Sen. Rod Pelton

Under current law, the division of veterans affairs (division) in the department of military and veterans affairs has a duty to supervise county veterans service offices (county offices). The act changes the division's duty to instead monitor county offices. The act changes procedures for the division's payment to counties for the performance of certain veterans services, and requires the division to convene a working group that includes county commissioners to develop a method for distributing state-funded payments. Under current law, the board of county commissioners (board) appoints all veterans service officers and staff for county offices. The board is required to appoint a county veterans service officer, and may authorize the appointed county veterans service officer to hire additional county veterans service officers and staff as the board finds necessary. Under current law, a county veterans service officer is required to have certain military qualifications. The act requires only an appointed county veterans service officer to have these military qualifications. The act adds state certification and United States department of veterans affairs accreditation requirements in order to be a county veterans service officer and for a county veterans service officer to be eligible to serve as a claimant's representative and to assist a veteran claimant with the preparation, presentation, or prosecution of a claim for a United States department of veterans affairs benefit. APPROVED by Governor March 22, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill requires a parolee who is arrested for allegedly committing a crime of violence while on parole to be detained at a state correctional facility while awaiting a parole revocation hearing. The bill requires the department of corrections to reimburse a county or city and county for one-half the cost of transporting the parolee from the county or city and county to a state correctional facility. Under existing law, a community parole officer who is informed by a law enforcement agency that a parolee has been arrested for a criminal offense is required to request that a parole revocation proceeding be deferred pending a disposition of the criminal charge. The bill repeals this requirement and instead permits the community parole officer to request that the parole revocation proceeding be deferred. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The "Child Fatality Prevention Act" establishes state and local or regional child fatality prevention review teams to conduct multidisciplinary reviews of child abuse, neglect, and fatalities. The bill: Repeals the requirement that a local or regional review team conduct reviews of child fatalities related to motor vehicle incidents; Requires that members of a local or regional review team be appointed by a board of county commissioners; Repeals the requirement that a local or regional review team review the cause and manner of a child fatality, as determined by the local coroner, pathologist, or medical examiner; Requires a local or regional review team to provide the parent or guardian of a deceased child with written notice of a review, an opportunity to be heard, and an opportunity to obtain legal representation during the review process; and Repeals the requirement that a state review team review a child fatality case that has not been reviewed by a local or regional review team.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act expands the America 250 - Colorado 150 commission (commission), created in 2022 within the state historical society (History Colorado), from 11 to 15 voting members, adding 4 additional members to be appointed by the governor no later than October 1, 2023. The act appropriates $500,000 for the 2023-24 state fiscal year from the general fund to the department of higher education for use by History Colorado to support the activities of the commission in developing programs and plans for the official observance of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States and the 150th anniversary of Colorado statehood. Any unexpended amount of the $500,000 appropriation is further appropriated to the department of education for the same purpose through state fiscal year 2026-27. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the Colorado department of transportation (department) to stagger delineator posts every 1/10th of a mile and to consider implementing flexible delineator posts and other engineering solutions to accommodate the needs of all vehicles when it constructs a new 2-lane state highway or when it repaves or repairs an existing 2-lane state highway if farming or other oversize loads actively utilize that section of the highway. The act clarifies that it does not require delineator posts to be placed where they are not deemed necessary by the department of transportation. APPROVED by Governor June 5, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

In 1942, Colorado entered into an interstate compact (compact) with Nebraska and Kansas regarding the allocation of water from the Republican river basin (basin). Colorado ratified the compact in 1943. In 2016, Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas signed a resolution (resolution) regarding a dispute about Colorado's compliance with the compact, through which resolution and its amendment Colorado agreed to retire 25,000 acres of irrigated acreage in the basin by 2029. The act requires the Colorado water center (center) in the Colorado state university to study the anticipated economic effects of the forced elimination of groundwater withdrawals within and surrounding the Colorado portion of the Republican river basin that could occur if Colorado fails to comply with the resolution. The center is required to prepare a progress report and, on or before January 1, 2026, a final report of the center's findings and conclusions from the study and to post both reports on the center's website. The center must present the progress and final reports to certain legislative committees. For the 2023-24 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $146,286 from the general fund to the department of higher education for allocation to the Colorado water center. APPROVED by Governor June 3, 2023 EFFECTIVE June 3, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act updates the veterinary education loan repayment program in the following ways: Increases the number of qualified applicants per year from 4 to 6; Eliminates the requirement that an applicant must have graduated from an accredited veterinary school in 2017 or later; Increases the total amount an applicant is eligible for over a 4-year period from $70,000 to $90,000; Increases the yearly repayment amounts for successful applicants; and Requires the state treasurer to transfer $540,000 from the general fund to the veterinary education loan repayment fund on September 1, 2023. APPROVED by Governor June 2, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the Colorado oil and gas conservation commission (commission) and the water quality control division (division) in the department of public health and environment, in consultation with local governments, to perform a study that: Identifies best management practices for capturing methane seepage in the Raton basin; Evaluates the quality of water resulting from such methane capture operations; and Evaluates the potential to preserve and make beneficial use of such water. The primary objectives of the study are to: Proactively and systematically locate and survey methane gas seepage in the Raton basin; Document previous areas of seepage; Calculate any differences in seepage amounts; and Assess the potential for methane to create hazardous conditions. The study must include: A survey to identify suspected seepage areas, previous seepage areas, and increases or decreases in seepage; Detailed mapping of suspected seepage areas; Sampling and analysis of gas collected from selected seepage areas; and Sampling and analysis of water from selected water wells and methane capture wells in the Raton basin. In performing the study, the commission and the division shall coordinate with: The Colorado energy office; The division of water resources in the department of natural resources; The division of mining, reclamation, and safety in the department of natural resources; The division of parks and wildlife created in the department of natural resources; and The boards of county commissioners in Las Animas and Huerfano counties. The commission must complete the study and submit it to legislative committees of reference by June 30, 2025. For the 2023-2024 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $558,500 from the oil and gas conservation and environmental response fund to the department of natural resources, for use by the commission, and $85,361 from the general fund to the department of public health and environment. APPROVED by Governor June 2, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)