The act states that a court shall not delay permanency planning for a child or youth for purposes of maintaining financial support for a kinship foster care home or a non-certified kinship foster care home, unless there are exceptional circumstances as approved by the court. Prior to transferring temporary legal custody of a child or youth to a relative or kin, the court shall make findings that the relative or kin was advised regarding the differences between kinship foster care and non-certified kinship care, including, but not limited to, financial assistance, custody requirements, and long-term financial support options. The act allows the state department of human services (state department) to promulgate rules to modify the requirements for kinship foster care homes, including training topics for kinship foster care certification. Emergency financial assistance for a kinship foster care home is expanded to include goods needed for the child's basic care, including beds, clothing, and transportation costs, and limited rental or housing assistance not to exceed a 60-day subsidy. The act clarifies the definitions regarding foster care homes, kinship foster care homes (kinship home), and non-certified kinship foster care homes (non-certified kinship home). A kinship home is a home that has been certified by a county department of human or social services (county department) a child placement agency to provide 24-hour care for relatives or kin who are less than 21 years of age. A kinship home is eligible for the same foster care reimbursement, assistance, and other supports as foster care homes. "Kinship foster care home" does not include a non-certified kinship home. A non-certified kinship home means a relative or kin who has a significant relationship with the child or youth and who has either chosen not to pursue the certification process or who has not met the certification requirements for a kinship home. The act formally establishes the process by which a kinship home may apply for certification from a county department or child placement agency. A county department or child placement agency, upon the completion of the required background checks, may issue a one-time provisional certificate for a period of 6 months to an applicant at a specific location who is requesting provisional certification, if requested by the applicant. If the applicant completes the required background checks, the county department or child placement agency shall make payment beginning with the completion of the fingerprint background check. The county department or child placement agency shall complete the certification process within the timelines promulgated by rule of the state board of human services. The applicant has the right to appeal any denial of certification. The state department, a county department, or a child placement agency has the right to revoke a kinship home's certification for cause. Prior to issuing a certificate or subsequent certificate to an applicant to operate a kinship home, a county department or a child placement agency shall conduct a fingerprint-based criminal history record check (fingerprint check) through the Colorado bureau of investigation. The applicant shall pay, unless otherwise paid by a county department, the costs associated with the fingerprint check to the Colorado bureau of investigation. The county department or child placement agency to which the kinship home applied for certification shall extend the provisional certification by an additional 60 days if the applicant can demonstrate that the applicant did not cause the delay in completing all the requirements for certification. A kinship home may opt out of the provisional certification process and remain eligible for supports through sources other than foster care maintenance. Kinship foster care homes are eligible for financial reimbursement and supports at the same rate as foster care homes, as established in rules promulgated by the state board of human services. Non-certified kinship care homes are eligible for financial assistance and supports at 30% of the foster care rate, increasing to 50% beginning in the 2026-27 state fiscal year, based on the age of the child or youth receiving care. The state department shall reimburse the county departments 90% of the amounts expended by county departments for kinship foster care and non-certified kinship care daily rates to support financial assistance. The kinship foster care rate and non-certified kinship care rate are exempt from the state close-out process. The state department shall collaborate with the department of education, the department of public health and environment, and the department of health care policy and financing to develop an interagency resource. The state department shall prominently post the resource on the state department's website. The act directs the state department and the judicial department to collect data on the number of children who are placed with certified and non-certified kin through a dependency and neglect case, regardless of who has custody of the child or youth. The state department shall make the data available on its website on or before October 1, 2025. On or before October 1, 2025, the state department shall study and report to the general assembly the feasibility of using federal funds, including, but not limited to, federal IV-B, IV-E, or TANF funds, or other grant funding to provide or reimburse for the provision of brief legal services or legal representation of relative and kin caregivers. On or before August 1, 2025, and every August 1 thereafter until August 1, 2030, the state department shall submit a report to the joint budget committee on the implementation of non-certified kinship care homes, the impacts to the number of placements with kinship foster care homes, and the impacts to the number of placements with county departments in their ability to support providers. The state department shall submit data provided by county departments as a supplement to the report. The act makes conforming amendments to align statutory sections related to foster care homes with kinship homes. The act makes the following appropriations to the department of human services for the 2024-25 state fiscal year: $190,672 from the general fund for use by the administration and finance division; $5,516,580 from the Colorado long-term works reserve for use by the office of children, youth, and families for child welfare services; and $1,221,710 from local funds for use by the office of children, youth, and families for child welfare services. The act anticipates that the department of human services will receive $6,459,409 in federal funds to be used by the office of children, youth, and families for child welfare services. The act appropriates $55,748 to the department of public safety for the 2024-25 state fiscal year for use by the biometric identification and records unit. APPROVED by Governor May 30, 2024 EFFECTIVE September 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act increases the amounts of the affordable housing tax credit that the Colorado housing and finance authority may allocate to qualified taxpayers by: $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2024; $16,000,000 for credits allocated in 2025; $12,000,000 for credits allocated in 2026; $12,000,000 for credits allocated in 2027; $16,000,000 for credits allocated in 2028; $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2029; $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2030; and $20,000,000 for credits allocated in 2031. The act accelerates the credit by requiring that a qualified taxpayer claim 70% of the total amount of the credit in the first year of the credit period and claim 6% of the total amount of the credit in each of the second through sixth years of the credit period. The act also creates the Colorado affordable housing in transit-oriented communities income tax credit (tax credit). The tax credit is refundable and administered in the same manner as the Colorado affordable housing tax credit; except that the tax credit: Is awarded in connection with qualified low-income housing projects in certified transit-oriented communities; Must be claimed over a 5-year credit period; and Must be claimed in an accelerated manner such that 70% of the total amount of the tax credit is claimed in the first year of the credit period, 8% in both the second and third years, and 7% in both the fourth and final years. The act allows the following tax credit amounts to be awarded: $2,000,000 for the 2025 calendar year; $2,000,000 for the 2026 calendar year; $2,000,000 for the 2027 calendar year; $11,000,000 for the 2028 calendar year; and $13,000,000 for the 2029 calendar year. The act reduces the amount of money transferred to the housing development grant fund by $35 million for state fiscal year 2024-25 through 2031-32. APPROVED by Governor May 30, 2024 EFFECTIVE May 30, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates a refundable state income tax credit (incentive) to encourage enrollment in institutions of higher education. For income tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, but prior to January 1, 2033, the incentive is available to an eligible student who has matriculated at any public Colorado institution of higher education, including an area technical college, Colorado mountain college, or AIMS community college (institution), in the amount equal to the amount paid by or for the benefit of the eligible student in tuition and fees minus any scholarships or grants with respect to the qualifying semesters, during which up to the first 65 academic credit hours or equivalent are accumulated at an institution, excluding credits earned through concurrent enrollment, advanced placement, the international baccalaureate program, military credits, and any other credits accumulated prior to matriculation at an institution. To qualify, an eligible student must: Matriculate at the institution within 2 years of completion of high school graduation or an equivalent in Colorado; Be designated as a degree or credential seeking student for the semester or term for which an incentive is claimed; Qualify for in-state tuition for the semester or term for which the incentive is claimed; Complete a free application for federal student aid (FAFSA) or Colorado application for state financial aid (CASFA) for the semester or term for which an incentive is claimed that indicates the student's household has an adjusted gross income that is $90,000 or less; and Earn at least 6 credit hours or equivalent with a grade point average of 2.5 or higher for the semester or term for which the incentive is claimed. The act requires an institution, by January 15, 2026, and every January 15 thereafter through 2033, to electronically report each eligible student for any qualifying semester or term completed during the academic year completed during the prior calendar year in a format prescribed by the department of higher education (department) with the student's tax identification number or social security number and the amount of tuition and fees paid minus any scholarship or grants for that prior calendar year. The act requires an institution to provide each eligible student with a statement containing the student's eligibility and incentive amount. The department is required to electronically report the information received from the institutions, with any corrections and additions, to the department of revenue to allow administration of the incentive. The department, in consultation with institutions, is required to determine each institution's average percentage of state and institutional financial aid allocated to the resident student population who have a family income of $90,000 or less in each year of the 3 years prior to 2025, and each Colorado public institution of higher education is required to maintain a percentage of state and institutional financial aid to resident students who have an adjusted gross household income of $90,000 or less that is equal to or greater than the average percentage calculated. An institution that does not maintain the percentage is required to notify the department and must include in the notification a description of changes to institutional finances or the student population that prevented the institution from maintaining the percentage. On or before June 30, 2027, and each year thereafter until 2037, the department is required to submit a report to the joint budget committee and the house of representatives and senate education committees, that includes among other data, for each institution, the average percentage of state and institutional financial aid allocated to the resident student population who have a family income of $90,000 or less in the academic years 2021-2022 through 2033-34. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, $101,756 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of higher education for use by the Colorado commission on higher education and higher education special purpose programs to implement the act. APPROVED by Governor May 30, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the executive director of the department of local affairs (director), no later than December 31, 2024, to develop reasonable methodologies for conducting statewide, regional, and local housing needs assessments and reasonable guidance for a local government to identify areas at elevated risk of displacement. The act requires the director, no later than November 30, 2027, and every 6 years thereafter, to conduct a statewide housing needs assessment that analyzes existing and future statewide housing needs and to publish a report, based on the statewide housing needs assessment and regional and local housing needs assessments accepted by the department, identifying current housing stock and estimating statewide housing needs. The act requires each local government, beginning December 31, 2026, to conduct and publish a local housing needs assessment. The act outlines the process for a local government conducting a local housing needs assessment and for determining when a local government is exempt from conducting a local housing needs assessment. The act requires local governments to submit local housing needs assessments to the department of local affairs (department), which shall publish those assessments on the department's website. Relatedly, the act allows a regional entity to conduct a regional housing needs assessment. If a regional entity conducts a regional housing needs assessment, the act requires the regional entity to submit the assessment both to each local government in the region and to the department, which shall publish those assessments on the department's website. A housing action plan is an advisory document that demonstrates a local government's commitment to address housing needs and that guides a local government in developing legislative actions, promoting regional coordination, and informing the public of the local government's efforts to address housing needs in the local government's jurisdiction. The act requires a local government with a population of either 5,000 or more or 1,000 or more if the local government either participated in a regional housing needs assessment or is a rural resort community to make a housing action plan no later than January 1, 2028, and every 6 years thereafter. The act identifies the specific elements that a housing action plan must include, explains how a local government may update a housing action plan, requires a local government to report its progress in implementing the plan to the department, and requires a local government to submit a housing action plan to the department, which shall publish each accepted housing action plan on the department's website. The act requires the director to develop, by no later than June 30, 2025: A standard affordability strategies directory; A long-term affordability strategies directory; and A displacement risk mitigation strategies directory. The act establishes the minimum required elements for all three directory types. The act also requires the director to submit a statewide strategic growth report to the general assembly no later than October 31, 2025, and develop and publish, in consultation with relevant state agencies, a natural land and agricultural interjurisdictional opportunities report no later than December 31, 2025. The act requires the division of local government (division) to provide technical assistance and guidance through a grant program, the provision of consultant services, or both to aid local governments in: Establishing regional entities; Creating local and regional housing needs assessments; Conducting a displacement risk analysis with a state-created tool; Identifying and implementing strategies included in the standard affordability strategies directory, long-term affordability strategies directory, or displacement risk mitigation strategies directory; Making and adopting a housing action plan; Enacting laws and policies that encourage the development of a range of housing types, including regulated affordable housing, or mitigate the impact of displacement; and Creating strategic growth elements in master plans. The act creates the continuously appropriated housing needs planning technical assistance fund to contain the money necessary for the division to provide this technical assistance and guidance. The act requires the state treasurer to transfer $10.5 million from the local government severance tax fund and $4.5 million from the local government mineral impact fund to this fund. Further, the act directs the division to serve as a clearing house for the benefit of local governments and regional entities in accomplishing the goals of the act. The division shall report on the assistance requested and provided under the act. On and after December 1, 2027, for any grant program conducted by the department, the Colorado energy office, the office of economic development, the department of transportation, the department of natural resources, the department of public health and environment, or the department of personnel and administration that awards grants to local governments for the primary purpose of supporting land use planning or housing, the act requires the awarding entity to prioritize awarding grants to a local government that: Has completed and filed a housing needs assessment; Has adopted a housing action plan that has been accepted by the department; Has reported progress to the department regarding the adoption of any strategies or changes to local laws identified in the housing action plan; and Is the subject of a master plan that includes a water supply element and a strategic growth element. In the case of a local government that is not required to do any of the above, the department is required to prioritize that local government in the same way that it prioritizes a local government that has done all of the above. On or before June 30, 2025, the act requires the department to designate criteria for the designation of a neighborhood center by a local government. If a local government designates a neighborhood center, the local government must submit a report to the department describing the neighborhood center. Furthermore, on or after December 31, 2026, the act requires certain grant programs to prioritize projects supporting or concerning neighborhood centers. The act modifies the requirements of both county and municipal master plans so that those master plans must include: A narrative description of the procedure used for the development and adoption of the master plan; No later than December 31, 2026, a water supply element; and No later than December 31, 2026, a strategic growth element. The water supply element in a county or municipal master plan must identify the general location and extent of an adequate and suitable supply of water, identify supplies and facilities sufficient to meet the needs of local infrastructure, and include water conservation policies. The strategic growth element in a master plan must include: A description of existing and potential policies and tools to promote strategic growth and prevent sprawl; An analysis of vacant and underutilized sites and the use of those sites for the development of housing; and An analysis of underdeveloped sites that are not adjacent to developed land for the use of those sites for residential use. The act requires both counties and municipalities to submit their master plan and any separately approved water or strategic growth element to the division for the division's review. The act prohibits a unit owners' association of a common interest community from, through any declaration or bylaw, rules, or regulation adopted or amended by an association on or after July 1, 2024, prohibiting or restricting the construction of accessory dwelling units or middle housing if the zoning laws of the association's local jurisdiction would otherwise allow such construction. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, $583,864 is appropriated, from reappropriated funds received from the department of local affairs from the housing needs planning technical assistance fund, to the office of the governor for use by the office of information technology to provide information technology services for the department of local affairs for the implementation of the act. APPROVED by Governor May 30, 2024 EFFECTIVE May 30, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act implements the recommendations in the department of regulatory agencies' 2023 sunset review and report on the Colorado commission for the deaf, hard of hearing, and deafblind (commission) by: Continuing the commission for 7 years, until 2031; Establishing a permanent state auxiliary services program; and Changing the name of the deafblind citizens council to the Colorado deafblind advisory council. APPROVED by Governor May 28, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act makes changes to programs funded with money the state received from the federal coronavirus state fiscal recovery fund (ARPA money). Specifically, the act: Transfers $1.1 million of ARPA money from the family and medical leave insurance fund (FAMLI fund) to the "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" cash fund, transfers $400,000 from the general fund to the FAMLI fund as an advance payment of premiums for state employee coverage that the state is required to pay under the family and medical leave insurance program, and clarifies the recipient funds for transfers from the FAMLI fund required by current law; Extends the deadline to spend ARPA money from the judicial department information technology cash fund from the end of the 2024-25 state fiscal year to December 31, 2026; Extends the deadline for the judicial department to spend ARPA money for pretrial diversion programs from the end of the 2023-24 state fiscal year to December 31, 2026; Makes changes to the program known as "Finish What You Started" to provide funds in the 2024-25 and 2025-26 state fiscal years to continue to support ongoing program participants, and requires the department to use up to $4.5 million of money appropriated for need-based grants for the program; Transfers $70,581.99 of ARPA money from the affordable housing and home ownership cash fund to the "American Rescue Plan Act of 2021" cash fund; Reduces the required appropriation to the department of public health and environment from the economic recovery and relief cash fund for recruitment and re-engagement of workers in the health-care profession from $10 million to $6.12 million; Extends the deadline for the department of public health and environment to spend ARPA money for the practice-based health education grant program from the end of the 2024-25 state fiscal year to December 31, 2026; Changes the date that money from the rural provider access and affordability fund, which is used for the rural provider access and affordability stimulus grant program, reverts to the general fund from July 1, 2024, to December 31, 2024; Transfers $495,000 of ARPA money from the state domestic violence and sexual assault services fund to the behavioral and mental health cash fund; and Extends the repeal date of the statute requiring the behavioral health administration to take certain actions related to the behavioral health-care provider workforce from September 1, 2024, to July 1, 2027, and continues required reports through the new repeal date. The act makes changes to appropriations programs funded with ARPA money, including adjusting appropriated amounts and granting roll-forward spending authority. APPROVED by Governor May 24, 2024 EFFECTIVE May 24, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act: Increases the statewide base per pupil funding for the 2024-25 budget year by $419.97 to account for inflation and sets the new statewide base per pupil funding amount of $8,496.38 for the 2024-25 budget year; and Sets the total program funding for the 2024-25 budget year for all school districts and institute charter schools to not less than $9,735,767,429. The act repeals the total program reserve fund (fund) on July 1, 2025. The act clarifies that for the 2025-26 budget year, and each budget year thereafter, revenue collected from mills that had previously been deposited in the fund by a school district are available to the school district to fund the costs of providing public education. The money is budgeted and expended in the school district's discretion. The act adds rural funding to the district's total program formula to provide additional funding to small rural districts or large rural districts, as defined in the act. The act requires the state treasurer to transfer $15,715,539 from the state education fund to the mill levy override match fund. Current law requires a new at-risk measure in the public school funding formula to be implemented in the 2024-25 budget year. The act extends the implementation of this requirement to the 2025-26 budget year. For the 2024-25 budget year, a school district's at-risk funding is the greater of the school district's at-risk funding amount for the 2023-24 budget year or the 2024-25 budget year. Current law requires a qualified third-party evaluator (evaluator) who facilitates a facility school work group (work group) to submit a report to the work group and the office of facility schools by September 1, 2025. The department of education (department) is required to submit the evaluator's report to the joint budget committee by October 1, 2025. The act extends the report deadlines to September 1, 2026, and October 1, 2026, respectively. To be considered for a special education high-cost grant, current law requires the consideration of an administrative unit's annual audited operating expenses for the preceding budget year. The act allows an administrative unit's annual audited operating expenses for one year prior to the preceding budget year to be considered if the annual audited operating expenses for the most recent preceding budget year are not available. Current law requires a school district to receive the daily rate for education services provided by approved facility schools for a juvenile who is held in a jail or facility and receives at least 4 hours of educational services per week from the school district. The act changes the daily rate to the rate for educational services provided by the Colorado school for the deaf and the blind or the education program operated by the Colorado mental health institute at Pueblo or Fort Logan. The act increases the cap on how much can be spent on administration for the ninth-grade success grant program from 5% to 8%. The act clarifies that a student with disabilities (student) who receives transition services and has postsecondary goals outlined in the student's individualized education program is eligible for concurrent enrollment courses. The act allows the educator licensure cash fund to be exempt from the limitations on the amount of uncommited reserves that may be maintained in a cash fund. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, $32,878,255 is appropriated to the department from the state education fund to implement the act. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, $15,715,539 is appropriated to the department from the mill levy override match fund for mill levy override matching. APPROVED by Governor May 23, 2024 EFFECTIVE May 23, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The length of the bill summary for this bill requires it to be published on a separate page here: https://leg.colorado.gov/hb24-1448-bill-summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of human services to oversee the operations of host home programs. The act sets requirements for organizations seeking to operate a host home program and requirements for host homes participating in a host home program. The act does not apply to host homes providing residential services to adults with intellectual and development disabilities. The act allows a youth to reside in a host home for up to 21 days, unless the youth is 18 years of age or older but under 23 years of age and consents to remain in the host home longer. A host home that hosts a youth under 11 years of age must obtain written consent from the youth's parent or legal guardian authorizing the temporary residence. The bill requires the a host home program that receives government funding to enter information regarding the host home program in the homeless management information system. APPROVED by Governor May 22, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Section 2 of the act creates a state income tax credit for owners of aircraft that incur qualifying expenses to enable an aircraft that is powered by leaded aviation gasoline to be certified to instead be powered by unleaded aviation gasoline. Sections 3 and 6 provide explicit authority in the existing state aviation grant program for aviation fund grants: To general aviation airports and commercial airports at which there is significant general aviation activity to fund the design, engineering, construction, installation, acquisition, and inspection of infrastructure, including equipment, that allows the sale of unleaded aviation gasoline at such airports and to subsidize purchases of unleaded aviation gasoline at such airports; For airport noise monitoring devices; For evaluation, provision of education and technical assistance to airports about, prevention, or mitigation of adverse impacts to the health, safety, and welfare of individuals who reside or work near an airport; and At a time that electric aircraft technology has been appropriately certified by the federal aviation administration, for on-airport electric aircraft charging infrastructure. Section 6 also: Requires the lesser of 10% of the amount awarded in grants per year or $1,500,000 per year in grants to be designated for the aviation purposes of aiding and accelerating the transition from leaded aviation gasoline to unleaded aviation gasoline with priority given to airports with significant general aviation traffic in urban and suburban areas where surrounding communities may be disproportionately impacted by such traffic; and Subject to specified exceptions, prohibits grants from being awarded to an airport that is located in a densely populated residential area or has a significant number of flights over a densely populated residential area unless the airport or entity operating the airport demonstrates to the satisfaction of the aeronautics division of the department of transportation (division) that: By January 1, 2026, it has adopted a plan, in accordance with applicable federal requirements and guidance, for phasing out sales of leaded aviation gasoline at the airport by January 1, 2030; It has established, in consultation with flight schools and pilots that regularly use the airport, a voluntary noise abatement plan that meets specified requirements; and It complies with the requirements of any avigation easements or contracts that it has entered into. Section 4 adds to the division's duties: Working with the department of public health and environment (CDPHE) as it continues to provide data and information about the effects of leaded aviation fuel on human health to the department of transportation and airports; and Educating airports with significant general aviation activity, as determined by the division, regarding: The need to expedite the transition from leaded aviation gasoline to unleaded aviation gasoline; and Specified funding opportunities for projects and unleaded aviation gasoline subsidies, if offered by the division, that support the transition from leaded aviation gasoline to unleaded aviation gasoline and impose requirements for accessing that funding and, if offered, those subsidies. Section 5 increases the Colorado aeronautical board (board) from 7 to 9 voting members by requiring the appointment of 2 members who are residents of communities that are affected by general aviation airport traffic or traffic at a commercial airport at which there is significant general aviation activity and makes the executive director of CDPHE, or the executive director's designee, an ex officio nonvoting member of the board. In appointing the 2 new voting members, the governor is required to give priority to individuals who are not trained pilots, are familiar with airport infrastructure, aviation, and the mission of the board, and reside in a community that is significantly impacted by noise or lead emissions by a high-traffic airport with significant general aviation activity. The governor is also required to make appointments to the board so as to ensure a balance broadly representative of the activity level of airports throughout the state and further ensure that the racial, ethnic, and gender makeup of the board is representative of communities that are disproportionately impacted by general aviation airport traffic or traffic at a commercial airport at which there is significant general aviation activity. Section 7 requires the division to evaluate, educate, and provide technical assistance to airports about the adverse impacts of aircraft noise on health, safety, and welfare and requires the division to prioritize these activities at airports with significant general aviation activity that are located in densely populated residential areas or have a significant number of flights over such areas. Section 8 appropriates $44,609 from the general fund to the department of revenue and reappropriates $2,591 of the appropriation to the department of personnel for implementation of the act. APPROVED by Governor May 17, 2024 EFFECTIVE May 17, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)