Procurement - source selection - disparity study. To ascertain whether disparities exist between the participation of historically underutilized businesses and other businesses in the state procurement system, the department of personnel is required to contract for a disparity study of the Colorado procurement process and to make recommendations to address any discrepancies identified by the study. The final report including the findings and recommendations from the study must be provided to the members of the general assembly and the executive director of the department of personnel (executive director) no later than December 1, 2020. The executive director is required to transmit a copy of the final report to the minority business office, which shall post the report on its official website. In addition, the executive director is required to include the findings and recommendations from the study in its report to the applicable house and senate committees of reference during its hearing pursuant to the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act". Any entity that is subject to the disparity study is required to respond to a request for information in connection with the study as soon as possible after receiving the request. $650,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of personnel for use by the division of accounts and control. Any unexpended and unencumbered money from the appropriation remains available for expenditure by the department of personnel for the purposes of the disparity study in the next fiscal year without further appropriation. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
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Paid family and medical leave - study - task force created - appropriation. The act creates a study of the implementation of a paid family and medical leave program in the state by: Requiring the department of labor and employment to contract with experts in the field of paid family and medical leave to report on the establishment of a paid family and medical leave program for employees in the state; Requiring the department to request information from third parties that may be willing to administer all or part of a paid family and medical leave program; Creating the family and medical leave implementation task force, which is responsible for recommending a plan to implement a paid family and medical leave program for the state; and Requiring an actuarial study of the final plan recommended by the task force. To implement the act, $165,487 is appropriated to the department of labor and employment and $17,004 is appropriated to the department of public health and environment. Both appropriations are from the general fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Air pollution - statewide greenhouse gas pollution abatement - air quality control commission - rules - appropriation. Section 1 of the act states that Colorado shall have statewide goals to reduce 2025 greenhouse gas emissions by at least 26%, 2030 greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50%, and 2050 greenhouse gas emissions by at least 90% of the levels of statewide greenhouse gas emissions that existed in 2005. Section 3 specifies considerations that the air quality control commission is to take into account in implementing policies and promulgating rules to reduce greenhouse gas pollution, including the benefits of compliance and the equitable distribution of those benefits, the costs of compliance, opportunities to incentivize clean energy in transitioning communities, and the potential to enhance the resilience of Colorado's communities and natural resources to climate impacts. The commission will consult with the public utilities commission with regard to rules that affect the providers of retail electricity in Colorado. The commission shall not mandate an electric public utility to reduce its emissions by 2030 more than is required by a clean energy plan filed with the public utilities commission if the plan demonstrates an 80% reduction from 2005 statewide green gas emission levels by 2030. A clean energy plan voluntarily filed by a cooperative electric association that has exempted itself from the public utilities commission's jurisdiction or a municipally owned utility with the public utilities commission is deemed approved if the plan demonstrates an 80% reduction by 2030. $281,588 is appropriated from the general fund to the department of public health and environment to implement the act, of which $93,267 is reappropriated to the department of law. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Demographic notes on bills - process for requesting - content of notes - appropriation. Beginning with the 2020 legislative session, the staff of the legislative council are required to prepare demographic notes on legislative bills in each regular session of the general assembly. The speaker of the house of representatives, the minority leader of the house of representatives, the president of the senate, and the minority leader of the senate are authorized to request 5 demographic notes each, or more at the discretion of the director of research of the legislative council. When a member of leadership requests a demographic note, the staff of the legislative council must meet with the requesting member and the sponsor of the bill to discuss whether a demographic note can practically be completed for that bill. If not, the member of leadership may request a demographic note on a different bill, within the limits specified in the act. A demographic note is defined as a note that uses available data to outline the potential effects of a legislative measure on disparities within the state. Disparities means the difference in economic, employment, health, education, or public safety outcomes between the state population as a whole and subgroups of the population defined by relevant characteristics for which data are available, including race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, and geography. The director of research of the legislative council must develop the procedures for requesting, completing, and updating the demographic notes and memorialize the procedures in a letter to the executive committee of the legislative council. The director may seek and expend gifts, grants, or donations to pay for training for staff. $89,474 is appropriated to the legislative department for use by the legislative council staff for the implementation of the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Registration - fees and surcharges - appropriation. The act requires the department of revenue to give prorated credit for registration fees and surcharges on a vehicle that is sold before the vehicle's registration year ends. The credit is applied to vehicles subsequently registered. To implement the act, $7,200 is appropriated to the department of revenue from the Colorado DRIVES vehicle services account in the highway users tax fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Tenants and landlords - warranty of habitability - breach of warranty - tenants' remedies. Under current law, a warranty of habitability (warranty) is implied in every rental agreement for a residential premises. The act states that, except in cases involving a condition that is based on the presence of mold, a landlord commits a breach of the warranty (breach) if the residential premises is: Uninhabitable or otherwise unfit for human habitation or in a condition that materially interferes with the tenant's life, health, or safety; and The landlord has received reasonably complete written or electronic notice of the condition and failed to commence remedial action by employing reasonable efforts within: 24 hours, where the condition materially interferes with the tenant's life, health, or safety; or 96 hours, where the premises is uninhabitable or otherwise unfit for human habitation and the tenant has included with the notice permission for the landlord or the landlord's authorized agent to enter the residential premises. For cases involving a residential premises that has mold that is associated with dampness, or where there is any other condition causing the residential premises to be damp, which condition, if not remedied, would materially interfere with the life, health, or safety of a tenant, a landlord commits a breach if the landlord fails: Within 96 hours after receiving reasonably complete written or electronic notice of the condition, to mitigate immediate risk of mold by installing a containment, stopping active sources of water to the mold, and installing a high-efficiency particulate air filtration device to reduce tenants' exposure to mold; To maintain the containment until certain acts have been performed; and Within a reasonable amount of time, to execute certain remedial actions to remove the health risk posed by mold. Current law provides a list of conditions that render a residential premises uninhabitable. To this list, the act adds 2 conditions; specifically, a residential premises is uninhabitable if: The premises lacks functioning appliances that conformed to applicable law at the time of installation and that are maintained in good working order; or There is mold that is associated with dampness, or there is any other condition causing the residential premises to be damp, which condition, if not remedied, would materially interfere with the health or safety of the tenant, excluding the presence of mold that is minor and found on surfaces that can accumulate moisture as part of their proper functioning and intended use. The act grants jurisdiction to county courts to provide injunctive relief related to a breach. The act also: States that if a tenant gives a landlord notice of a condition that materially interferes with the tenant's life, health, or safety, the landlord, at the request of the tenant, shall provide the tenant a comparable dwelling unit, as selected by the landlord, at no expense or cost to the tenant, or a hotel room, as selected by the landlord, at no expense or cost to the tenant; Allows a tenant who satisfies certain conditions to deduct from one or more rent payments the cost to repair or remedy a condition causing a breach; Repeals the requirement that a tenant notify a local government before seeking an injunction for a breach; Repeals provisions that allow a rental agreement to require a tenant to assume certain responsibilities concerning conditions and characteristics of a residential premises; Creates an exception for single-family residence premises for which a landlord does not receive a subsidy from any governmental source, by which exception a landlord and tenant may agree in writing that the tenant is to perform specific repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations, and remodeling, subject to certain requirements; Prohibits a landlord from retaliating against a tenant in response to the tenant having made a good-faith complaint to the landlord or to a governmental agency alleging a condition that renders the premises uninhabitable or any condition that materially interferes with the life, health, or safety of the tenant; Repeals certain presumptions that favor landlords; and Specifies monetary damages that may be available to a tenant against whom a landlord retaliates. The act states that if the same condition that substantially caused a breach recurs within 6 months after the condition is repaired or remedied, other than a condition that merely involves a nonfunctioning appliance, the tenant may terminate the rental agreement 14 days after providing the landlord written or electronic notice of the tenant's intent to do so. In a case concerning a condition that merely involves a nonfunctioning appliance, if the landlord remedies the condition within 14 days after receiving the notice, the tenant may not terminate the rental agreement. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
State board of accountancy - continuing education requirements - continuation under sunset law. The automatic termination date of the regulation of accountants by the state board of accountancy is extended until September 1, 2030, pursuant to the provisions of the sunset law. The act implements the recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the state board of accountancy by: Making the use of fraudulent, coercive, or dishonest practices, or the demonstration of incompetence, untrustworthiness, or financial irresponsibility, grounds for discipline (section 9 of the act); Clarifying that foreign corporations operating a Colorado office must register with the board and adding "limited liability partnership" to the list of business types that must register (section 8); Permitting a person that is not certified or registered to use an accounting designation that includes the word "management" conferred by a bona fide nationally recognized accounting organization if the designation does not purport to confer the right to perform audit or attest services (sections 4 and 7); Authorizing the board to take disciplinary action against uncertified or unregistered persons, including resident managers, if they provide services that require certification or registration (section 9); Allowing a person to request inactive status via any board-approved method (section 5); and Making technical changes (sections 5, 10, and 11). Section 3 updates the names of several regional accrediting agencies. Section 6 specifies that a nonresident certificate holder's completion of continuing education requirements in the holder's home state satisfies the Colorado continuing education requirements. Specified provisions of the act are contingent upon House Bill 19-1172 becoming law. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More
Violation of rental agreements - notice requirements - time to cure violation. The act concerns the time frames in which certain landlords must give notice to tenants prior to commencing eviction proceedings for failure to pay rent or for a first or subsequent violation of any other condition or covenant other than a substantial violation. Under most residential agreements, a landlord is required to give 10 days notice. Under a nonresidential or an employer-provided housing agreement, a landlord is required to give 3 days notice. For an exempt residential agreement, meaning for the lease of a single family home by a landlord who owns 5 or fewer single family rental homes, 5 days notice is required.(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
Regulation of insurance companies - corporate governance annual disclosures. The act establishes, with amendments, certain model laws of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners concerning corporate governance annual disclosures (CGADs) by insurers and insurance groups (insurers). On June 1, 2020, and on June 1 of each year thereafter, an insurer shall submit to the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) a CGAD that contains sufficient information to permit the commissioner to gain and maintain an understanding of the insurer's corporate governance framework. The act establishes confidentiality requirements for the commissioner and any third-party consultants retained by the commissioner. The act states that any insurer that fails, without just cause, to timely file a CGAD shall pay, after notice and a hearing, a penalty of $200 for each day's delay. The maximum penalty is $25,000. The act allows the commissioner to act as the group-wide supervisor for an internationally active insurance group or to designate or acknowledge another regulatory official as the group-wide supervisor for an internationally active insurance group that: Does not have substantial insurance operations in the United States; Has substantial insurance operations in the United States, but not in Colorado; or Has substantial insurance operations in the United States and in Colorado, but the commissioner has determined pursuant to certain criteria that the other regulatory official is the appropriate group-wide supervisor. The act describes certain permissible supervisory activities for the commissioner to perform while acting as a group-wide supervisor of an internationally active insurance group. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.) Read More