Sen. Beth Martinez Humenik

Current law provides that the department of human services low-income energy assistance fund, the energy outreach Colorado low-income energy assistance fund, and the Colorado energy office low-income energy assistance fund receive conditional funding from the severance tax operational fund through the state fiscal year commencing July 1, 2018. The bill extends the conditional funding through the state fiscal year commencing July 1, 2023. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning the Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems. The bill addresses various issues relating to the restoration of competency for juveniles and adults in the juvenile and criminal justice systems, including: Requiring the court to consider whether restoration to competency services should occur on an outpatient basis if the defendant is on bond or summons; Requiring that, in addition to providing competency restoration services in the least restrictive environment, the provision of such services and a juvenile's participation in those services occur and are reviewed by the court in a timely manner; Establishing the office of behavioral health (office), as the entity responsible for the oversight of restoration education and the coordination services necessary to competency restoration; and Setting forth the duties of the office related to competency restoration services and education, including the development of a standardized juvenile and adult curricula for the educational component of competency restoration services. The curricula, to be developed on or before December 1, 2017, must have a content and delivery mechanism that allows it to be tailored to meet individual needs, including those of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning the Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems. The bill implements recommendations from the task force concerning the treatment of persons with mental health disorders in the criminal and juvenile justice systems and the medication consistency work group of the behavioral health transformation council to promote increased medication consistency for persons with mental health disorders in the criminal and juvenile justice systems. The recommendations include: Requiring the office of behavioral health, in consultation with the department of corrections, to promulgate rules that require providers under each department's authority to use an agreed upon medication formulary (formulary) by mental health providers and justice system providers (providers); Requiring OBH to conduct annual and biannual reviews of the formulary to address any urgent concerns related to the formulary, update the formulary, and ensure compliance with the medicaid formulary; Requiring the department of corrections, county jails, community mental health centers, the division of youth corrections, and other providers to share patient-specific mental health care and treatment information, provided federal and state confidentiality requirements are met; Requiring OBH and relevant providers to develop a plan, on or before September 1, 2018, for electronically sharing patient-specific mental health care and treatment information across systems; Requiring OBH to encourage providers to utilize cooperative purchasing for the formulary to maximize statewide cost savings; Encouraging the pharmaceutical cooperative purchasing entity to include an ongoing drug utilization review process; Requiring OBH to investigate and develop options for collaboration with local county jails to coordinate medication purchasing. Based on that information, the behavioral health transformation council shall develop a medication purchasing plan on or before September 1, 2018; and Requiring the department of human services and the department of corrections to report progress on the implementation and use of the medication formulary and cooperative purchasing as part of each department's 'State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act' hearing, beginning in January 2018 and annually thereafter.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill subjects a provider of medicaid services to a civil monetary penalty if the provider improperly bills or seeks collection from a medicaid recipient or the estate of a medicaid recipient. The provider is also liable for a refund to the recipient of any amount unlawfully received from the recipient, including statutory interest, and for all amounts submitted to a collection agency in the name of the recipient. If, within 30 days, a provider voids the bill, returns any amounts unlawfully received, and makes every effort to resolve the collection action for the recipient, the provider is not subject to the penalties outlined in the bill. A provider is not subject to the penalties outlined in the bill if a person knowingly misrepresents his or her medicaid coverage status to the provider and the provider submits documentation relating to the misrepresentation. A provider may appeal the imposition of a civil monetary penalty. In addition, the bill allows the department of health care policy and financing (department) to require a corrective action plan from any provider who fails to comply with rules, manuals, or bulletins issued by the department, the medical services board, or the department's fiscal agent or from a provider whose activities endanger the health, safety, or welfare of a medicaid recipient. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill amends the statutes relating to the early childhood leadership commission (commission) in the department of human services (department) as follows: Makes changes to the legislative declaration, mission, and duties of the commission to include consideration of families of pregnant women and children; Repeals the early childhood leadership commission fund. Changes the title of the person appointed to assist the department in fulfilling the duties of the commission from 'executive director' to 'director'; Removes the requirement that the director be compensated from money credited to the early childhood leadership commission fund, and instead requires that the director be compensated with federal funds or gift, grants, or donations, and not with money from the general fund; Permits the commission to seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, and donations for the expenses of the commission; and Extends the repeal date and sunset review of the commission prior to its repeal from 2018 to 2023.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The existing all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) program includes the state PACE ombudsman. The bill adds local PACE ombudsmen to the state ombudsman's office (office). The bill contains provisions relating to local PACE ombudsmen, including training, designation as representatives of the office, access to PACE centers and participants, authority to file complaints on behalf of PACE participants, and immunity from liability. The bill includes time frames for the state PACE ombudsman to complete duties and functions of the office, including establishing statewide policies and procedures for investigating and resolving complaints relating to PACE programs and training local PACE ombudsmen. The department of human services shall report to the joint budget committee and to its legislative committee of reference concerning the long-term care ombudsman program and the state PACE ombudsman program, including program caseloads and the need, if any, for additional local ombudsmen. The bill repeals statutory provisions relating to stakeholder recommendations and a report concerning the expansion of the PACE ombudsman program to include local PACE ombudsmen. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Current law authorizes a homeowner to finance certain energy efficiency improvements to the home through a loan pursuant to the property assessed clean energy (PACE) program. The program requires an applicant to file a title commitment on the home and a hearing must be held in order to seek a voluntary subordination of existing liens to the program's junior lien. The bill exempts a homeowner from the title commitment and hearing requirements if the owner or lender is not seeking to subordinate the priority of existing liens. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Currently, the department of revenue (department) is required to revoke the driver's license of a driver convicted of leaving the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury or death. The bill allows the department to also suspend the license when, based on a preponderance of the evidence, a driver left the scene of an accident involving serious bodily injury or death. If both the suspension and revocation are imposed as a result of the same episode of driving, the bill requires the department to run the suspension and the revocation concurrently. The bill establishes a procedure by which a driver may contest the suspension of his or her license and request the issuance of a probationary license for the purpose of driving for employment, education, health, or other necessities. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Joint Technology Committee. Current law specifies a process by which any department, institution, or agency of the state, including any institution of higher education, may request permission to expend money differently from the authority granted by an appropriation for a capital construction budget item if the project for which the appropriation was made requires a nonmonetary adjustment for its timely continuation and the nonmonetary adjustment is due to unforseen circumstances arising while the general assembly in not in session. This process includes appropriations for capital construction, controlled maintenance, or capital renewal appropriations. Currently, the process does not include information technology capital projects, as they are no longer included in the definition of capital construction. The bill specifies that a department, institution, or agency of the state, including any institution of higher education, may, under the same circumstances specified for capital construction appropriations, use the process to request permission to expend money differently from the authority granted by the appropriation for an information technology capital project.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning the Treatment of Persons with Mental Illness in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems. The bill directs the division of housing in the department of local affairs to establish a program to provide vouchers and supportive services to persons with a behavioral or mental health disorder who are being released from the department of corrections (DOC), the division of youth corrections in the department of human services (DYC), or jails. The program is funded by an appropriation from the marijuana tax cash fund and from money unspent by the division of criminal justice (CDPS) for community corrections programs in the previous fiscal year.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)