Currently, a major and, depending on party rules, a minor, political party candidate can access a primary election ballot in the state either by gathering a statutorily established number of petition signatures or by being nominated through the political party assembly process. Section 1 of the bill eliminates the option for a major political party candidate to access a primary election ballot by being nominated through the political party assembly process, and section 16 eliminates the option for a minor political party candidate. Current law prohibits an unaffiliated voter from signing a petition for a major political party candidate and prohibits a major political party candidate from circulating a party petition or gathering any signatures prior to the third Tuesday in January. Section 2 changes the first day on which a major political party candidate may circulate a petition and gather signatures to the day on which the secretary of state provides notice to the candidate that the petition has been approved as to form and eliminates the prohibition against an unaffiliated voter signing a petition for a major political party candidate. The number of petition signatures that a candidate must collect to access a primary election ballot is currently different for a candidate who is a member of a major political party and a candidate who is a member of a minor political party. Section 3 aligns the signature requirements for a candidate who is a member of a minor political party with the requirements for a candidate who is a member of a major political party. Section 3 also aligns the methods by which a candidate who is a member of a minor political party may access the presidential primary election ballot with those of a candidate who is a member of a minor political party. In addition, the date on which a candidate may first circulate a petition or gather signatures is different for a candidate who is a member of a major political party than for a candidate who is unaffiliated or a member of a minor political party. Section 3 aligns the day on which all candidates may circulate a petition or gather signatures to the day on which the secretary of state provides notice to the candidate that the petition has been approved as to form. For a petition to nominate a candidate from a major political party in a partisan election, current law requires each person who signs the petition to be affiliated with the major political party named in the petition. Section 4 allows a person who is not affiliated with any political party to sign one petition per office to nominate a candidate from a major political party in a partisan election. Current law specifies that for a candidate who is a member of a major political party to be placed on a presidential primary election ballot, the candidate must submit a notarized statement of intent and either a filing fee or a petition signed by at least 5,000 eligible electors affiliated with the candidate's political party who reside in the district. Section 5 allows the petition to be signed by eligible electors who have not been affiliated with any political party for at least 22 days. Sections 6 through 16, 18, and 19 make conforming amendments.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
Sponsored bills
The act modernizes and simplifies the terminology used in creating and transferring state government entities among principal departments under the "Administrative Organization Act of 1968" (AOA) and throughout the Colorado Revised Statutes while preserving the status and the powers assigned in current law to entities in the AOA. The act defines " type 1 entity" and " type 2 entity" and states that when a new entity is created as a type 1 entity or a type 2 entity and allocated to a principal department under the AOA, or when an existing entity is transferred from one principal department to another, the entity has all of the powers, duties, and functions of a type 1 or type 2 entity, as applicable. The act eliminates language regarding type 1 and type 2 transfers and specifies that when an existing entity is transferred from one principal department to another, the transferred entity exercises its powers and performs its duties and functions in the principal department to which it was transferred as a type 1 or type 2 entity, as specified in law. The act amends organic statutes for the principal departments to specify the type 1 or type 2 status of the entities within those principal departments where the type 1 or type 2 status is not stated. The act also amends the AOA to specify the type 1 or type 2 status of the entities where the type 1 or type 2 status is found in the organic statute but is missing in the AOA. The act eliminates references to type 3 transfers, which were previously used when an original entity and its powers, duties, and functions were transferred to another principal department and the original entity was abolished. For entities that are being abolished, the act specifies that the powers, duties, and functions of the abolished entity are included in powers, duties, and functions of the entity to which it was transferred. The act also corrects errors in the names of entities to make references consistent throughout the statutes. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
No later than January 2024, the act requires the department of health care policy and financing (state department) to submit a report to specified committees of the general assembly identifying: A reimbursement system with a goal to incentivize and increase transportation provider participation; How the state department will ensure compliance with applicable federal laws and waiver requirements; A system of common reporting to ensure a recipient does not exceed the medicaid benefit in a multi-provider scenario; and Best practices based on what other states have done to allow transportation network companies (TNC) to provide nonmedical transportation services for individuals receiving services. Upon completion of the report, the act requires the state department to analyze and review each operational TNC and no later than July 1, 2024, verify each TNC's viability to ensure the health, safety, welfare, cost effectiveness, and capability in expanding nonmedical transportation services for individuals receiving services under the home- and community-based services for the elderly, blind, and disabled waiver; the home- and community-based services for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities waiver; the home- and community-based services for persons with major mental health disorders waiver; the home- and community-based services for persons with brain injury waiver; the home- and community-based supported living services waiver; or the complementary and alternative medicine for a person with a spinal cord injury waiver. By July 1, 2024, the state department shall authorize verified transportation network companies to provide nonmedical transportation services if the state department finds the transportation network company viable under federal requirements and within budgetary constraints and shall promulgate any necessary rules. The act appropriates $110,811 to the department of health care policy and financing. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
For 4 income tax years beginning in 2022, the act creates a refundable income tax credit for an early childhood educator who: Has an adjusted gross income that is less than or equal to $75,000 for an individual filing a single return or $150,000 for an individual filing a joint return; Holds an early childhood professional credential for at least part of the income tax year; and For at least 6 months of the income tax year, is either the licensee or employee of an "eligible program", as defined by the act. The amount of the credit is dependent on the eligible early childhood educator's credentialing level, with higher levels receiving a larger credit, and is annually adjusted for inflation. The department of human services, or a successor department, is required to annually provide the department of revenue with an electronic report of each individual who held an early childhood professional credential during the previous calendar year for which the credit is allowed. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act authorizes the state treasurer to stagger the terms of the state treasurer's 3 appointed members to the public school fund investment board (investment board), commencing with new appointments beginning on and after July 1, 2022, to ensure that no more than 2 members' terms expire in the same year. Beginning in the 2022-23 state fiscal year, the act reorganizes the distribution of interest or income earned on the investment of the money in the public school fund (fund) to: Pay first from the distribution the services of the investment consultant hired by the investment board; Credit next to the state public school fund, for distribution for school finance, all remaining interest and income, not to exceed $21 million dollars; and Credit next to the public school capital construction assistance fund all remaining interest and income, not to exceed $20 million dollars. The act creates a working group, convened by the state treasurer, to consider opportunities to improve the growth of the public school fund and its distributions for the intergenerational benefit of public schools. The act authorizes the state treasurer, after consulting with the investment board, to select the members of the working group, and the act specifies the issues the working group must study. Not later than February 28, 2023, the state treasurer shall report the findings and recommendations of the working group to the joint budget committee and to the education committees of the house of representatives and of the senate. The act modifies the time frame and clarifies the circumstances in which a realized investment loss to the fund may be offset by realized gains before the general assembly is required to appropriate money to cover losses to the fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Current law requires the department of education to distribute to each administrative unit $1,250 for each child with a disability who receives special education services from the administrative unit. The act increases the amount to $1,750 and requires the amount to increase by the rate of inflation each budget year beginning with the 2024-25 budget year. The act increases the required annual appropriation by an additional $26.8 million to fund children who have one or more disabilities and receive special education services from an administrative unit and requires the amount to increase by the rate of inflation each budget year beginning with the 2024-25 budget year. The act requires the special education fiscal advisory committee to submit a report to the education committees of the general assembly on or before January 1, 2023. The report must include the following information: An analysis of funding for special education services in other states compared to the funding model used in Colorado, with a focus on the proportionate share between federal, state, and local funding and how other states fund different categories of disabilities to target the needs of children with disabilities; An analysis of the actual costs to provide special education services to children with disabilities in Colorado; An analysis of the effectiveness of the current model for funding special education services, including whether the current funding model adequately supports special education services; An examination of the high-cost special education trust fund (fund) that includes how the fund is operated, who receives funding from the fund, and how the fund impacts those who receive funds; An analysis of the current disability categories for children with disabilities and whether the disability categories are sufficient for meeting the needs of children with disabilities; and Recommended changes, if any, to the special education services funding model. The act appropriates $80 million from the state education fund to the department of education for special education programs for children with disabilities. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill creates the "In God We Trust" license plate for motor vehicles. In addition to the normal fees for a license plate, a person must pay 2 additional one-time fees for the issuance of the plate. One of these fees is credited to the highway users tax fund and the other fee is credited to the licensing services cash fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
With regard to health-care services, section 1 of starting January 1, 2024, the bill requires a health insurance carrier (carrier) or private utilization review organization (organization) , as applicable, to offer a qualified provider with at least a 95% approval rate of prior authorization requests over the prior 12 months an alternative to prior authorization requirements, including an exemption from the requirements or incentive awards or other innovative programs to reward provider compliance designed by the carrier or organization that reduce patient wait times or administrative burdens to receiving the requested health-care service . To be a "qualified provider", a provider must: Be, and have been continuously for at least the immediately preceding 12 months, a participating provider; and Have, over the immediately preceding 12 months: At least a 95% approval rate on prior authorization requests submitted for the same health-care service; and submitted at least 24 prior authorization requests for the same health-care service. A carrier or organization is required to inform a provider of the provider's status as a qualified provider and, at least annually, to reevaluate whether a provider satisfies the requirements of a qualified provider.With regard to drug benefits, section 2 requires a carrier or pharmacy benefit management firm, as applicable, to offer the same types of alternatives to prior authorization requirements to a provider who has at least a 95% approval rate of prior authorization requests over the prior 12 months. (Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.) (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)
Beginning in 2024, the act requires the department of higher education (department) to submit, as a part of its annual "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act" hearing, data related to postsecondary outcomes for students with a disability. The department shall gather the data in collaboration with institutions of higher education (institutions). The act creates the postsecondary services advisory committee (committee) in the department for the purpose of making recommendations to institutions and the general assembly concerning necessary services and best practices to improve successful outcomes for students with disabilities at institutions. The committee is required to complete and submit a report to the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate by June 15, 2023, and June 14, 2024. The committee is repealed on June 30, 2024. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act strikes references in a common health-care provision in title 12 of the Colorado Revised Statutes to "applicable licensing board" and "board" and replaces those references with the term "regulator", which is defined, for purposes of the regulation of professions and occupations under title 12, as the entity with regulatory authority concerning a particular profession or occupation. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)