Sen. Cathy Kipp

The act prohibits employers from making deductions from the wages or compensation of an employee for personal protective equipment. The act also requires an employer with 500 or more employees who are engaged in the slaughter of livestock or the rendering or packaging of meat to provide its employees reasonable access to restrooms. The division of labor standards and statistics in the department of labor and employment may fine an employer who fails to provide restroom access.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act establishes that the practice of lead generation marketing for legal services is a deceptive trade practice that is subject to enforcement under the 'Colorado Consumer Protection Act'.     'Lead generation legal marketing' is defined in the act as a form of marketing in which a lawyer, law firm, or licensed legal paraprofessional pays money or other compensation to a third party to receive information about a potential client or case, including the potential client's contact information or information about the potential client's legal issue or case.     Unless a person meets certain criteria, the act prohibits a person from paying money or other compensation for lead generation legal marketing services, engaging in the practice of lead generation legal marketing, or selling leads to an attorney, law firm, or licensed legal paraprofessional.     A person may solicit or market for legal services in Colorado only if the person is:Authorized by the Colorado supreme court to practice law in Colorado;Working on behalf of a person authorized by the Colorado supreme court to practice law in Colorado and that person is clearly identified in any advertisement, marketing materials, information, or resources; orA nonprofit organization that engages in legal services.     The act establishes that a person that engages in the practice of lead generation legal marketing may be subject to both civil and criminal penalties.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Currently, the 'Workers' Compensation Act of Colorado' provides that certain cancers contracted by firefighters are considered occupational diseases presumed to have been a result of the firefighters' employment. A firefighter's employer or an insurer may rebut this presumption by showing by a preponderance of the medical evidence that the cancer did not occur on the job.     The act expands the types of cancer that are considered occupational diseases and strengthens the rebuttable presumption to require an employer to show clear and convincing evidence that the cancer did not occur on the job.     The act exempts firefighters who are employed by the state.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Section 20 of article X of the state constitution (TABOR) imposes a limitation on the amount of state fiscal year spending. If state fiscal year spending exceeds that limitation, the state is required to refund the amount of state fiscal year spending in excess of that limitation (TABOR refund). Under current law, if the state issues a TABOR refund for a state fiscal year, and the amount of that TABOR refund is greater than the amount of state fiscal year spending in excess of the limitation of state fiscal year spending for the state fiscal year (over-refund), the state reduces the amount of the next available TABOR refund by the amount of the over-refund.     Changes in federal tax policy in 2025 reduced the amount of state tax revenue for the 2025 tax year. Due to when this change in federal tax policy was signed into law, it was not reflected in the amount of state fiscal year 2024-25 spending, even though the change impacted the 2025 tax year. Accordingly, if the state controller certifies in September 2026 that state revenues for state fiscal year 2025-26 did not exceed the limitation on the amount of state fiscal year spending for that state fiscal year, the act directs the office of the state controller, in consultation with the office of state planning and budgeting and the department of revenue, to determine the amount of the over-refund for state fiscal year 2024-25, taking into account the impact on state revenues from the federal tax policy change. No more than one-half of this over-refund can offset future TABOR refunds for any single state fiscal year beginning with the 2026-27 state fiscal year.     $18,021 is appropriated from the general fund to the legislative department for use by the office of the state auditor to implement the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the department of corrections (department) to furnish an individual being discharged from the department's custody a release allowance of at least $100, free of any deductions. Beginning by September 15, 2027, and annually thereafter, the department is required to collect and report discharge data, including the number of individuals released from department correctional facilities, the number and percentage of released individuals who received the release allowance, and the total amount of money spent on release allowances. The department must issue a report to the general assembly annually. The act repeals provisions requiring the department to give an individual a ticket to leave prior to discharging the individual from a correctional facility.     The act requires eligible offenders to participate in the department's existing program to procure state-issued identification cards for offenders (program), unless the offender affirmatively opts-out of the program. Beginning by September 15, 2027, and annually thereafter, the department is required to collect data on the process of securing necessary identification documents to issue state identification cards and issue a report to the general assembly. The report must include the number and percentage of offenders released with an identification card, birth certificate, and social security number and the number and percentage of offenders who were ineligible to participate in the program and the reason for ineligibility.     The department is prohibited from charging an offender a fee to obtain a state identification card, and any fee incurred in the process of securing an offender's identification documents to create the state identification card must be assessed after the offender has been released and may be consolidated with existing restitution, fees, or other legal financial obligations owed by the offender.     The department of public health and environment shall assist the department in securing necessary identification documents.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

On or before December 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the act requires each transportation broker that administers nonemergency medical transportation to medicaid members to submit certain information to the department of health care policy and financing (state department) regarding transportation providers that the transportation broker contracts with. Beginning January 1, 2027, the state department is required to include this information in its annual 'SMART Act' presentation.     The act changes the term 'qualified alien' to 'qualified noncitizen' to align with federal requirements.     If the state department plans to implement, apply, or enforce new multiple procedure payment reductions for outpatient therapy services, the act requires the state department to provide notice to the impacted providers of the changes at least 6 months prior to implementing the changes and to hold at least one stakeholder meeting to discuss the payment reductions.     The act requires the state department to reimburse a provider who is licensed and authorized to prescribe, dispense, compound, or administer medication-assisted treatment in a jail setting.     The act requires the medical services board to adopt rules before January 1, 2027, to comply with federal community engagement requirements and requires the state department make available on its website data on the community engagement requirements and their impact on medical assistance enrollment.     The act requires the state department to collect direct care service cost to administrative cost ratio information from home- and community-based service provider agencies and submit a report to the general assembly detailing the information collected.     The act repeals the state medical assistance and services advisory council.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2027, the act makes it a petty offense for a person, in connection with nonresidential property, to certify the truth and accuracy of information provided to the assessor in connection with property valuation when the information is not true and accurate as to every material matter. The act also makes it a petty offense for a person, in connection with nonresidential property, to willfully aid or assist in filing information that is fraudulent or false in connection with property valuation. The act specifies the sentencing requirements for a person convicted of a petty offense pursuant to the act and authorizes the county attorney to file and prosecute any action arising under the act in the county court of the county in which the property is located. If a court of competent jurisdiction finds that a taxpayer committed a petty offense pursuant to the act, the property owner is not entitled to penalty interest earned on any tax refund; the board of assessment appeals does not have the authority to determine whether a taxpayer has forfeited this right.     Existing law requires a petitioner appealing either a valuation of rent-producing commercial real property to the board of assessment appeals or a denial of an abatement of taxes to the board of county commissioners to provide certain information to the board of equalization or to the board of county commissioners. The act requires the petitioner to provide information that is specific to the property at issue.      For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2027, the act allows a county to file a motion with the board of assessment appeals noting the county's preference that a case appealing a decision of the board of assessment appeals be heard in district court. The act allows the petitioner to elect whether the case will be heard by the board of assessment appeals or the district court.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the department of health care policy and financing (state department) to establish a statewide database to provide accurate information about certain individual residential services and supports settings and their associated service provider agencies. The database will be used by the state department, the department of public health and environment, and service provider agencies. Information from the database may only be shared with the public upon determination by the state department and consistent with state and federal privacy and confidentiality laws.     The act requires service provider agencies to submit the required information to the state department beginning July 1, 2026, and quarterly thereafter, and requires the state department to update the database within one month after receiving the required information from the service provider agencies.     The act clarifies that individual residential services and supports settings must be treated as residential properties in the application of local regulations, including zoning, land use development, fire and life safety, sanitation, and building codes. The act prohibits local governing authorities from imposing additional regulations on individual residential services and supports settings that do not apply to other residential properties.     The act appropriates $20,000 to the state department from the general fund to implement the act.     It is anticipated that the state department will receive $60,000 in federal funds for the executive director's office to implement the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

With certain exceptions, the act prohibits an employer or an employer's agent from demanding, confiscating, retaining, or otherwise requiring an individual who is an employee or an applicant for employment or who is performing work or seeking to perform work for the employer in any capacity, including a migrant worker or seasonal employee, to surrender the individual's government-issued identification card.     A person that knowingly violates the act's prohibition commits criminal possession of an identification document, which is a class 2 misdemeanor.     A person commits a bias-motivated crime if, with the intent to intimidate or harass another individual, in whole or in part, because of that individual's actual or perceived race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, or transgender identity, the person:Violates the act's prohibitions; orProvides, or threatens to provide, an individual's government-issued identification document to federal immigration authorities, except where required or permitted by state or federal law.     Such a bias-motivated crime is a class 1 misdemeanor, and a victim may seek additional remedies available under law.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that school districts test the vision of students in pre-kindergarten, in addition to testing the vision of students in kindergarten and the first, second, third, fifth, seventh, and ninth grades.     The act updates terminology by replacing the word 'sight' with the word 'vision'.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)