Sen. Julie Gonzales

The act extends the time in which debtors experiencing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 emergency may have extraordinary debt collection actions suspended. Existing law required a judgment creditor (creditor) to provide a notice to a judgment debtor (debtor) before instituting an extraordinary debt collection action, which includes an action in the nature of a garnishment, attachment, levy, or execution to collect or enforce a judgment. The debtor may suspend the collection action by notifying the creditor that the debtor is experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19. The obligation to provide notice and the suspension of the collection action were effective through February 1, 2021. The act extends the effective period for the notice and the suspension to June 1, 2021. If a collection action has already been suspended by the debtor, the suspension is now effective through June 1, 2021.In addition, under existing law, up to $4,000 cumulative in a depository account or accounts in a debtor's name is exempt from levy and sale under a writ of attachment or execution through February 1, 2021. The act extends that date to June 1, 2021.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill requires the state treasurer to transfer $44.5 million from the general fund to the housing development grant fund for the purpose of providing emergency housing assistance to individuals and households who have experienced financial need due to the COVID-19 pandemic or second-order effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The money must be used by June 30, 2021. The bill also creates the emergency direct assistance grant program (program) in the division of housing (division) within the department of local affairs (department) to provide grants to individuals who have experienced financial need due to the COVID-19 pandemic or second-order effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and are ineligible for certain other types of assistance. The bill allows the division to promulgate rules and requires the department to submit a report to legislative committees of reference with jurisdiction over local government and to the governor concerning the program. The bill creates the emergency direct assistance grant program fund (fund) and directs the state treasurer to transfer $5 million from the general fund to the fund for the program. The division must use the money by June 30, 2021. The program is repealed, effective June 30, 2022. The bill requires the state treasurer to transfer $500,000 from the general fund to the eviction legal defense fund for the purpose of providing legal representation to indigent tenants to resolve civil legal matters arising on and after March 1, 2020, concerning an eviction or impending eviction related to the public health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The state court administrator must use the money by June 30, 2021. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Under current law, the department of public health and environment (department) is charged with making annual sanitary, sewerage, and health inspections of penal institutions. The act defines "penal institutions" and includes in that definition public and private facilities that house noncitizens for civil immigration proceedings. The act specifically authorizes unannounced follow-up inspections by the department. For the 2020-21 fiscal year, the act directs the department to make the annual inspections of facilities that house noncitizens before January 1, 2021, and to submit a report to the governor and specified committees of the general assembly. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act amends the requirements for the imposition, collection, and uses of the emergency telephone charge imposed by local 911 governing bodies. Current law imposes a statutory cap on the amount of the emergency telephone charge that may be imposed by local governing bodies. The act allows the public utilities commission (commission) to establish the authorized threshold amount for the charge on an annual basis. A local governing body may impose the charge in an amount up to the authorized threshold. If a governing body determines it needs to impose a higher charge to fund 911 operations in its jurisdiction, it must seek the approval of the commission. The procedures for the collection and remittance of the emergency telephone charge by telecommunication service suppliers are amended. The act provides procedures for local bodies to assess overdue or unpaid remittances, imposes a time limitation for local governing bodies to do so, and creates a process for the service supplier and local governing body to extend that time period. Local governing bodies may audit the collections of service suppliers, and may impose interest and penalties on late remittances. A new 911 surcharge (surcharge) is established as a collection for local governing bodies. The amount of the surcharge is established each year by the commission based on the needs of the local governing bodies. Service suppliers must collect the surcharge from service users and remit the money to the commission. The commission is required to transmit the money collected to local governing bodies within 60 days, using a formula based on the number of concurrent sessions maintained in the governing bodies' jurisdictions. The existing "prepaid wireless E911 charge" is renamed the "prepaid wireless 911". Under current law, the amount of the charge is set in statute. The act requires the commission to establish the amount of the charge based on the average amount of the emergency telephone charges imposed by local governing bodies and the amount of the surcharge. Governing bodies may use the money collected from the 3 charges for costs associated with the lease, purchase, installation, and planning for equipment, facilities, hardware, and software used to receive and dispatch 911 calls, charges of basic emergency service providers, costs related to the provision and operation of emergency telephone service and emergency notification service, membership fees for state or national industry organizations supporting 911, and other costs directly related to the continued operation of the emergency telephone service ad emergency notification service. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the Colorado interagency working group on school safety. The working group consists of 14 voting members. The mission of the working group is to enhance school safety through the cost-effective use of public resources. The working group shall: Study and implement recommendations of the state auditor's report regarding school safety released in September 2019; Consider program organization and recommend reorganization if necessary; Identify shared metrics to examine program effectiveness; Facilitate interagency coordination and communication; Increase transparency and accessibility of state grants and resources, particularly for school districts without a grant writer, which includes improving outreach and may include developing common grant applications; Facilitate and address data sharing, including allowable data sharing at the local level, when appropriate and allowable under state and federal law; and Address school safety program challenges in a coordinated way. The working group may contract with a consultant to optimize the alignment and effectiveness of the school safety efforts in Colorado and identify evidence-based best practices. The general assembly may appropriate money to the working group for a consultant, and the working group can accept gifts, grants, and donations. The working group only meets if the department of public safety identifies sufficient funding to cover the costs associated with the working group. The act repeals the working group on September 1, 2022, but the department of regulatory agencies shall review the working group prior to its repeal. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act defines "covered air toxics" as hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen sulfide, and benzene. A stationary source of air pollutants that reported in its federal toxics release inventory filing at least one of the following amounts of a covered air toxic for the year 2017 or later is defined as a "covered facility": For hydrogen cyanide, 10,000 pounds; For hydrogen sulfide, 5,000 pounds; and For benzene, 1,000 pounds. "Incidents" are defined as unauthorized emissions of an air pollutant from a covered facility. Each covered facility will: Conduct outreach to representatives of the community surrounding the covered facility to discuss communications regarding the occurrence of an incident; Use reverse-911 to communicate with, and make data available to, the community surrounding the covered facility regarding the occurrence of an incident; Implement reverse-911 within 6 months; and Pay all costs associated with its use of reverse(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The "Immigrant Tenant Protection Act" (Act) is created, which prohibits a landlord from engaging in certain housing practices or related activities based on the immigration or citizenship status of a tenant. A tenant who is aggrieved by a landlord's violation of the Act may bring a civil action and seek certain remedies. In a civil action brought under the Act, a tenant's immigration or citizenship status is not relevant, and inquiry into the tenant's status is not permitted unless: The claims raised by the tenant place the tenant's immigration or citizenship status in contention; or The person seeking to make the inquiry demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the inquiry is necessary in order to comply with federal law.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The secretary of state currently charges uniform commercial code filing fees. The filing fee is transferred for deposit in the Colorado identity theft and financial fraud cash fund to support activities of the Colorado fraud investigators unit. The current fee is $4 and is set to be reduced to $3 in 2020. The act extends the $4 fee and an associated report to the general assembly until 2024. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

In the "Colorado Marijuana Code", the act changes the term "accelerator licensee" to "social equity licensee" and alters the qualifications. A social equity licensee may participate in the accelerator program on the premises of a retail marijuana licensee whereby the social equity licensee receives assistance from an experienced retail marijuana licensee. The act expands the accelerator program to include a retail marijuana store licensee. A retail marijuana licensee participating in the accelerator program and a social equity licensee may be entitled to incentives from the department of revenue or the office of economic development and international trade. Under current law, before the governor is allowed to pardon any person, the application must include a certificate from the superintendent of a prison where the person was held and be submitted to the judge who sentenced the person, the district attorney for the judicial district, and the attorney who prosecuted the person for their comments. The act authorizes the governor to pardon a class of persons convicted of possession of up to 2 ounces of marijuana without the certificate or submitting the application to anyone else. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)