Sen. Joann Ginal

The bill clarifies that when a person is convicted of a criminal offense, upon proper motion of the prosecuting attorney and at the discretion of the court, the court shall collect from the person any reasonable and necessary costs incurred by the prosecuting attorney or law enforcement agency that are directly the result of the successful prosecution of the person and transfer such costs to the prosecuting attorney or law enforcement agency. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The existing all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) program includes the state PACE ombudsman. The bill adds local PACE ombudsmen to the state ombudsman's office (office). The bill contains provisions relating to local PACE ombudsmen, including training, designation as representatives of the office, access to PACE centers and participants, authority to file complaints on behalf of PACE participants, and immunity from liability. The bill includes time frames for the state PACE ombudsman to complete duties and functions of the office, including establishing statewide policies and procedures for investigating and resolving complaints relating to PACE programs and training local PACE ombudsmen. The department of human services shall report to the joint budget committee and to its legislative committee of reference concerning the long-term care ombudsman program and the state PACE ombudsman program, including program caseloads and the need, if any, for additional local ombudsmen. The bill repeals statutory provisions relating to stakeholder recommendations and a report concerning the expansion of the PACE ombudsman program to include local PACE ombudsmen. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Under current law, when an employee or manager of a retail business applies for an occupational license, the person must be a Colorado resident on the date of his or her application. The bill gives the state licensing authority the ability to create an exemption to the residency requirement for a person applying for an occupational license for participation in a marijuana-based workforce development or education program if the person files an affirmation that he or she is participating in a program that requires access to licensed premises. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill prohibits engaging in a nuisance exhibition of motor vehicle exhaust, which is the act of knowingly blowing black smoke through one or more exhaust pipes attached to a motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 14,000 pounds or less in a manner that obstructs or obscures the view of another driver, a bicyclist, or a pedestrian. A person who violates the prohibition commits a class A traffic infraction, punishable by a fine of $100. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Under current law, for some clients, home health services under the medicaid program may only be provided in the client's residence. The bill removes the location restriction for home health services to comply with changes to federal medicaid rules that allow for services to be delivered in the community as well as the residence. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill creates the state veterinary education loan repayment council (council), which consists of 5 directors appointed by the governor. The council administers the veterinary education loan repayment program (program) by use of funds from the veterinary education loan repayment fund (fund), which program and fund are also created in the bill. Through the program, the council provides veterinary education loan repayments from the fund to eligible veterinarians who: Have graduated from an accredited doctor of veterinary medicine school; Currently live in Colorado or, at some point, have lived in Colorado for at least 3 years; and Agree to practice veterinary medicine for up to 4 years in a rural area of the state that is experiencing a shortage of veterinarians that the council designates for participation in the program. To implement the program, the council enters into a contract with an eligible veterinarian and the rural area of the state in which the veterinarian will practice veterinary medicine. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Sunset Process - Senate Business, Labor, and Technology Committee. The bill implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the functions of the division of insurance (division) by: Continuing the functions of the division for 13 years, until 2030 ( sections 1 and 2 of the bill); Establishing a separate sunset date for the regulation of preneed funeral contracts in 2022 ( section 5 ); Reassigning certain duties related to health maintenance organizations from the executive director of the department of public health and environment to the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) ( sections 6 through 13 ); Repealing the 'Certified Capital Company Act', effective July 1, 2025 ( section 14 ); Removing the exemption of policies with more than 4 automobiles from consumer protection provisions ( section 15 ); Eliminating the requirement that an insurer authorized to transact business in Colorado file a schedule of insurance rates for required minimum coverages by July 1, 2003 ( section 16 ); Expanding the definition of 'enrollee' to include certain individuals with non-HMO or prepaid plans ( section 17 ); Revising the definition of 'participating provider' to include providers in other states that are part of the carrier's managed care network since consumers may use contracted providers in other states when Colorado insurance protections are applicable ( section 17 ); Repealing the 35% surcharge above the modified community rate that an insurance carrier is permitted to impose on small employers that previously purchased self-funded health benefit coverage or a health benefit plan that was not a small group plan ( section 18 ); Repealing the requirement for a one-time training course that was to be completed by January 1, 2009 ( section 19 ); Changing a reference to the location of the definition of health care providers from the statutes governing reimbursement to providers of health care services to refer to statutes governing the statewide managed care system ( section 20 ); and Clarifying that all bail agents licensed by the division are exempt from the private investigator licensing statute ( section 21 ). Section 3 of the bill requires fines and penalties levied on insurers to relate to the general business practices and compliance activities of insurers. Section 4 of the bill requires the division to study the compliance of preneed funeral contract sellers with Colorado law and report the findings of the study to the legislature not later than September 1, 2017.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill updates and modernizes terminology in the Colorado Revised Statutes related to behavioral health, mental health, alcohol abuse, and substance abuse. Based on specific contexts, the new terminology refers to behavioral health disorders, mental health disorders, alcohol use disorders, or substance use disorders. Outdated references to the 'unit in the department of human services that administers behavioral health programs and services, including those related to mental health and substance abuse' have been corrected to use the actual current name of that office, which is 'the office of behavioral health in the department of human services'. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Currently, the 'Colorado End-of-life Options Act' requires an attending physician or hospice medical director to sign the death certificate of an individual who obtained and self-administered aid-in-dying medication. The bill removes this requirement. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)