Sen. Rachel Zenzinger

The act repeals a provision of law that creates the capitol dome restoration fund, which is obsolete. The capitol dome restoration was a capital project that commenced in 2010 and has since been completed. The statutory sections regarding the capitol dome restoration were repealed in July 2015 but the statute establishing the fund and the necessary transfers of money to the fund were inadvertently left in the statutes. The act addresses that defect.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, when a property owner appeals the valuation of property set by a county board of equalization, the valuation may not be increased on appeal. The act removes this restriction.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the bill require applicants for manufacturers', suppliers', and agents' licenses to disclose to the secretary of state (licensing authority) whether those applicants or any of their owners, officers, directors, members, or partners have had gaming licenses suspended or revoked in any other jurisdiction.Sections 6 and 7 authorize the licensing authority to approve additional types of equipment that players may use, including certain electronic devices that reveal the winning or nonwinning status of tickets in pull tab games, and clarifies that these devices are not defined as slot machines or other prohibited devices. Section 1 amends existing definitions accordingly, and section 2 removes a prohibition on the charging of license fees for the equipment by the licensing authority. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

$30 million is transferred from the general fund to the state highway fund to provide additional funding for the department of transportation's revitalizing main streets and safer main streets programs.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act suspends the administration of state assessments, contingent on receiving a waiver of federal law from the federal department of education, for the following instructional areas and grade levels for the 2020-21 school year:Science for students enrolled in grades 5, 8, and 11; Math for students enrolled in grades 3, 5, and 7; and English language arts for students enrolled in grades 4, 6, and 8. For the 2020-21 school year, the act suspends administration of the social studies assessment for students enrolled in elementary and middle school.The act allows the parent of a student enrolled in a grade for which administration of the English language arts or math assessment is suspended to request through the local education provider in which the student is enrolled that the student participate in the English language arts assessment or the math assessment.The act prohibits a school district from using student academic growth measures or student performance measures when evaluating licensed personnel for the 2020-21 school year.The act requires a school or school district or the state charter school institute to implement the performance plan type that was assigned in the preceding school year. The act also requires the department of education (department), in determining the number of school years that a school or school district or the institute is on performance watch or subject to 2-year review, to exclude the plan types for the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years and count the plan type for the 2022-23 school year as if it were consecutive to the 2019-20 school year.If required to implement a priority improvement or turnaround plan during the 2020-21 school year on the basis of its plan type for the 2019-20 school year, the act allows a school or school district or the institute to request a plan type for the 2021-22 school year that reflects its level of attainment based on an alternative body of evidence.For the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years, the act suspends the requirement that the department determine annually the level of attainment for public schools, school districts, the institute, and institute charter schools based on performance indicators.The act reduces the appropriation to the department for the 2020-21 fiscal year.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The actual funded pupil count and the actual at-risk pupil count for the 2020-21 budget year were lower than anticipated when the appropriation amount was established during the 2020 legislative session, resulting in a decrease in total program funding for the 2020-21 budget year. In addition, local property tax revenue and specific ownership tax revenue were less than anticipated, resulting in a decrease in the local share of total program funding.The act declares the general assembly's intent to maintain total program funding at the dollar amount of the original appropriation made during the 2020 legislative session, thereby reducing the budget stabilization factor.The act appropriates additional funding for the 2020-21 budget year for districts that experienced a percentage decrease in total program funding from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session that was greater than the district's percentage decrease in funded pupil count from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session. In addition, the act includes additional funding for districts that have an overall reduction in total program funding that is more than 2% below the districts' estimated total program funding during the 2020 legislative session.Charter schools in districts that qualify for additional funding receive a per-pupil share of the additional funding. If an institute charter school experiences a reduction in total program funding from that estimated during the 2020 legislative session and is in an accounting district that receives additional funding, the institute charter school receives a per-pupil amount of additional funding.Additionally, the act includes an appropriation for rural school funding pursuant to section 22-54-142.For the 2020-21 state fiscal year, the act appropriates to the department of education:$14,710,777 and $4,578,464 from the general fund for additional state funding for school districts and district charter schools; $569,849 from the general fund for additional state funding for institute charter school; and $25,000,000 from the rural schools cash fund for rural school funding.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill suspends the administration of state assessments, contingent on a change to federal law or a waiver of federal law from the federal department of education, for the following instructional areas for the 2020-21 school year: Science administered to students enrolled in grades 5, 8, and 11; Math administered to students enrolled in grades 3 through 8; English language arts administered to students enrolled in grades 3 through 8; and Social studies administered to students enrolled in grades 4 and 7. The bill prohibits a school district from using student academic growth measures or student performance measures when evaluating teachers and principals for the 2020-21 school year. The bill requires a school or a school district to implement the school plan type that was assigned in the preceding school year. The bill requires the department of education, in determining the number of school years that a school or school district is on performance watch, to exclude the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years, and count the 2021-22 school year as if it were consecutive to the 2018-19 school year. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act: Adjusts how calendar quarter estimates of the tax on insurance premiums are calculated and allows the payment for the first calendar quarter of a year to be adjusted to reflect the claiming of an allowable tax credit or previous estimated payments; Allows a company that has overpaid on its estimated premium tax liability to either apply the overpayment to future estimated payments or claim a refund; Provides that in calculating the amount of a refund, any nonrefundable tax credits claimed by the company are applied to the company's tax liability first, and the amount of the refund cannot exceed the total amount of any additional payments made by the company; Allows a taxpayer to claim a small business recovery tax credit or an affordable housing tax credit against estimated premium tax payments; and Provides for the transfer of small business recovery tax credits among affiliates.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act delays the effective date of the "Colorado Electronic Preservation of Abandoned Estate Planning Documents Act" until January 1, 2023. Appropriations for fiscal year 2020-21 related to the "Colorado Electronic Preservation of Abandoned Estate Planning Documents Act" to the judicial department for: Information technology infrastructure is decreased by $125,230, and Trial court programs is decreased by $28,147.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)