Section 1 of the act requires, in addition to othr existing uses, that interest and income earned on the investment of the money in the public school fund to be used to pay for the costs of administering a newly created shared equity down payment assistance program. Section 2 requires at least one member of the public school fund investment board (board) to have expertise in community investments, requires the board to direct the state treasurer to securely invest money deposited in the public school fund in a manner that prioritizes specified new investment objectives, and authorizes the board to enter into contracts with investment advisors or other investment professionals to provide advice on community investments. Section 3 extends the time frame under which the state treasurer may make up a loss of principal to the public school fund by taking actions which lead to gains in the fund from 18 to 24 months. Section 4 creates a new community investment portfolio (portfolio) within the public school fund, and requires the state treasurer to invest at least 20% of the public school fund's value into the community investment portfolio by July 1, 2032. Money in the portfolio must be invested in community investments, and allowable community investments include: Bonds issued by Colorado school districts and charter schools; Certificates of participation issued by Colorado school districts and charter schools; Mortgage pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations secured by residential real estate, the majority of which is owned by public school employees; Loans to the Colorado middle income housing authority for a revolving loan fund that funds rental housing developments that include preferences for public school employees; Bonds issued by the middle income housing authority that fund rental housing developments which include preferences for public school employees; Bonds or mortgage-backed securities issued by the Colorado housing and finance authority that fund rental housing developments that include preferences for public school employees or mortgages secured by residential real estate, the majority of which is owned by public school employees; Mortgage revenue bonds that support public school employee mortgages with interest rates of 3% or less; Loans to community development financial institutions or nonprofits with a history of providing affordable home ownership financing that fund: Housing that includes preferences for public school employees; or Low-interest mortgages secured by residential real estate that is owned by public school employees; Down payment shared appreciation products secured by residential real estate that is owned by public school employees; and Other investments that support public purpose of the portfolio. The educator first home ownership program (program) is created within the portfolio. Subject to a specified limitation, the treasurer shall invest the following amounts in the program by the following dates: By July 1, 2028, the greater of 6% of the fund's value or $100 million; and By July 1, 2030, the greater of 12% of the fund's value or $200 million. The treasurer shall aim to invest a target of 75% of the money in the program into the shared equity down payment assistance program for public school employees. The shared equity down payment assistance program must be established by July 1, 2026. Once the shared equity down payment assistance program is established: The public school fund investment board shall purchase from the program manager the mortgage products created through the shared equity down payment assistance program; and The public school investment board may provide notice of any discontinuation of future investments that the program manager has not already committed to the shared equity down payment assistance program, which notice must be provided at least 6 months prior to discontinuation. The treasurer shall aim to invest a target of 25% of the money in the program into allowable community investments. The program manager shall establish underwriting criteria and other guidelines for the shared equity down payment assistance program so that the shared equity down payment assistance program: Prioritizes first-time home buyers that use the home as a primary residence; Provides shared equity down payment assistance to public school employees and aims to help as many public school employees as possible achieve affordable home ownership; and Allows appreciation-sharing between the shared equity down payment assistance program and the borrower. Unless investments in the shared equity down payment assistance program have been discontinued and there is no fund money invested in the shared equity down payment assistance program, the program administrator shall present an annual report to the board on program outcomes. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, section 5 appropriates $375,900 from interest or income earned on the investment of the money in the public school fund to the department of the treasury. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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Colorado law allows a local government to establish local minimum wages in excess of the statewide minimum wage established in the state constitution. A local government that enacts a minimum wage must provide a tip offset for tipped employees in an amount equal to the tip offset amount described in the state constitution, which is $3.02. The act states that on and after January 1, 2026, a local government that has enacted a code or an ordinance imposing a minimum wage that exceeds the state minimum wage may increase the amount of the tip offset associated with the local minimum wage; except that a local government shall not impose a tip offset in an amount that allows a tipped employee to earn less than the state minimum wage minus $3.02. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Starting January 1, 2027, the act prohibits an electrical employer or plumbing employer that employs an apprentice in the state (employer) from registering an apprentice with the employer's respective governing board (board) unless the apprentice is enrolled in an apprenticeship program training the apprentice for an occupation officially recognized by the United States department of labor as an electrical occupation for an electrical apprenticeship or a plumbing occupation for a plumbing apprenticeship. On or before July 1, 2027, if existing resources are available or if the department of regulatory agencies (DORA) receives sufficient gifts, grants, or donations, the act requires the state apprenticeship agency and DORA to establish data-sharing agreements and policies to enable the entities to determine if there are apprentices registered with a board who are enrolled to be trained for occupations other than electrical or plumbing occupations and who are therefore ineligible for registration with the board. If the board cannot verify that an apprentice is eligible to be registered as an apprentice within 60 days after notice of noncompliance, the board shall remove the apprentice's registration with the board, and the noncompliant apprentice shall not perform work as a plumbing or electrical apprentice in the state. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act amends a definition and adds new definitions under the electricians' practice act. Existing law requires an applicant for a journeyman electrician's license or a residential wireman's license to provide evidence of having certain minimum years of apprenticeship experience, accredited training, or practical experience. For the purpose of these requirements, the act allows an applicant for a journeyman electrician's license to have a minimum of 8,000 hours over a period of at least 4 years of certain apprenticeship or practical experience and an applicant for a residential wireman's license to have a minimum of 4,000 hours over a period of at least 2 years of certain practical experience. The act also changes the time frame for which an applicant for a journeyman electrician's license must complete at least 288 hours of training in safety, the national electrical code and its applications, and any other training required by the state electrical board (board) from the last 4 years to the last 8 years of the applicant's training, apprenticeship, or practical experience. Existing law allows an applicant for a journeyman electrician's license or a residential wireman's license to substitute for required practical experience evidence of academic training or practical experience in the electrical field. The act allows an applicant to also substitute evidence of training in photovoltaic systems installation. However, the act also states that the board may, but is no longer required to, provide work experience credit for academic training, military training, photovoltaic systems installation training, or substantially similar training. A contractor that is operating as of September 1, 2025, and that performs work as a photovoltaic installer pursuant with at least one North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) certified employee is required to register as a photovoltaic installer with the board on or before December 31, 2026. Existing law requires that, for all applicants seeking work experience credit toward licensure, the board give credit for electrical work that is not required to be performed by or under the supervision of a licensed electrician if the applicant can show that the experience or supervision is adequate. The act allows the board to give the credit, but it is not required to do so. Existing law allows for photovoltaic installations with a direct current design capacity of less than 300 kilowatts, the performance of all photovoltaic electrical work, the installation of photovoltaic modules, and the installation of photovoltaic module mounting equipment to be subject to on-site supervision by a certified photovoltaic energy practitioner designated by the NABCEP. The act requires that the photovoltaic energy practitioner is also working for a contractor that is not a registered electrical contractor; is registered with the department of regulatory agencies as a photovoltaic installer no later than December 31, 2026; is a business in good standing with the state; and employs a NABCEP PV installation professional. The act also: Defines "photovoltaic electrical work" as electrical work performed on a photovoltaic system that is covered electrical work in accordance with the national electrical code; Grants the board authority to regulate photovoltaic electrical work for installations of less than three hundred kilowatts and specifies that only an electrical contractor or a photovoltaic installer may perform or offer to perform such work; and Authorizes the board to charge a fee for photovoltaic installer registration.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates the Colorado sexual assault forensic medical evidence review board (board), consisting of the attorney general, or their designee, as board chair; the executive director of the Colorado district attorneys' council, or their designee; and various members appointed by the attorney general or the governor. The board's duties include reviewing and monitoring processes related to sexual assault response, making recommendations to improve sexual assault response, and submitting an annual report concerning its duties. The act creates a notification requirement under the "Victim Rights Act" that requires a law enforcement agency to notify a victim every 90 days when the law enforcement agency has not received the results of the forensic medical evidence DNA analysis from an accredited crime laboratory. The act requires an accredited crime laboratory to endeavor to analyze forensic medical evidence within 60 days after its receipt. The act expands public reporting requirements concerning forensic medical evidence and DNA evidence backlogs. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $112,365 from the general fund to the department of law for use by the administration division to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act changes the spending authority of the division of criminal justice (division) in the department of public safety in relation to community corrections programs by: Repealing the division's authority to transfer up to 10% of annual appropriations among or between line items for community corrections program services; and Allowing the division to overexpend up to $2 million in any one fiscal year for felony placements in community corrections programs.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
If a service member's driver's license expires while they are serving on active duty outside of Colorado, the driver's license expiration date is extended for 3 years or until 90 days after the service member returns to the state. The act designates the service member's dependents as also subject to the extension of their driver's license expiration date. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the state board of education (state board) to adopt standards related to Black historical and cultural studies (standards). Local education providers shall incorporate the standards into courses for public elementary and secondary school students in the state no later than 2 years after the state board adopts the standards. The act aligns the timeline for the development, adoption, and integration of the standards with the 6-year cycle that the state board of education currently uses for revising the state academic standards. The act creates the Black historical and cultural studies advisory committee (committee) in the department of education (department) to recommend standards and related materials and to provide technical assistance at the request of local education providers implementing the standards. The committee's recommendations must include updates to the state's history and civics standards and must advance developmentally appropriate but comprehensive instruction that features factual accounts of the struggles and contributions of Black Americans in all fields of endeavor. Using the committee's recommendations, the department will create and maintain a resource bank of research-based, scholarly articles and promising program materials and curricula pertaining to Black historical and cultural studies. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $19,225 from the general fund to the department for costs related to content specialists. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Under current law, there is an exemption from the general prohibition against covenants not to compete. The exemption allows for a covenant not to compete under specified conditions governing an individual who earns an amount of annualized cash compensation equivalent to or greater than the threshold amount for highly compensated workers. The act excludes from the highly compensated worker exemption a covenant not to compete that restricts the practice of medicine, the practice of advanced practice registered nursing, or the practice of dentistry in this state. Under current law, there is also an exemption from the general prohibition against covenants not to solicit customers (nonsolicitation covenant) that allows for a nonsolicitation covenant governing an individual who earns an amount of annualized cash compensation equivalent to or greater than 60% of the threshold amount for highly compensated workers if the nonsolicitation covenant is no broader than reasonably necessary to protect the employer's legitimate interest in protecting trade secrets. The act also excludes from the highly compensated worker exemption for nonsolicitation covenants a covenant not to compete that restricts the practice of medicine, the practice of advanced practice registered nursing, or the practice of dentistry. A covenant not to compete governing an individual who has a minority ownership share of a business and who received their ownership share in the business as equity compensation or otherwise in connection with services rendered is permissible if the covenant's duration in years does not exceed a number calculated by the total consideration received by the individual from the sale divided by the average annualized cash compensation received by the individual from the business, including income received on account of the individual's ownership interest during the preceding 2 years or during the period of time that the individual was affiliated with the business, whichever period of time is shorter. The act prohibits a covenant that prevents or materially restricts a health-care provider from disclosing to a patient to whom the health-care provider was providing consultation or treatment before the health-care provider's departure from a medical or dental practice the following information: The health-care provider's continuing practice of medicine; The health-care provider's new professional contact information; or The patient's right to choose a health-care provider.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the office of just transition (office) in the department of labor and employment to prioritize awarding funding to support tier one and tier 2 coal transition communities experiencing socioeconomic impacts of coal closures and for opportunities for economic diversification, local community input, feasibility studies of specific proposed projects, and needs assessments. The office is required to use money appropriated to the just transition cash fund after July 1, 2025, to support programs that support targeted investment in coal transition communities by collaborating with coal transition communities and eligible entities, state and regionally recognized governmental and economic development entities, employee organizations that represent coal transition workers, and workers who are not affiliated with employee organizations to implement the most effective projects and programs for those communities. The act requires the office to annually report to the joint budget committee and at the annual "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" hearings of the senate local government and housing committee and the house transportation, housing, and local government committee about the grants awarded by the office during the preceding state fiscal year, their recipients, and the purpose for which they were awarded. A public entity may invest public funds only as allowed by law. The act specifies that the investment of a payment or settlement to offset the socioeconomic impacts to a community or government from the closure of a coal mine or coal power generating station is not subject to these investment limitations. The act allows the executive director of the department of local affairs to establish a policy preference for awarding up to 70% of the money credited to the local government severance tax fund to just transition communities for a 3-year period beginning January 1, 2026. The act extends the deadline for the submittal by the director of the Colorado energy office of the findings and conclusions of assessments of advanced energy solutions in the northwestern and west end of Montrose county and in southeastern Colorado from July 1, 2025 to December 19, 2025, and makes the requirement that the findings and conclusion be submitted contingent on the director having sufficient federal money to support the submittal. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)