The act authorizes the legislative council to approve agreements between the director of research of the legislative council and nonpartisan organizations to place nonpartisan legislative policy fellows (fellows) in the legislative council staff. The act also specifies the types of work that fellows may do, requires the director of research to retain supervisory authority over fellows, including over the terms and conditions of the fellowship, and requires any work product produced by a fellow during the fellowship to remain the property of the general assembly during and after the conclusion of the fellowship. The legislative council is prohibited from approving any agreement between the director of research of the legislative council and a nonpartisan organization that is registered as a lobbyist with the secretary of state to place a fellow in the legislative council staff. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Sponsored bills
For ground ambulance services (ambulance services), the act: Allows a political subdivision or an ambulance service providing ambulance services on behalf of the political subdivision to submit to the division of insurance (division) the established rates for the ambulance services, if the rates meet specified conditions; Requires the division to publish reimbursement rates on the division's public-facing website; Establishes reimbursement rates for ambulance services that are out of network; and Prohibits an out-of-network ambulance service from billing an individual covered under a health insurance coverage plan (covered person) any outstanding balance for a covered service not paid for by an insurance carrier, except for any coinsurance, deductible, or copayment amount required to be paid by the covered person. If a covered person makes a payment for an out-of-network ambulance service, the payment must be applied to the covered person's in-network deductibles and in-network out-of-pocket maximum amounts. For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, $38,149 is appropriated from the division of insurance cash fund to the department of regulatory agencies for use by the division to implement the act. VETOED by Governor 5/29/2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Current law states that an employer shall not interfere with an agricultural worker's reasonable access to key service providers (KSP) at any location when the worker is not performing compensable work and with respect to health-care providers at any time. The act exempts an employer's property from this provision; except that the act prohibits an employer from interfering with a worker's access to KSP through remote channels on the employer's property. The act also removes language referring to health-care providers. Current law states that the division of labor standards and statistics (division) may adopt rules regarding additional times that an employer may not interfere with a worker's reasonable access to KSP. The act clarifies that such rules must apply only to locations other than the employer's property. Lastly, the act states the division shall not adopt rules that: Infringe upon an employer's private property rights; or Conflict with the common law rights of an individual to access private property in a time of emergency.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act prevents a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) from prohibiting a rural independent pharmacy from using a private courier or a delivery service to deliver a prescription drug to a patient. A PBM is required to reimburse a rural independent pharmacy for a prescription drug in an amount not less than the national average drug acquisition cost for the dispensed prescription drug ingredients, plus pay a dispensing fee. When a PBM conducts an audit of a rural independent pharmacy and the audit results in a recoupment of more than $1,000 or a penalty of more than $1,000, the PBM must: Electronically notify the rural independent pharmacy of the rural independent pharmacy's rights to appeal at least 30 days before the recoupment of funds; If the rural independent pharmacy does not respond to the electronic notification within 30 days after the electronic notification, again electronically notify the rural independent pharmacy of the rural independent pharmacy's rights to appeal at least 30 days before the recoupment of funds; and If the rural independent pharmacy does not respond to the second electronic notification within 30 days after the second electronic notification, serve process on the rural independent pharmacy notifying of the rural independent pharmacy's rights to appeal at least 30 days before the recoupment of funds. The act allows a rural independent pharmacy to operate without being under the direct charge of a pharmacist if the initial interpretation and final evaluation of the prescription is done by a state-licensed pharmacist in person or remotely. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act extends the deadline for the office of information technology's first annual report on the statewide longitudinal data system from April 15, 2026, to September 15, 2026. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act clarifies when a teacher may conclude that an early elementary school student has a significant reading deficiency requiring remediation through a specialized approach to instruction (READ plan) based on a body of evidence that includes information in addition to the student's scores on a reading assessment. Current law requires certain parental communications in connection with a student's READ plan. The act requires the addition of specific information regarding characteristics of dyslexia, if applicable, to the parental communications. Beginning no later than the 2027-28 school year, a local education provider must either develop its own screening process for identifying early elementary school students with characteristics of dyslexia or implement a universal dyslexia screener that conforms to certain new requirements. A local education provider that implements a screener may include the screener in an interim reading assessment or administer the screener separately from the interim assessment. Either way, the screener must accurately and reliably identify students at risk of reading difficulties. If an interim reading assessment includes a screener, the assessment must meet standards for validity and reliability, encourage data-driven instructional decision making, and promote efficient administration and effective follow-up. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act extends the availability of the advanced industry investment tax credit (credit), which can be claimed by a qualified investor that makes a qualified investment in a qualified small business that is in an advanced industry, from December 31, 2026, through December 31, 2031. The act expands the definition of "qualified investment" by eliminating prohibitions against a qualified investor having more than 30% of the voting power in a qualified small business before the investor makes a qualified investment in the qualified small business and more than 49% of the voting power in a qualified small business after making a qualified investment in the qualified small business. The act changes the definition of "qualified investor" by clarifying that an entity subject to income tax may qualify as an investor; except that a C corporation, including any limited liability or other legal entity treated as a C corporation for federal and state income tax purposes, is not a qualified investor. A qualified investor may include a partner, shareholder, or beneficiary that is allocated a credit, but does not include: A person that had control of a qualified small business for 6 months preceding or following the date of the investment in the qualified small business; A founder, employee, or contractor or a spouse of a founder, employee, or contractor of a qualified small business; A person that has invested more than $50,000 in the qualified small business or owns more than 10% of the qualified small business on a fully diluted basis. The act authorizes the Colorado office of economic development (office), which administers the credit, to certify a small business as a qualified small business through October 1, 2031. A small business certified as a qualified small business must report to the office as requested to confirm the certified small business's status as a qualified small business. The office may require a qualified small business to provide information to confirm that a qualified investment has been made in the qualified small business, the intended use of the qualified investment, and the expected number of new employees that will be hired by the qualified small business as a result of the qualified investment. A qualified small business that receives a qualified investment is required to report data relevant to the impact of the credit and development of the qualified small business annually to the office for 5 years following a qualified investment. The office may assess a penalty against a qualified small business that does not meet this reporting requirement. The office may issue $4 million in credits per calendar year for the years through the 2026 calendar year for which the credit is currently available. The act decreases the cap to $2.5 million per calendar year beginning with the 2027 calendar year through the 2031 calendar year. If the qualified investor receiving a credit is a trust, the qualified investor may allocate the credit between the trust and its beneficiaries in any manner determined by the trust. The office shall issue a credit certificate to a trust beneficiary and a trust beneficiary may claim the amount indicated on the credit certificate. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Joint Technology Committee. Section 1 of the bill authorizes the joint technology committee to conduct an annual review of all rates that the office of information technology (office) charges when billing users for the office's services. Section 2 requires that budget requests submitted to the joint technology committee include: Information and responses from a request for information for any budget request related to a major information technology project; and Formal market research for any budget request that is not related to a major information technology project. Section 3 provides that money in the information technology revolving fund, which the office expends to pay the costs of consolidation and information technology maintenance and upgrades, is no longer continuously appropriated to the office and instead is subject to annual appropriation by the general assembly. Section 4 repeals the office's ability to approve procurement contracts related to information technology resources on behalf of state agencies. The office may be a party to a procurement contract related to the procurement of information technology resources for a state agency if the state agency requests that the office be a party to the contract. Section 5 provides that state agencies are not required to obtain approval from the office before commencing work on a major information technology project or planning to make significant changes to the major information technology project or budget, and makes other conforming changes. Section 6 requires certain governmental bodies to issue a request for information prior to awarding a contract related to a major information technology project, and requires that the request for information be submitted to the joint technology committee as part of any budget request related to a major information technology project. Responses to a request for information related to a contract for a major information technology project must be presented to the joint technology committee if requested by the committee, and the committee shall meet in executive session to review the responses. Section 6 also requires certain governmental bodies to conduct market research prior to awarding a contract related to an information technology project that is not a major information technology project, and requires the market research to be submitted to the joint technology committee as part of any budget request related to the project.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The bill requires allows the division of fire prevention and control (division) in the department of public safety (department) , as needed, to establish public-private agreements with one or more issue a request for qualifications from private partners by which agreements the state may allocate responsibility or risk to one or more private partners to develop and operate wildfire detection components entities. The request for qualifications must seek proposals for a detection component that can be procured as a comprehensive service provided by a vendor. The division may establish vendor agreements with vendors that submit proposals. The bill specifies criteria that a detection component must satisfy. The bill also creates the front line innovation and response efficiency fire technology cash fund ( FIRE fund) in the state treasury. The money in the FIRE fund is annually appropriated to the department to be expended by the division for the purposes of the bill utilization of fire detection response and management technologies, deployment of detection components through vendor agreements, and utilization of technological tools that enable advancement in fire detection and mitigation practices. In current law, money in the unused state-owned real property fund is continuously appropriated to the department of personnel for several purposes, including paying for public-private agreements and associated costs. Of the money that is appropriated for this purpose, the bill requires the general assembly to transfer the following amounts to the FIRE fund: For the 2025-26 state fiscal year, up to $1,000,000; For the 2026-27 state fiscal year, $2,000,000; and For the 2027-28 state fiscal year, $3,000,000. The department is required to include information concerning the division's activities under the bill in the department's annual report to the legislative subject matter committees. (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.)
For construction of multifamily, attached housing of 2 or more units, the act creates the multifamily construction incentive program (program). A builder may chose to participate in the program by: Providing a warranty that covers any defect and damage at no cost to the homeowner for specified periods; Having a third-party inspection performed on the property; and Recording a notice of election to participate in the program in the real property records before the property is offered for sale. For construction defect claims brought for the construction of housing for which the builder is a participant in the program, the act: Requires a claimant to file a certificate of review with the complaint, if the complaint is against an architect or engineer; Limits actions to claims that have resulted in: Actual damage to real or personal property; actual loss of the use of real or personal property; actual bodily injury or wrongful death; an unreasonable reduction in the capability of, or an actual failure of, a building component to perform an intended function or purpose; or an unreasonable risk of bodily injury or death to, or a threat to the life, health, or safety of, the occupants of the residential property; and Requires that a construction professional must send or deliver to the claimant an offer to settle the claim or a written response that identifies the standards that apply to the claim and explains why the defect does not require repair. For all construction defect claims, the act: Establishes a claimant's duty to mitigate an alleged construction defect and specifies how a claimant may satisfy this duty and the consequences to a claimant that fails to satisfy this duty; Requires a construction professional who is the defendant in a construction defect action to submit specified information to the claimant; Prohibits an insurer from cancelling, denying, or reducing coverage based on any claim for benefits covered by an existing liability insurance policy issued to a construction professional based on the construction professional's offer to repair or settle a construction defect claim; Tolls the statute of limitations or repose during a claimant's mitigation of an alleged construction defect; Increases the percentage of owners that an executive board of a unit owners' association (executive board) must obtain approval from before initiating a construction defect claim on behalf of the owners from a majority to 65%; and Requires an executive board that is successful in a construction defect claim or settlement to first use the net monetary damages or net proceeds received as a result of the claim to repair the construction defect. The act requires a local government to establish a fast-track approval process for an application for for-sale multifamily condominium projects in order to qualify for assistance from the state affordable housing fund. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)