Sexual misconduct - policies - training - reports - biennial summits - advisory committee. The act requires each institution of higher education (institution) to adopt, periodically review, and update a policy on sexual misconduct (policy). The act establishes minimum requirements for the policies, including reporting options, procedures for investigations and adjudications, and protections for involved persons. Institutions shall promote the policy by posting information on their websites and annually distributing the policy and information. Institutions are required to provide training on awareness and prevention of sexual misconduct, the policy, and resources available to discuss such misconduct. The act requires institutions to report to the department of higher education (department) on their policies and training, and the department shall post the reports on its website and report to the general assembly during its SMART Act hearing. The department shall host biennial summits on sexual misconduct on institution campuses to facilitate communication, share information, and hear from experts. The act identifies the membership of the planning committee for the summits. The planning committees shall report to specified committees of the general assembly on the summits. The act creates a sexual misconduct advisory committee to make recommendations to the general assembly and institutions on sexual misconduct policies at institutions following the promulgation of new federal rules by the federal department of education and annually thereafter. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
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Living organ donors - discrimination prohibited - duty to make information available to the public. The act: Prohibits a person who offers life insurance, disability income insurance, health insurance, or long-term care insurance from discriminating against a person based solely on the person's status as a living organ donor; Requires the division of insurance (division) to provide information to the public on a living organ donor's access to insurance; and Requires the division and the department of public health and environment to make materials related to live organ donation available to the public if the materials are from a recognized organ donation organization.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Wage discrimination based on sex - complaints - civil action - exceptions to prohibitions against wage differentials - prohibited acts of employer - employment announcements required - enforcement - rules. The act removes the authority of the director of the division of labor standards and statistics in the department of labor and employment (director) to enforce wage discrimination complaints based on an employee's sex and instead authorizes the director to create and administer a process to accept and mediate complaints of, and provide legal resources concerning, alleged violations and to promulgate rules for this purpose. An aggrieved person may bring a civil action in district court to pursue remedies specified in the act. The act allows exceptions to the prohibition against a wage differential based on sex if the employer demonstrates that a wage differential is not based on wage rate history and is based upon one or more of the following factors, so long as the employer applies the factors reasonably and they account for the entire wage rate differential: A seniority system; A merit system; A system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; The geographic location where the work is performed; Education, training, or experience to the extent that they are reasonably related to the work in question; or Travel, if the travel is a regular and necessary condition of the work performed. The act prohibits an employer from: Seeking the wage rate history of a prospective employee or requiring disclosure of wage rate as a condition of employment; Relying on a prior wage rate to determine a wage rate; Discriminating or retaliating against a prospective employee for failing to disclose the employee's wage rate history; Discharging or retaliating against an employee for actions by an employee asserting the rights established by the act against an employer; or Discharging, disciplining, discriminating against, or otherwise interfering with an employee for inquiring about, disclosing, or discussing the employee's wage rate. The act requires an employer to announce to all employees employment advancement opportunities and job openings and the pay range for the openings. The director is authorized to enforce actions against an employer concerning transparency in pay and employment opportunities, including fines of between $500 and $10,000 per violation. Employers are also required to maintain records of job descriptions and wage rate history for each employee while employed and for 2 years after the employment ends. Failure to maintain these records creates a rebuttable presumption, in a lawsuit alleging wage discrimination based on sex, that the records not maintained contained information favorable to the employee's claim. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Colorado medical assistance act - breast and cervical cancer prevention and treatment program - repeal date extended - appropriation. The act extends the repeal date of the breast and cervical cancer prevention and treatment program 10 years to July 1, 2029. $857,783 is appropriated to the department of health care policy and financing from the breast and cervical cancer prevention and treatment fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Health insurance - required coverage - breast cancer screening with noninvasive imaging. The act requires health care coverage for breast cancer screening studies and subsequent breast imaging using the noninvasive imaging modality appropriate for each individual, as determined by the individual's health care provider, and within the appropriate use guidelines as determined by the American College of Radiology or the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. The act applies to policies and contracts issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2021. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Maternal mortality review committee - creation - appointments - duties - sunset review - appropriation. The act creates the Colorado maternal mortality review committee (committee), which is required to review maternal deaths, identify the causes of maternal mortality, and develop recommendations to address preventable maternal deaths, including legislation, policies, rules, and best practices that will support the health and safety of the pregnant and postpartum population in Colorado and prevent maternal deaths. The executive director of the department of public health and environment (department) is directed to appoint at least 11 members to serve on the committee. The act requires certain health care providers and law enforcement officials to provide medical records to the department concerning each maternal death for access by the members of the committee. The records, notes, information, and activities of the committee are confidential. The committee is repealed, effective September 1, 2029, and is subject to sunset review by the department of regulatory agencies prior to its repeal. $145,167 is appropriated to the department for implementation of the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Income tax - tax credit - eligible early childhood educators. The act provides a refundable income tax credit to an eligible early childhood educator with a federal adjusted gross income less than or equal to $75,000 for an individual filing a single return, or less than or equal to $85,000 for an individual filing a joint return, who, for at least 6 months of the taxable year for which the credit is claimed, holds an early childhood professional credential and is either the licensee of an eligible program or employed by an eligible program. The act specifies that an eligible program means either an early childhood education program or a licensed family child care home and the eligible program must have held at least a level 2 quality rating under the Colorado shines quality rating and improvement system for the income tax year for which the credit is claimed and, for the income tax year for which the credit is claimed, either have fiscal agreements with the Colorado child care assistance program or be a program that meets the federal early head start or head start standards. The amount of the credit is dependent on the eligible early childhood educator's credentialing level and is annually adjusted for inflation. The department of human services is required to provide to the department of revenue an annual report of each individual who held an early childhood professional credential during the previous calendar year for which the income tax credit is allowed. The act takes effect only if, at the November 2019 statewide election, a majority of voters do not approve a referred measure that allows the state to increase the cigarette tax, increase the tobacco products tax, and to create a new tax on nicotine products and use a significant portion of the tax revenue for preschool programs and expanded learning opportunities. If the voters at the November 2019 statewide election do not approve such a measure, then the act takes effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Advanced courses - automatic enrollment grant program - appropriation. The John W. Buckner automatic enrollment in advanced courses grant program (grant program)is established in the department of education (department) to provide funding for local education providers that automatically enroll certain students in advanced courses. The department must annually notify local education providers of the grant program. In order to be eligible for the grant program, a local education provider must automatically enroll students who are in ninth grade or higher in an advanced course in a subject related to one in which the student demonstrated proficiency on the prior year's statewide assessment, or in an advanced course based on any other measure, applied to all enrolled students, that demonstrates the student's ability to succeed in the advanced course. Local education providers are encouraged to automatically enroll eligible fourth- through eighth-grade students in advanced courses as well. Local education providers must permit parents to remove their children from automatically enrolled classes and may permit parents to exempt their children from any automatic enrollment. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
The bill creates the health and wellness through comprehensive quality physical education instruction pilot program (pilot program) in the department of education (department). The purpose of the pilot program is to allow a school or a school district, as defined in the bill, serving any of grades K-8, to apply for grant money to implement a pilot program in a school or in schools of a school district. The pilot program must be implemented in all K-8 grades in the school or school district. Subject to available appropriations, pilot program grants are for 3 academic years and are awarded to up to 15 eligible schools or school districts for a total of not more than $3 million awarded annually, including department administrative expenses. Pilot program grants are awarded in February prior to the first academic year to allow grantees to create a 3-year plan for the use of the grant money. The bill includes application deadlines and criteria for the award of grants. The department will review grant applications and make recommendations to the state board of education for the award of the pilot program grants. Grant money awarded through the pilot program can be used only to implement comprehensive quality physical education instruction, as described in the bill. The bill lists the components that must be included in a comprehensive quality physical education instruction program. The department shall contract with a program evaluator for purposes of completing a program evaluation of the pilot program at the end of the 3-year grant period. The bill lists program evaluation criteria. First priority shall be given to a vendor proposal from a state-supported institution of higher education that has the expertise necessary to assess the impact of the pilot program. The bill requires annual reporting to the education committees of the senate and the house of representatives. For the 2019-20 state fiscal year, the bill requires the general assembly to appropriate $1.1 million from the marijuana tax cash fund to the department to implement the pilot program. Unspent appropriations are further appropriated for the remainder of the pilot program to implement the pilot program. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.) Read More