Governor June 7, 2024 EFFECTIVE January 1, 2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates multiple ways to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in Colorado's child welfare system. The state department of human services (department) is directed to work with county departments of human or social services to: Update the existing annual departmental EDI report using state data sources and national child welfare data clearinghouses; Identify necessary demographic or other data that is not currently collected in Colorado's child welfare case management system (management system) and determine recommendations for improving data collection statewide; Identify additional necessary demographic or other data about children, families, and people working in the child welfare that is not currently collected in the management system, the child welfare worker training system, or other components and data systems of the child welfare system, and, in collaboration with counties, determine internal or external processes and make recommendations for improving data collection and reporting statewide; Provide a report on the state's progress in addressing data collection and data entry challenges in the management system; Provide a report on the state's progress in training child welfare staff on demographic data collection; Report on the state's progress in training the child welfare workforce in reducing bias and in promoting EDI, and on progress in the training's alignment with current research and best practices in promoting EDI. The department shall strengthen EDI training for child welfare staff and management. The act requires the department to provide recommendations for training requirements for other child welfare agencies and to offer specific EDI training for mandatory reporters to address disparities in reporting in Colorado's child welfare system. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the department of education (department) to enter into an agreement with an organization (selected organization) to develop best practices for local education providers to effectively respond to reports of harassment or discrimination. The department shall convene an evaluation committee to select the organization. The evaluation committee consists of representatives from school districts, an organization that advocates for students who face harassment or discrimination, and the office of school safety; persons with lived experience of harassment or discrimination; and students. The selected organization shall submit a report to the department, the office of school safety, and the general assembly's education committees that includes an explanation of the best practices developed by the selected organization. Current law requires public schools to provide training to all employees about harassment and discrimination, beginning no later than July 1, 2024. The act repeals that deadline and instead requires harassment and discrimination training beginning with employee training for the 2025-26 school year, but beginning no later than December 31, 2025. The act requires that harassment and discrimination training that occurs after August 1, 2025, be consistent with the best practices developed by the selected organization. The act requires the selected organization to develop a harassment or discrimination training program for use by schools that is consistent with the best practices developed by the selected organization and that complies with the requirements for public schools' harassment and discrimination training. The department shall make the training program materials available to public schools at no cost. The act appropriates $111,111 from the state education fund to the department for training for local education providers on responding to harassment and discrimination reports. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)