Sen. Robert Rodriguez

Usually, an owner of digital electronic equipment (equipment), such as cell phones and tablets, must seek diagnostic, maintenance, or repair services of the equipment from the original equipment manufacturer (manufacturer) or an authorized repair provider affiliated with the manufacturer. The bill requires a manufacturer to provide parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or documentation, such as diagnostic, maintenance, or repair manuals, diagrams, or similar information, to independent repair providers and owners of the manufacturer's equipment to allow an independent repair provider or owner to conduct diagnostic, maintenance, or repair services. A manufacturer's failure to comply with the requirement is an unfair or deceptive trade practice. Manufacturers need not divulge any trade secrets to independent repair providers and owners. The bill does not apply to motor vehicle manufacturers or dealers acting in that capacity, powersports vehicle manufacturers or dealers acting in that capacity, or medical devices; except that the bill does apply to class 2 powered wheelchairs. Any contractual provision or other arrangement that a manufacturer enters into that would remove or limit the manufacturer's obligation to provide these resources to independent repair providers and owners is void and unenforceable. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill states that in a class action under the "Colorado Consumer Protection Act", a successful plaintiff may recover actual damages, injunctive relief allowed by law, and reasonable attorney fees and costs. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The During a declared public health disaster emergency, the bill authorizes counties and municipalities to enact ordinances and resolutions that: Limit the amount of the fee , excluding a fee related to credit card processing, that a third-party delivery service may charge to a retail food establishment in a county or municipality where indoor dining is prohibited at a capacity of at least 50% or below at the discretion of the county or municipality ; Restrict the ability of a third-party food delivery service to reduce the compensation rate or tips paid to a delivery driver or retail food establishment to offset revenue reductions resulting from a fee limit; Require that any fee or commission charged to a retail food establishment be disclosed by the third-party food delivery service to the customer; and Restrict a third-party food delivery service's ability to service, or disclose any information about, service a retail food establishment without the retail food establishment's consent; and consent. Impose civil penalties for a violation of any ordinance or resolution enacted. The bill also immunizes any county or municipality that enacts an ordinance or a resolution as authorized by the bill from liability for economic damage suffered as a result of the ordinance or resolution. (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.)

The act prohibits a principal, which includes an employer, certain labor contractors, public employers, and entities that contract with 5 or more independent contractors, from discriminating, retaliating, or taking adverse action against any worker who: In good faith, raises any concern about workplace health and safety practices or hazards related to a public health emergency to the principal, the principal's agent, other workers, a government agency, or the public if the workplace health and safety practices fail to meet guidelines established by a federal, state, or local public health agency with jurisdiction over the workplace; Voluntarily wears at the worker's workplace the worker's own personal protective equipment, such as a mask, faceguard, or gloves, under specified circumstances; or Opposes a practice the worker reasonably believes is unlawful or makes a charge, testifies, assists, or participates in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing of alleged unlawful acts. Additionally, a principal is prohibited from requiring or attempting to require a worker to sign a contract or other agreement that limits or prevents the worker from disclosing information about workplace health and safety practices or hazards related to a public health emergency. A worker who knowingly discloses false information or discloses information with reckless disregard for the truth or falsity of the information is not protected under the act. A person may seek relief by: Filing a complaint with the division of labor standards and statistics (division) in the department of labor and employment; Bringing an action in district court, after exhausting administrative remedies; or Bringing a whistleblower action in the name of the state in district court, after exhausting administrative remedies. The division is authorized to adopt rules necessary to implement the act. $270,153 is appropriated to the department of labor and employment from the employment support fund, of which $206,193 is allocated for use by the division for enforcement of worker's rights related to a public health emergency, based on the assumption that the division will require an additional 2.5 FTE, and $63,960 is reappropriated to the department of law for legal services. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act directs the public utilities commission (PUC) to exercise its existing authority to require information from regulated public utilities in the areas of: The number of utility customers who are exempted from tiered rates due to a medical condition or the use of medical equipment requiring higher amounts of electricity than other customers, and the efforts the public utilities are taking to ensure that customers entitled to the exemption are able to do so; and Disconnections and delinquencies, including the number of disconnections and a narrative analysis of any trends or inconsistencies revealed by the data. The act also raises the income threshold for eligibility for a medical exemption from tiered electricity rates from 250% of the federal poverty level (FPL) to 400% of the FPL. The act directs the PUC, on or before September 1, 2020, to open rulemaking proceedings to prescribe standard practices for disconnection due to nonpayment, including the provision of resources to support customers in multiple languages, as appropriate to the geographic areas served; standard terms for repayment plans to cure delinquencies; and a prohibition on remote disconnection without a reasonable attempt to make contact with the customer of record by telephone or engaging in a personal, physical visit to the premises. For any change in a public utility's rate design approved on or after September 1, 2020, the act requires that the change of design be revenue-neutral and creates a presumption that a change of design that has a disproportionate impact on low-income residential customers compared to other residential customers is presumed to be contrary to the public interest. The act appropriates $16,545 to the department of regulatory agencies for use by the PUC. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies in its sunset review and report of the licensing of egg dealers by: Extending the program for 11 years, until September 1, 2031; Adding the regulation of non-chicken eggs from avian species and authorizing the commissioner of agriculture to adopt rules specifying how non-chicken eggs will be regulated; and Changing the fund where civil penalties are deposited from the inspection and consumer services cash fund to the general fund.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act implements recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the licensing functions of the commissioner of agriculture (commissioner) regarding the "Commodity Handler Act" and the "Farm Products Act", with modifications, by: Continuing the commissioner's licensing functions for 5 years, until 2025; Combining the "Commodity Handler Act" and the "Farm Products Act"; Exempting from licensure small-volume commodity handlers who buy less than $250,000 worth of commodities and farm products per year and do not buy commodities for commercial feeding of livestock; Requiring the commissioner to adopt rules by December 31, 2020, regarding financial assurance requirements, including a schedule for filing a bond with the commissioner, record keeping requirements, initial and renewal license requirements, credit sale contract requirements, standard warehouse operation requirements, and animal feeding operations capacity and requiring the department of agriculture to convene a stakeholders' group to work on drafting the rules; With regard to an action to demand payment on a surety bond or letter of credit based on the misconduct of a commodity handler or dealer, extending the date for filing the action, and thus the period of liability for which the surety or issuer of the letter of credit is required to pay a claim, from up to 180 days after the later of the date of the transaction or the date of the loss to up to 548 days (approximately 18 months) after the later of the date of the transaction or the date of the loss; Requiring the department of agriculture, on or before November 1, 2021, to submit a report to the committees of the general assembly with jurisdiction over agricultural issues summarizing the department's progress toward implementing the act; Increasing the bond amount that farm products dealers must file from between $2,000 and $200,000 to between $200,000 and $1 million; and For the definition of "small-volume dealer", repealing the limitation on the amount of farm products or commodities, based on price, that a dealer can purchase in a single transaction to qualify as a small-volume dealer.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Current law requires an individual who wishes to have a document notarized to appear personally before a notary public. Effective December 31, 2020: The act authorizes a notary public to perform a notarial act on behalf of an individual who is not in the notary's physical presence, but only with respect to an electronic document; To perform a "remote notarization", a notary must use an electronic system that conforms to standards established by rules of the secretary of state, including using real-time audio-video communication; The act establishes the standards that a notary must comply with to have satisfactory evidence of the identity of the individual seeking the remote notarization; and The use or sale of personal information of a remotely located individual by a remote notary and the provider of a remote notarization system is prohibited except in specific, limited circumstances. The governor issued an emergency executive order in response to the COVID-19 pandemic that directed the secretary of state to issue an emergency rule to authorize remote notarizations, which the secretary of state did. The act ratifies remote notarizations conducted pursuant to the emergency rule between March 30, 2020, and December 31, 2020. The act appropriates $132,795 from the department of state cash fund to the department of state to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)