Sen. Sonya Jaquez Lewis

With certain exceptions, a local government is currently required to obtain voter approval and meet other requirements before providing internet access (advanced service) to the public. The act specifies that these requirements do not apply to a school district or board of cooperative services providing advanced service that enables students, teachers, and staff members of the district to access a school-owned and operated network to facilitate remote learning.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

So long as it is not prohibited under federal law, the act permits adoptive parents who are parties to an adoption assistance agreement (agreement) to pay for services or items from a provider that is not enrolled in the medical assistance program. The services or items would otherwise be reimbursable under the medical assistance program pursuant to the terms of the agreement.The adoptive parents must determine if the special needs of the child or youth require items or services from the provider and must enter into a written agreement with the provider in which the adoptive parents agree to bear the cost of the items or services. The adoptive parents shall not seek reimbursement from the adoption assistance program or the medical assistance program after such items and services have been provided and paid for pursuant to the written agreement. Further, a county department of human or social services is not required to cover the cost of the items or services as part of the circumstances of the family or the anticipated needs of the eligible child or youth during subsidy negotiations; however, the act does not preclude consideration of any other family circumstances or anticipated needs for purposes of negotiating adoption assistance.The act requires the department of health care policy and financing to seek any federal authorization necessary pursuant to the medical assistance program to implement the policy.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the "Pet Store Consumer Protection Act", which requires each pet store licensed to sell or offer to sell dogs or cats to:Include on all advertisements, including website postings, the purchase price of the dog or cat and any applicable federal or state license numbers for the breeder of the dog or cat; Post on the enclosure of each dog or cat the purchase price of the dog or cat and certain information on the dog's or cat's breeder; and Make certain written disclosures to a prospective consumer prior to selling a dog or cat. The act preserves the right of a statutory or home rule local government to enact requirements for pet stores that are more stringent than the requirements of the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

An individual who owns a firearm must report the loss or theft of that firearm to a law enforcement agency within 5 days after discovering that the firearm was lost or stolen. A first offense for failure to make such a report is a civil infraction punishable by a $25 fine, and a second or subsequent offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum $500 fine. The 5-day reporting requirement does not apply to a licensed gun dealer.Another person who is a member of the owner's family or who resides with the owner may report the lost or stolen firearm. If the other person reports the loss or theft of the firearm, the owner is not required to make a report. A report by another person is not an acknowledgment of firearm ownership.A person who reports a lost or stolen firearm is immune from criminal prosecution for an offense pursuant to state law related to the storage of firearms.The act requires a law enforcement agency that receives a report of a lost or stolen firearm to enter information about the lost or stolen firearm into the Colorado bureau of investigation crime information center database.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The public employees' retirement association (PERA) board (board) is required to create an exclusion list of all fossil fuel companies in whose stocks, securities, equities, assets, or other obligations PERA has any money or assets directly invested. The board is required to notify any company on the list of its inclusion on the list and of the divestment requirements of the bill. The board is required to periodically update the exclusion list. A company that was included on the exclusion list may request that it be removed from the list on the basis of clear and convincing evidence that it is not currently a fossil fuel company or that it will no longer meet such definition by a certain date. Within 6 months from the completion of the exclusion list, the board is required to issue a determination as to whether divestment from the companies on the exclusion list complies with the board's fiduciary obligations. If the board determines that divestment from any company on the exclusion list does not comply with its fiduciary obligations, the board will remove the company from the exclusion list. Beginning one year after the effective date of the bill, the board is required to: Divest the funds managed by PERA (fund) of any stocks, securities, equities, assets, or other obligations of companies on the exclusion list in which any money or assets of the fund are directly invested; and Cease new direct investments of any money or assets of the fund in any stocks, securities, or other obligations of any company that is a fossil fuel company. The board is required to complete divestment from fossil fuel companies by a specified date. Beginning one year after the effective date of the bill, the board is required to endeavor to ensure that no money or assets of the fund are invested in an indirect investment vehicle unless the board is satisfied that such indirect investment vehicle is unlikely to have in excess of 2% of its assets directly or indirectly invested in fossil fuel companies. The board is required to issue periodic reports to the members of the pension review commission of the general assembly outlining all actions taken to comply with the requirements of the bill. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act requires a provider of services related to child and youth out-of-home placement (service provider) to provide fair and equal access to all available programs, benefits, and services offered by the service provider. Services related to out-of-home placement must be provided in a manner that is culturally responsive to the complex social identity of the child or youth receiving such services.A service provider is prohibited from denying any person the opportunity to become an adoptive or a foster parent, or delaying or denying the placement of a child or youth for adoption or into foster care, on the basis of the real or perceived disability, race, creed, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin, ancestry, or any communicable disease, including HIV, of the prospective adoptive or foster parent or the child unless the delay or denial of the placement is not detrimental to the health or welfare of the child or youth.The act requires that foster parent training include instruction on the right of a foster child or youth to have fair and equal access to all available services and other health and educational services available to foster children and foster youth, including siblings in foster care.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act designates March 30 as "Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day", a commemorative state holiday, and allows for appropriate observance by the public and in all public schools in tribute to the service and sacrifice of Vietnam veterans.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the licensing of hearing aid providers by: Continuing the licensing of hearing aid providers for 11 years, to 2031; Requiring final agency actions to be appealed directly to the court of appeals; Repealing language specifying that the hearing aid provider practice act does not prohibit an individual from performing tasks that would be permissible if the licensee was not licensed; Prohibiting a person who is not licensed as a hearing aid provider from using any titles that imply the person is qualified as a hearing aid provider; Requiring a hearing aid provider to be licensed before directly or indirectly selling or negotiating to sell any hearing aid for the hearing impaired; Repealing references to the national competency examination of the National Board for Certification in Hearing Instrument Sciences and requiring the director of the division of professions and occupations (director) to determine the competency examination required for licensure; Requiring hearing aid providers to post a surety bond, maintain professional liability insurance, or comply with other financial responsibility requirements determined by the director; Adding failure to practice according to commonly accepted professional standards to the grounds for discipline; Authorizing the director to accept disciplinary action taken by another state, a local jurisdiction, or the federal government as prima facie evidence of misconduct if the basis for the action would be grounds for discipline in Colorado; and Adding deceptive trade practice provisions related to the sale of hearing aids by hearing aid providers. In addition to implementing the sunset recommendations, the act also: Updates the scope of practice to require either the initial testing or the first fitting to be performed in-person; and Requires each hearing aid provider to attend at least 8 hours of continuing education each year.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the licensing of audiologists by: Continuing the licensing of audiologists for 11 years, to 2031; Requiring licensees and insurance carriers to report any malpractice settlements or judgments to the director of the division of professions and occupations in the department of regulatory agencies within 30 days and specifying that failure of a licensee to comply with this requirement is grounds for discipline; Requiring final agency actions to be appealed directly to the court of appeals; Amending the language in the grounds for discipline referring to an alcohol or substance use disorder; and Adding deceptive trade practice provisions related to the dispensing of hearing aids by audiologists. The act also requires each audiologist to complete at least 10 hours of continuing education each license renewal period. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act clarifies language and requirements related to the child care license exemption for family child care homes and extends the licensure exemption from September 1, 2020, to September 1, 2026. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)