Sen. Byron Pelton

Current law requires counties to offer Colorado works program (works program) applicants and participants that demonstrate good cause an extension beyond the 60-month lifetime maximum. Good cause includes an applicant or participant who is a child-only case, who is the head of a single parent household unit and has a child less than one year old, or who is experiencing hardship. The act makes the extension permissible rather than a requirement and removes an applicant or participant who is a child-only case or experiencing hardship from the good cause determination.     The act suspends the works program basic cash assistance grant cost of living adjustment during the 2026-27 and 2027-28 state fiscal years.     Current law establishes minimum reserve balances for the total statewide county temporary assistance for needy families (TANF) reserve and the Colorado long-term works reserve (reserves). The act removes those reserve minimums. The act eliminates a requirement for each reserve to replenish money in the other under certain conditions and for the general assembly to effectively backfill the balances of both reserves if their balances fall below specified minimums.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Maddy summaryThis bill modifies how Colorado uses automated vehicle identification systems (AVIS) to detect traffic violations, primarily affecting vehicle owners, law enforcement agencies, and local governments. It requires agencies to provide clearer public notice before deploying new systems, including online announcements, social media posts, and physical signs at installation locations. The bill also establishes procedures for vehicle owners to prove they were not driving when a violation occurred, which could exempt them from penalties, and limits fines for speeding during hazardous weather conditions. Additionally, it changes how penalties are structured for different speeding levels and sets a flat monthly payment rate for AVIS vendors starting in 2035.

The act extends the availability of the conservation easement tax credit from income tax year 2031 through income tax year 2036. The act also prohibits the division of conservation from issuing any additional credit certificates or amending previously issued credit certificates as a result of the additional authority granted by the act for a donation made prior to the effective date of the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 2 of the act prohibits a person that is licensed by the Colorado limited gaming control commission (commission) to operate an internet sports betting operation (internet sports betting operator) from:Accepting more than 6 separate deposits from an individual in a gaming day; orInitiating or sending mobile device push notifications or text messages to account holders in the state soliciting bets or deposits.     Section 3:Prohibits a sports betting operation or its marketing affiliate from targeting, or creating advertising content that is clearly meant for, persons under 21 years old or from advertising on media for which the majority of the demographic audience is reasonably expected to be under 21 years old; andRequires an internet sports betting operator, on an annual basis, to provide to the division of gaming in the department of revenue (division) data and metrics related to the operator's sports betting operation for the preceding calendar year. The division must compile the data into a public report every 3 years starting on January 1, 2029.     Section 4 prohibits an internet sports betting operator from accepting deposits using a credit card in connection with the acceptance of a sports bet (prohibition). A violation of the prohibition constitutes a class 2 misdemeanor.     Section 5 allows the commission to assess a maximum penalty of $25,000 against a violator of the prohibition.     Section 6 requires that the amount of money annually transferred from the sports betting fund (fund) to the water plan implementation cash fund is no less than the amount transferred to the water plan implementation cash fund in the previous state fiscal year.     $124,623 is appropriated from the legal services cash fund to the department of law to provide legal services to the department of revenue in implementing the act. The appropriation is from revenue received from the department of revenue that is continuously appropriated to the department of revenue from the fund.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the Colorado bureau of investigation to transmit a list of missing children to the Colorado department of education (department) instead of each school district and requires the department to notify the bureau if the department's list of enrolled students includes information about a missing child.     The act repeals the requirement for a school district, board of cooperative services, district charter school, or institute charter school to have paper and pencil assessment policies for state-administered assessments in public schools.     The act allows a school district or a charter school network with 1,200 students or fewer to submit a single plan to satisfy school district, school network, or school accreditation plan requirements.     The act prohibits the department from representing as mandatory a voluntary data collection request to a school district, the state charter school institute, or a public school and prohibits the department from conditioning any benefit unrelated to a specific grant on the completion of a voluntary data collection request.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act extends the implementation dates for capping family copayments for child care at 7% of family income, for paying child care providers in advance of the provision of services, and for utilizing grants and contracts to improve access to child care for underserved populations to August 1, 2028.     The act modifies existing reporting requirements to include the total amount of child care assistance program (CCCAP) allocation that is spent by the department and each county on administrative expenses, county indirect expenses, program implementation costs, and direct service expenses.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act increases funding for county child abuse prevention services and programs by changing the source of reimbursement money transmitted to the Colorado child abuse prevention trust fund (trust fund) from money received for all prevention services and programs identified in the federal Title IV-E clearinghouse (prevention services clearinghouse) to money received by the Colorado department of early childhood and identified in the prevention services clearinghouse.     The act continues the trust fund and Colorado child abuse prevention board indefinitely.     For the 2026-27 state fiscal year, the general assembly anticipates that the department of human services will receive $150,000 in federal funds to implement the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, the Colorado job growth incentive tax credit (credit) may only be allowed by the economic development commission (commission) through state income tax year 2026. The act amends the Colorado job growth incentive tax credit to authorize the commission to allow new credit awards through state income tax year 2034. The act also extends the commission's annual reporting requirement through September 1, 2042.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies in its 2025 sunset review of the 'Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act' (PACFA) as follows:Sections 1 and 2 of the act continue the commissioner of agriculture's (commissioner) function of licensing pet animal facilities in accordance with the PACFA for 8 years, until 2034;Section 3 amends the PACFA's pet animal advisory committee (committee) membership structure by requiring the commissioner, on or before December 1, 2026, to appoint 15 members with certain specifications. Section 3 also specifies that members appointed to the committee on or before December 1, 2026, may serve no more than 2 consecutive terms of 4 years.Section 4 prohibits the importation of certain pet animals into the state without a valid certificate of veterinary inspection by an accredited veterinarian in the state of origin issued within 10 days prior to the pet animal's arrival in Colorado;Section 5 increases the current maximum fee amount of $700 for a pet animal facility license application to $1,500;Section 6 raises the maximum civil penalty amount for a violation of the PACFA or of a rule adopted pursuant to the PACFA from $1,000 per violation to $2,500 per violation;Section 7 states that a person that chooses to request a hearing in response to a cease-and-desist order issued by the commissioner for a violation of the PACFA or of a rule adopted pursuant to the PACFA must do so within 30 days after the issuance of the cease-and-desist order;Section 8 requires the commissioner to develop an administrative process for an interested person to petition for the issuance, amendment, or repeal of a rule by the commissioner;Section 9 amends House Bill 26-1011 concerning the transfer of certain pet animals in Colorado, by clarifying that the prohibition on a broker selling, leasing, offering to sell or lease, bartering, auctioning, or otherwise transferring ownership of a dog or cat does not apply to the sale, transfer, or adoption of a dog or cat to or by a pet store prior to January 1, 2028; andSection 10 relocates the statute that establishes the pet overpopulation authority (authority) so the authority is no longer subject to sunset review as part of the PACFA.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act extends for an additional 10 years the availability of the state income tax credit allowed to a taxpayer who makes a qualifying monetary contribution to promote child care in the state equal to 50% of the total value of the contribution, not to exceed $100,000, through income tax years commencing prior to January 1, 2038.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)