Sen. Kerry Donovan

The voluntary contribution to the Colorado nongame conservation and wildlife restoration cash fund that was authorized to appear on the state income tax return from January 1, 2017, to January 1, 2022, was scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2023. The act extends the voluntary contribution indefinitely. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) encourages communities, parks, and protected areas to preserve and protect dark skies by various means, including an international dark sky places program that offers designations for 5 types of dark sky places. The act requires the Colorado tourism office (office) to establish the Colorado designated dark sky designation technical assistance grant program (program) to: Provide technical assistance grants to applicants seeking direct support from the IDA for activities related to international dark sky designation; and Provide general education and outreach about dark skies and specifically promote responsible and sustainable tourism opportunities in designated dark sky places in the state. The office may contract with the IDA and the Colorado chapter of the IDA to help the office develop its program policies, evaluate grant applications, and make recommendations to the office regarding which applicants should receive grant awards and what the amount of each award should be. The office is also required, on its own, in consultation with the IDA and the Colorado chapter of the IDA, or by contracting with the IDA and the Colorado chapter of the IDA, to provide general education and outreach and to promote tourism. To fund the program, the act requires $35,000 to be transferred from the general fund to the Colorado travel and tourism additional source fund, which current law continuously appropriates to the office. On or before November 1, 2023, the office is required to submit a report detailing the expenditure of the money dedicated to the program to the house of representatives business affairs and labor committee and the senate business, labor, and technology committee, or their successor committees. The report must specify the grant-supported actions taken in furtherance of designating new dark sky places and indicate how many program grant recipients have opened and maintained an active case file with the IDA or have had a community or other place certified by the IDA as a designated dark sky place. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires new and amended state statutes that enumerate or define local government entities or agencies that are eligible for state grant or benefit programs to also designate tribal nations with jurisdiction in Colorado as eligible recipients if legal and appropriate. The legislative council staff is required to submit a report to the legislative council by December 1, 2022, identifying state grant programs in statute and whether those programs include tribal governments as eligible recipients. The office of the Colorado commission on Indian affairs is required, in consultation with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, to submit a report to the legislative council by March 1, 2023, identifying opportunities for tribal governments to be included in the operations or programs of the state as a partner, assessing whether the Colorado commission on Indian affairs can facilitate or provide those opportunities, and recommending other ways for the state to facilitate or provide those opportunities. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act creates the Colorado land-based tribe behavioral health services grant program (grant program) to provide funding to one or more Colorado land-based tribes to support capital expenditure for the renovation or building of a behavioral health facility to provide behavioral and mental health services. The grant program repeals on July 1, 2027. The act appropriates $5 million from the behavioral and mental health cash fund to the department of human services for use by the behavioral health administration. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act appropriates the following amounts from the Colorado water conservation board (CWCB) construction fund to the CWCB or the division of water resources in the department of natural resources for the following projects: Continuation of the satellite monitoring system, $380,000; Continuation of the Colorado floodplain map modernization program, $500,000; Continuation of the weather modification permitting program, $350,000; Continuation of technical assistance for federal cost-share programs, $300,000; Continuation of the Arkansas river decision support system, $500,000; Continuation of the Colorado Mesonet project, $150,000; Continuation of the water forecasting partnership project, $450,000; Support of modeling and data analyses for the upper Colorado river commission's interstate planning and negotiation efforts, $200,000; Performance of comprehensive dam safety evaluations for the reservoir enlargement assessment project, $250,000; Support of the Platte river recovery implementation program, $3,800,000; and Support of Republican river matters related to meeting compact compliance obligations, $2,000,000. The act appropriates $8,200,000 from the water plan implementation cash fund to the CWCB for grant-making for projects that assist in implementing the state water plan. The act directs the state treasurer to transfer the following amounts on July 1, 2022: Up to $2,000,000 from the CWCB construction fund to the litigation fund; and $1,000,000 from the CWCB construction fund to the water plan implementation cash fund. The act authorizes the CWCB to make loans of up to $13,130,000 from the CWCB construction fund to the town of Breckenridge to rehabilitate the Goose Pasture Tarn dam. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

On or before February 28, 2023, the state archivist is required to submit to the state capitol building advisory committee a proposal for the creation of a permanent public display of the original Colorado constitution in the state capitol building. The proposal must also include a proposal for displaying the original Colorado constitution in other state government buildings. The state archivist is required to collaborate with History Colorado to ensure adherence to the best practices when presenting the original Colorado constitution in the existing environmental conditions of the state capitol and other government buildings. History Colorado is also required to advise and consult with the state archivist regarding the creation of an appropriate display that will safeguard the original draft of the Colorado constitution. The state capitol building advisory committee is required to evaluate and consider whether to approve the proposal in accordance with the criteria for placing displays within the state capitol building and in accordance with best practices for displaying historic documents in a manner that safeguards the documents against deterioration. The state archivist, in partnership with history Colorado, is required to create an online exhibition of the Colorado constitution. The exhibition must include educational opportunities and history and must ensure that the electronic copy of each version of the Colorado constitution is available to the public in a searchable format through the website of the office of the state archives and history Colorado. The state archivist may contract with an online exhibit design company to determine the best practices when presenting the Colorado constitution in an educational format that is easily accessible and user-friendly for the general population of the state. The exhibit design company may coordinate as necessary with the state archivist, history Colorado, the office of legislative legal services, the secretary of state's office, and other relevant government agencies in the creation of the online exhibition. The state archivist, in partnership with history Colorado, is also required to create opportunities to provide updated physical copies of the constitution or other educational opportunities related to the updated physical copy of the Colorado constitution within state offices. The state archivist and history Colorado are required to ensure that the constitution will be easily accessible and user-friendly for the general population of the state. The state archives is authorized to solicit, accept, and expend bequests, gifts, grants, or donations for the purposes of the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act authorizes the custodian of public records to deny access to records containing information that reveals the location or could be used to determine the location of an individual animal, a group of animals, a plant species of greatest conservation need, or an individual animal's or a group of animals' breeding or nesting habitat. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act defines a "controlled environment agricultural facility" (CEA facility) as a nonresidential structure and related equipment and appurtenances that combines engineering, horticultural science, and computer management techniques to optimize hydroponics, plant quality, and food production efficiency from the land's water for human or livestock consumption. The sole purpose of growing crops in a CEA facility is to obtain a monetary profit from the wholesale of plant-based food for human or livestock consumption. Commencing January 1, 2023, for property tax purposes: The definition of "agricultural and livestock products" includes crops grown within a CEA facility in a raw or unprocessed state for human or livestock consumption excluding marijuana or any other nonfood crop agricultural products; The definition of "agricultural equipment" that is used on the farm or ranch or in a CEA facility includes any personal property within a facility, whether attached to a building or not, that is capable of being removed from the facility, and is used in direct connection with the operation of a CEA facility, which facility is used solely for planting, growing, or harvesting crops in a raw or unprocessed state; and On and after January 1, 2023, but prior to January 2, 2028, agricultural equipment that is used in any CEA facility is exempt from the levy and collection of property tax. Under section 3 of the act, a CEA facility is valued for assessment purposes as all other agricultural property using the cost, market, and income approaches to value. If the sole use of the CEA facility is not the growing of crops for human or livestock consumption, then the property is classified and valued for assessment purposes based on actual use. Under section 3, as part of the personal declaration that the owner of a CEA facility signs and returns to the county assessor, the act requires the owner to include an affidavit executed by the owner in which the owner affirms that the CEA facility meets the requirements for such a facility as specified in the act. If the crop grown in the CEA facility is hemp, the owner must also include a copy of a license to verify to the assessor that the crop is not marijuana . Section 3 is repealed, effective July 1, 2029.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill establishes that conducting investigations of reporting on the investigation of wildland fires in the state to the wildfire matters review committee is a duty of the director of the division of fire prevention and control within the department of public safety and makes an appropriation creates the fire origin and cause investigation fund to fund such investigations. (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.)

Water Resources Review Committee. Section 1 of the bill prohibits a purchaser of agricultural water rights that are represented by shares in a mutual ditch company from engaging in investment water speculation. Investment water speculation is the purchase of agricultural water rights that are represented by shares in a mutual ditch company in the state with the intent, at the time of purchase, to profit from an increase in the water's value in a subsequent transaction or by receiving payment from another person for nonuse of all or a portion of the water subject to the water right. On or after January 1, 2023, the state engineer or the state engineer's designee (state engineer) may investigate complaints of investment water speculation. If a purchaser holds, or by virtue of a proposed sale or transfer, will hold at least a minimum percent of the shares in a mutual ditch company, about which minimum percent the mutual ditch company must determine and notify the state engineer on or before December 31, 2022, there is a rebuttable presumption that the purchaser is engaged in investment water speculation. The state engineer may fine a purchaser up to $10,000 for a violation and require, for a period of up to 2 years after a fine has been imposed, that any sale or transfer of shares in a mutual ditch company to the purchaser be subject to approval by the state engineer. If the state engineer believes that a complaint is frivolous or was filed for the purpose of harassing a seller or purchaser, the state engineer may refer the matter to the attorney general's office for the attorney general or the attorney general's designee (attorney general) to investigate and, if the attorney general determines that enforcement is warranted, bring a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction alleging the complaint is frivolous or was filed for the purpose of harassment. If the attorney general prevails in the civil action, the court may fine a complainant up to $1,000, prohibit the complainant from filing any complaints alleging investment water speculation for up to one year, and grant attorney fees and court costs. Section 3 authorizes the attorney general to bring a civil action against a complainant if the state engineer refers the matter to the attorney general.Section 2 requires the board of directors of a mutual ditch company to determine the minimum percent of agricultural water rights held by all of the shareholders in the mutual ditch company that a purchaser holds or, by virtue of the sale or transfer of shares in the mutual ditch company, will hold that creates a rebuttable presumption that the purchaser is engaging in investment water speculation.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)