The act modifies various plans administered by the fire and police pension association (FPPA).The act modifies the state-assisted old hire pension plans as follows: There are 26 state-assisted old hire police officers' and firefighters' pension plans with 5 or fewer retirees or beneficiaries who are still receiving benefits. Current law states that the amount of annual local government contributions to those plans is an amount that will amortize the unfunded liabilities of the plan over a period not to exceed 20 years or the average remaining life expectancy of the pension fund's members. Section 1 of the act modifies the method by which the contribution is calculated to more precisely set contribution requirements as the plans' liabilities decrease. The act allows the FPPA board of directors (board) to consider the following when determining the contribution amount: Stabilizing the amount of the annual required contributions over time; keeping the funded ratio of the pension fund from declining; and reducing or eliminating contributions as may be prudent based on actuarial experience. The act modifies the statewide defined benefit plan as follows: Increase in employee and employer contributions: Current statute specifies that all members covered under the statewide defined benefit plan administered by the FPPA contribute 8% of their salary to the FPPA on a monthly basis. In addition, every employer employing members who are covered by the statewide defined benefit plan administered by the FPPA contributes 8% of the salary paid to such members to the FPPA on a monthly basis. In 2014, the members and employers of the statewide defined benefit plan authorized a 4% increase in the member contribution rate to be implemented over 8 years with an increase of 0.5% per year for a total employee contribution rate of 12% of salary. The first 0.5% increase in the member contribution rate occurred in 2015 and the member contribution rate will continue to increase by 0.5% each year thereafter through 2022. Sections 2, 3, and 4 of the act codify the increases in the member contribution rates that are already in effect and make required conforming amendments. Sections 2, 3, and 4 of the act increase the employer contribution rate by 4%, to be implemented over 8 years with an increase of 0.5% a year for a total employer contribution rate of 12% of salary. The act requires the first 0.5% increase in the employer contribution rate to occur in 2021 and requires an additional 0.5% increase each year thereafter through 2028. Retirement eligibility: Currently, a member of the statewide defined benefit plan may retire with a full retirement benefit if the member has completed at least 25 years of service and is at least 55 years old. A member of the statewide defined benefit plan is eligible for an early retirement with a reduced benefit if the member has either completed at least 30 years of service or is at least 50 years old. Section 2 of the act allows a member of the statewide defined benefit plan to retire with an unreduced retirement benefit if the member is at least 50 years old and has a combined age and years of service that is equal to at least 80. To cover the cost of the new full retirement benefit eligibility, section 2 of the act increases the employer contribution rate, in addition to all other increases in the employer contribution rate, by 1% of base salary to be implemented over 2 years. In 2021, the act requires the employer contribution rate to increase by 0.5% of base salary and in 2022, requires the employer contribution rate to increase by an additional 0.5% of base salary. The implementation of the increase may be deferred while other increases are being implemented. Conforming amendment to current plan: Originally, the pension benefit for members of the statewide defined benefit plan was capped at 50% of a member's highest average salary, even when the member earned more than 25 years of service credit. In the 1990s, the cap was eliminated by an amendment to the plan approved by election of the members and employers. Sections 3 and 4 of the act eliminate the cap to conform to the current plan benefits. Stabilization reserve account: When the statewide defined benefit plan was initially established, the revenue generated from the 8% member contribution rate and the 8% employer contribution rate was more than necessary to pay the normal costs of the defined benefit plan. Any money in excess of what was necessary to pay the normal costs of the plan was deposited into the stabilization reserve account. The stabilization reserve account consists of separate retirement accounts and upon retirement, members who have satisfied the vesting requirements of the plan are eligible for distributions from the account. Since the stabilization reserve account was established, benefits allowed under the statewide defined benefit plan have increased to the extent that all of the revenue generated from the member and employer contributions are required to pay the normal costs of the plan and money is no longer deposited into the stabilization reserve account. Sections 3, 5, and 6 of the act change the nature of the separate retirement accounts in the stabilization reserve account to defined contribution accounts, subject to self direction by the member. In addition, the act requires the board to transfer the balances of the separate retirement accounts in the stabilization reserve account to defined contribution accounts by a specified date. Authorization to increase contribution rate: Current law authorizes the board to increase the member contribution rate for members in the statewide defined benefit plan. Section 7 of the act authorizes the board to increase the member and employer contribution rates in equal amounts above the rates established pursuant to law or eliminate an increase in the member and employer contribution rates if certain specified conditions are satisfied, including approval by members and employers at an election proposing such increase or decrease. Continuing rate of contribution: Pursuant to current law, any county that does not cover, under the federal "Social Security Act", salaried employees whose duties are directly involved with the provision of law enforcement or fire protection may elect coverage under the statewide defined benefit plan and the statewide death and disability plan. Section 9 of the act specifies that the board may determine a continuing rate of contribution for all members who are active on the effective date of coverage to fund benefits to ensure that the affiliating employers' coverage does not have an adverse financial impact on the actuarial soundness of the plan. Employers that have withdrawn from the statewide defined benefit plan but later reenter the plan are required to pay a continuing rate of contribution for all members who are active on the effective date of coverage. The continuing rate of contribution is a contribution in addition to the member and employer contribution and accounts for increased costs associated with members employed by employers who reenter the plan. The board established the continuing rate of contribution pursuant to law; however, the rate set by the board was higher than necessary to pay the costs of benefits for impacted members and current law does not authorize the board to decrease the rate. Section 12 of the act authorizes the board to decrease the continuing rate of contribution when it determines that the rate is higher than what is necessary to pay the costs of the benefits of members who are employees of employers who rejoined the plan. The act modifies the death and disability plan as follows: For members hired on or after January 1, 1997, and who are eligible for death and disability coverage provided by the FPPA, current law requires a contribution to the death and disability account not to exceed 2.4% of the members salary; except that the board is authorized to increase the contribution rate every 2 years by 0.1%. The current rate is 2.8% of salary. Sections 8, 10, and 11 of the act increase the maximum contribution rate in 2021 to 3% of salary and authorize the board to increase the contribution every year by up to 0.2% of the member's salary. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act clarifies that a registered prescription drug outlet and an other outlet may make a casual sale of a drug in the manufacturer's sealed container to another registered outlet and to a practitioner authorized to prescribe the drug. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act reorganizes the "Dental Practice Act", which includes the laws governing the practices of dentistry and dental hygiene and other procedures, tasks, and activities related to those practices. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill prohibits the department of health care policy and financing (department) from denying a medicaid recipient the right to purchase direct primary care services or enter into a direct primary care agreement. On or before July 1, 2025, the department shall submit a report to the joint budget committee on whether allowing medicaid recipients to purchase direct primary care services or enter into a direct primary care agreement resulted in any direct or indirect cost-savings to the state and federal medicaid programs and whether there has been an increase or decrease in overall access to care for medicaid recipients.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
Current law requires that a local board of health set the permit fee for an on-site wastewater treatment system permit in an amount to recover the actual direct and indirect costs associated with the permit and sets a $1,000 cap on the fee. The act repeals the dollar limitation on the fee. Upon request, the local board of health shall provide a permittee with a statement that specifies how the permit fee amount was calculated. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill requires a place of public accommodation that owns, leases, leases to, or operates a movie theater in more than 2 locations in the state to provide open captioning during at least 2 showings per week of each movie that is produced and offered with open movie captioning. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
Behavioral health entities - single license - advisory committee timelines - appropriation. Currently, certain entities that provide behavioral health services must hold various licenses issued by the department of public health and environment (CDPHE) or the department of human services (DHS). The act combines the various licenses into a single license as a behavioral health entity (BHE) and authorizes the state board of health to promulgate rules for the new license. To accomplish the transition, the act establishes a behavioral health entity implementation and advisory committee consisting of executive directors of certain state departments, or the director's designee, and representatives from various stakeholder groups. The act requires a BHE that was previously licensed by CDPHE to obtain a BHE license by July 1, 2022. It requires a BHE that was previously licensed or approved by DHS to obtain a BHE license by July 1, 2024. The act makes conforming amendments, some of which have later effective dates. For the 2019-20 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $51,472 from the general fund to the department of public health and environment to implement the new license. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Human trafficking prevention training - division of criminal justice - gifts, grants, and donations for training - school safety resource center materials and training. The act makes the division of criminal justice in the department of public safety (division) a resource to provide human trafficking prevention training (training) to law enforcement agencies and entities that provide services to human trafficking victims. The training may include: Train-the-trainer programs; Direct trainings; and Online training programs. The training may be provided to law enforcement agencies, organizations that provide direct services to human trafficking victims, school personnel and parents or guardians of students, and any other organization, agency, or group that would benefit from such training. The training must be developed in consultation with the Colorado human trafficking council (council). When considering requests for training, the division should give priority to requests from areas of the state that have limited access to training resources. The division may accept gifts, grants, and donations and shall not provide training until it receives sufficient money to cover the costs of implementing and providing the training. Beginning in 2020, the council's annual human trafficking report must include an update on the training provided. The act repeals the training provisions on September 1, 2023, and requires a sunset review prior to the repeal. The act requires the Colorado school safety resource center to include awareness and prevention of human trafficking in the materials and training that it provides. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
The bill enacts the "Genetic Counselor Licensure Act". On and after June 1, 2020, a person cannot practice genetic counseling without being licensed by the director of the division of professions and occupations in the department of regulatory agencies. To be licensed, a person must have been certified by a national body, except that the director may issue a provisional license to a candidate for certification pursuant to requirements established by rule. The bill gives title protection to genetic counselors and standard licensing, rule-making, and disciplinary powers to the director. Genetic counselors must have insurance. The bill repeals the act on September 1, 2026, subject to sunset review. Genetic counselors are subject to the mandatory disclosures of the "Michael Skolnik Medical Transparency Act of 2010". The bill makes conforming amendments to harmonize the bill with the title 12 recodification bill, House Bill 19-1172. The bill appropriates $33,622 to the department of regulatory agencies from the division of professions and occupations cash fund to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) Read More
Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act - grounds for discipline - waiting period after license revocation - fines - mandatory sterilization - continuation under sunset law - appropriation. The act implements some of the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the Colorado "Pet Animal Care and Facilities Act" as follows: Adds as grounds for discipline, a conviction of a local, state, or federal offense involving the theft, importation, capture, neglect, or abuse of an animal; Extends the commissioner of agriculture's authority to discipline a licensee or deny a license to an applicant for crimes involving animal cruelty to cases where a licensee or applicant has entered a plea of no contest; Extends the 2-year waiting period that a licensee whose license has been revoked must wait before applying for a new license to a principal, officer, director, manager, or any other person who has substantial control or authority over the daily operations of the entity, regardless of the reason for the revocation; and Requires the state treasurer to credit all fines to the general fund. The act removes the option of an animal shelter or pet animal rescue to release a dog or cat to a prospective owner with a fee and a signed agreement to have the animal sterilized within 90 days after the date of release and prohibits the animal's release unless the animal has been sterilized by a licensed veterinarian. The commissioner of agriculture may grant an exemption to a facility in an area with limited access to licensed veterinarians. The automatic termination date of the licensing of pet animal facilities by the department of agriculture is extended until September 1, 2026, pursuant to the provisions of the sunset law. $123,007 is appropriated to the department of agriculture from the general fund to implement the act along with a 1.6 FTE. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More