The act removes telepharmacies from the definition of "other outlet" under current law and removes the geographic restriction requiring that a telepharmacy outlet be located more than 20 miles from the nearest prescription drug outlet or another telepharmacy. The act requires telepharmacies to be registered as "prescription drug outlets", instead of other outlets, and to be located in an area of need. An "area of need" is any health facility licensed or certified by the department of public health and environment or any area where a demonstration of need is approved by the state board of pharmacy (board). A telepharmacy outlet must have a pharmacist manager and must be under the direct charge or control of the pharmacist manager or licensed pharmacist delegate who provides remote supervision to the telepharmacy outlet. The act authorizes the board to adopt limited rules to specify additional enumerated criteria to facilitate the operation of telepharmacy outlets, including, in part, the number of telepharmacy outlets that may be operated by a central pharmacy. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
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The act creates the drug repository task force (task force) in the department of public health and environment (department) to examine drug repository programs for unused prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications in the country to determine the best model to implement for Colorado. The task force consists of at least 13 and no more than 15 members, including up to 8 members appointed by the executive director of the department, 6 members appointed by the executive director of the department of regulatory agencies, and one member appointed by the department of health care policy and financing representing that department. The task force members include, in part, representatives of impacted state departments, hospitals, pharmacists and pharmacy associations, physicians, and members representing patients. The task force members must be appointed by August 1, 2022. The executive director of the department or the executive director's designee shall convene the task force no later than September 15, 2022. In part, the task force shall consider drug depository programs in other states and which model is the safest and most efficient and effective model for Colorado; medications to be included in the program; the requirements for donating and receiving medications; legal issues; and fees and rule-making for the program. The department shall provide staff support to the task force. The task force shall report its findings and recommendations to the governor and the health committees of the general assembly by December 15, 2022. The task force is repealed on July 1, 2023. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act permits and specifies the conditions for employees of supervised lenders to work from remote locations. Additionally, the act repeals the requirement that an applicant for registration as a debt-management services provider include with the application the results of a state and national criminal history record check for any agent of the applicant. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Colorado law requires retail establishments to accept United States currency. One of the exceptions to the requirement is for security deposits. The act: Exempts from the requirement to accept United States currency a retail establishment in which the primary method of selling goods or services is through an automatic renewal contract; and Defines "retail establishment" and "security deposit" for purposes of these exceptions. The attorney general is authorized to bring a civil and criminal action to enforce the provision. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the state treasurer to establish the Colorado household financial recovery pilot program (program) in the department of the treasury to partner with financial institutions to incentivize lending to low-income individuals and households, including households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic or its negative economic impacts. Money available for the program must be used for one or more of the following purposes: To establish a loan loss reserve to partially offset risk to lenders in making loans to individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; To make payments to lenders to buy down interest rates on loans made to individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; To provide lending capital for affordable, small loans to individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; or To award grants to nonprofit community-based organizations to conduct marketing and outreach to individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic who may be eligible to participate in the program. The state treasurer may select one or more community development financial institutions to administer all or a portion of the money available for the program. The administrator or administrators are selected based, in part, on their proposed use of the money, their ability to partner with nonprofit community-based organizations that work with individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to connect borrowers to affordable banking products and other financial services. The act specifies program policies, including loan terms, and requires the state treasurer and administrators to establish and publicize additional program policies as necessary. The state treasurer or an administrator may establish a loan loss reserve to partially offset loan losses and thereby incentivize lending by financial institutions to individuals and households impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The state treasurer shall determine the amount of the offset and shall establish and publicize policies for participating financial institutions. On or before November 1, 2023, and on or before November 1 each year thereafter, the selected administrators shall report to the governor and to house of representatives business affairs and labor committee and the senate business, labor, and technology committee, or any success committees, concerning the use of program money and other information concerning the program. The act creates the Colorado household financial recovery pilot program fund (fund) and identifies allowable uses of the money in the fund. $5,200,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the fund to implement the pilot program. From this appropriation, $59,142 is reappropriated to the department of law for legal services for the department of the treasury. The appropriation is based on the assumption that the department of law will require an additional 0.3 FTE. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires a consumer reporting agency to exclude sealed and expunged records from a consumer report, unless the user of the report demonstrates that the user is otherwise required to consider the information pursuant to law. Currently, there is a process that allows for automatic sealing of criminal justice records for certain drug offenses. The act extends automatic sealing to all offenses, including civil infractions, that allow a defendant to petition the court for sealing criminal justice records that are not subject to the victims rights act. The act streamlines the automatic record sealing process. The act allows a district attorney to object to the automatic sealing of a felony offense that is not a drug felony and, if the defendant requests a hearing in that case, the court shall schedule a hearing to determine whether to seal the records. The act requires the state court administrator to produce an annual report regarding automatic record sealing. During the 2023 and 2024 legislative sessions, the judicial department shall report on the progress of its implementation of the automatic sealing created by the act, including as part of the department's SMART act hearing. The act requires district attorneys, in the completion of diversion prior to charges being filed, to seal diversion records without a court order. The act provides that a defendant's and a district attorney's access to sealed records do not require a court order. The act provides the conditions that must be met for a researcher to access sealed records without a court order. The act allows a record to be sealed if a defendant owes fines, court fees, late fees, or other court-ordered fees. The act requires the Colorado bureau of investigation to produce an annual report regarding record sealing. The act makes clarifying and organizational changes to the record sealing statutes. The act appropriates $725,145 from the general fund to the judicial department to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Current law provides whistleblower protections for workers who raise a reasonable concern about health or safety related to a public health emergency. The act expands the protection to all health and safety concerns regardless of whether there is a declared public health emergency. To implement the act, the act appropriates: $417,629 to the department of labor and employment, of which $386,579 is for use by the division of labor standards and statistics and $31,050 is for the purchase of legal services; $228,499 to the department of personnel, of which $125,000 is for use by the division of human resources for liability claims and $103,499 is for the purchase of legal services; and $134,549 to the department of law, reappropriated from the department of labor and employment and the department of personnel.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The concurrent resolution amends section 2 of article XVIII of the Colorado constitution by: Repealing the 5-year continuous existence requirement to obtain a charitable gaming license; and Authorizing a manager or operator of a charitable game to make minimum wage until 2024, when the provision repeals the prohibition on paying managers or operators.(Note: This summary applies to this concurrent resolution as adopted.)
Under current law, when a defendant is detained in jail on a municipal hold, the defendant must receive a hearing before the municipal court within 2 calendar days, excluding Sundays and federal holidays. Beginning January 1, 2023, the act requires the hearing to be held within 48 hours after the municipal court receives notice that the defendant is being held solely on a municipal hold. The act makes clarifying changes to the district attorney assistance for bond hearings grant program and repeals the district attorney assistance for bond hearings cash fund. The act decreases the 2022 long bill appropriation to the district attorney assistance for bond hearing cash fund by $600,000 and appropriates in the 2022 long bill $600,000 to the department of law for district attorney bond hearing grants. The act repeals the 2021 $150,000 appropriation to the district attorney assistance for bond hearing cash fund and appropriates for the 2021-22 fiscal year $150,000 to the department of law for district attorney bond hearing grants. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act clarifies that: Each prescriber of prescription drugs must register and maintain a user account with the prescription drug monitoring program (program); and Each licensed health-care practitioner must query the program prior to filling a prescription for every opioid or benzodiazepine. The act requires the group tasked with developing a strategic plan to reduce prescription drug misuse to evaluate and make recommendations to the executive director of the department of regulatory agencies regarding balancing the use of the program as a health-care tool with enforcement of the requirements of the program. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)