Sen. Mike Weissman

The act includes approved facility schools in the definition of 'employer' for purposes of the public employees' retirement association (PERA) and allows an approved facility school to apply to the PERA board to affiliate with PERA.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act authorizes an occupational therapist to perform dry needling on and after September 1, 2027, if the occupational therapist:Has the knowledge, skill, ability, and documented competency to perform the act;Has successfully completed a dry needling course of study that meets supervisorial, educational, and clinical prerequisites to be established by rule; andObtains a written informed consent from each patient for dry needling, including information concerning the potential benefits and risks of dry needling and a statement that the occupational therapist performing dry needling is not an acupuncturist.     The act requires the director of the division of professions and occupations within the department of regulatory agencies to adopt rules to implement the authorization for an occupational therapist to perform dry needling. At a minimum, the rules must establish requirements for dry needling performed by an occupational therapist that are equivalent to the requirements in rules adopted by the state physical therapy board for dry needling performed by a physical therapist.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

For the purpose of criminal restitution, the act excludes from the definition of 'restitution' losses for which a victim may be compensated through a private insurance policy, except for worker's compensation insurance. Current law defines a 'victim' as any person who has suffered losses because of a contractual relationship, including an insurance company. The act excludes a person from the definition of 'victim' because of a contractual relationship but clarifies that an insurance company is a 'victim' if the insurance company is a victim of a scheme to defraud the insurance company or when the insurance company's property is damaged or stolen through a criminal act. The act authorizes the court to award a victim restitution for a deductible amount under the victim's insurance policy. The act does not prohibit an insurance company from filing a civil action or pursuing any other civil action against a defendant to recover losses the insurance company has suffered.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires that the state court administrator create a process for evaluating bond hearing officers. An evaluation must include input from the district attorney and regional public defender and allow the opportunity for input from court staff and other interested parties within each judicial district in which a bond hearing officer presides.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Maddy summaryThis bill urges the Colorado Department of Agriculture and the Colorado Farmers Market Association to maintain and strengthen their partnership to support farmers' market managers across the state. It recognizes that most market managers are volunteers who need expertise, training, and resources to handle tasks like event planning, food safety, and vendor coordination. The resolution aims to help sustain local farmers' markets that provide fresh produce to communities and support small-scale producers who rely on these venues for sales.

Maddy summaryHJR 1017 is a joint resolution urging the federal government to fulfill its obligations under the 1986 Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement Agreement. It specifically calls for action to address infrastructure gaps affecting two tribes: the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Tribes, who have settled water rights but cannot access or use them due to missing pipelines (e.g., from Lake Nighthorse) and deteriorating irrigation systems (like the PRIIP, requiring $126 million in repairs). The resolution highlights federal failures to fund operations, maintain infrastructure, and enable tribes to utilize their legally secured water for agriculture, municipal use, and economic development. As a procedural resolution, it does not create new law but formally requests federal action to resolve these longstanding barriers.

March 31 is currently known as 'Cesar Chavez Day' and may be voluntarily observed as a state legal holiday. The act repeals 'Cesar Chavez Day' and changes this voluntary legal holiday for March 31, 2026, and March 31, 2027, to instead be known as 'Farm Workers Day'.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill adds to the list of impermissible collection actions that a medical creditor is prohibited from using when collecting on a medical debt. Current law requires a medical creditor to comply with certain conditions and notify a patient with medical debt 30 days before taking any permissible extraordinary collection actions. In addition to providing notice before taking any permissible extraordinary collection actions, the bill requires a medical creditor to notify a patient 30 days before collecting, transferring, selling, or assigning a medical debt, and to verify the patient has been screened for public health insurance programs and discounted care. The bill requires a medical creditor to offer a reasonable payment plan to each patient with medical debt. If the medical creditor violates the requirements for selling, transferring, or assigning medical debt, or undertaking collection activities, the patient is entitled to damages in the amount of $3,000 or actual damages, whichever is greater.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act prohibits the discharge of plastic pellets and other preproduction plastic materials through land application or into state waters, wastewater, storm water runoff, or other runoff by a facility that makes, uses, packages, or transports plastic pellets or other preproduction plastic materials in the state.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires operators of certain websites, online services, online applications, or mobile applications (covered platforms) to ensure that each covered platform provides a streamlined process to allow Colorado law enforcement agencies to contact the covered platform at all times. The process must, at a minimum, make available a staffed hotline for Colorado law enforcement agencies for the purposes of:Receiving and responding to questions about search warrants;Acknowledging the receipt of a search warrant within 8 hours after receipt; andProviding status updates on search warrant compliance to a requesting Colorado law enforcement agency.     An operator must comply with a search warrant within 72 hours after receiving the search warrant if certain conditions apply. A court may reasonably extend this time if the court makes a written finding that the operator or covered platform has shown good cause for the extension and that an extension would not cause an adverse result. The failure of an operator or a covered platform to comply with the requirements of a court-ordered search warrant supports a finding of contempt of court.     The attorney general or a district attorney with jurisdiction may enforce the act.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)