Earlier this week we published part I of our series providing summaries of the interim committee bills that the Legislative Council approved at its meeting last Friday, November 15. Of the 20 committees that were authorized to meet during the 2019 interim, 15 recommended bills to the Legislative Council.

Earlier, we summarized bills approved from seven of those committees. In today’s article, we summarize bills recommended by the remaining eight committees.

Pension Review Commission

The Pension Review Commission met twice during the 2019 interim for an annual briefing from the Public Employees’ Retirement Association (PERA) and from the Fire and Police Pension Association (FPPA).  The Commission also discussed matters regarding PERA and considered one bill recommended by the FPPA Board of Directors (Board) for introduction during the 2020 legislative session. The Commission recommended that bill to the Legislative Council, which approved the bill for introduction.

Bill A: Concerning modifications to the pension plans administered by the fire and police pension association.
The bill modifies the method by which the local government contribution to state-assisted old hire pension plans is calculated to more precisely set contribution requirements as the plans’ liabilities decrease. The bill modifies the statewide defined benefit plan as follows:

• Codifies increases in the member contribution rates that were approved in 2014 and are already in effect;
• Increases the employer contribution rate by 4%, to be implemented over eight years with an increase of .5% a year for a total employer contribution rate of 12% of salary;
• Allows a member of the statewide defined benefit plan to retire with an unreduced retirement benefit if the member is at least 50 years old and has a combined age and years of service that is equal to at least 80. To cover the cost of the new full retirement benefit eligibility, increases the employer contribution rate, in addition to all other increases in the employer contribution rate, by 1% of base salary to be implemented over two years.
• To conform to the current plan benefits, eliminates the cap on a member’s highest average salary, which was previously eliminated by an amendment to the plan approved by election of the members and employers;
• Changes the nature of the separate retirement accounts in the stabilization reserve account to defined contribution accounts, subject to self-direction by the member. In addition, the bill requires the board to transfer the balances of the separate retirement accounts in the stabilization reserve account to defined contribution accounts by a specified date.
• Authorizes the board to increase the member and employer contribution rates in equal amounts above the rates established pursuant to law or eliminate an increase in the member and employer contribution rates if specified conditions are satisfied, including approval by members and employers at an election proposing such increase or decrease;
• Authorizes the board to set a continuing rate of contribution for all members who are active on the effective date of coverage to fund benefits to ensure that the affiliating employers’ coverage does not have an adverse financial impact on the actuarial soundness of the plan; and
• Authorizes the board to decrease the continuing rate of contribution when it determines that the rate is higher than what is necessary to pay the costs of the benefits of members who are employees of employers who rejoined the plan.

The bill modifies the death and disability plan by increasing the maximum contribution rate in 2021 to 3% of salary and authorizing the board to increase the contribution every year by up to .2% of the member’s salary.

For members hired before January 1, 1997, the state previously payed the costs for those members’ participation in the death and disability plan. In the mid-1990s, the general assembly determined that the costs associated with death and disability benefits should be covered by local governments. The general assembly made a lump-sum payment to cover the costs of participation in the death and disability plan for members hired before January 1, 1997, and implemented a system to cover the costs of death and disability benefits for members hired thereafter. The FPPA recently determined that the amount of the lump-sum payment from the state was insufficient to cover the death and disability benefits for members hired before January 1, 1997. The bill requires the general assembly to make an additional lump-sum payment to the FPPA to fund the unfunded liabilities of the death and disability benefits for those members.

To review the bill recommended by the Pension Review Commission, please visit the commission’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Nicole Myers.

School Safety Committee

The School Safety Interim Study Committee met four times during the 2019 interim to study issues relating to school safety, emergency response planning, the prevention of threats to schools, and programs and methods for identifying and monitoring students in crisis. The committee heard testimony on a wide range of issues: School security, mental health challenges, safe2tell, the state auditor’s report on school safety programs, and many more. The committee requested the drafting of 11 bills and one resolution and voted to advance five bills and the resolution to Legislative Council. All of the recommended legislation received favorable votes from the Legislative Council.

Bill A: Concerning excused absences in public schools resulting from behavioral health concerns.
Current law requires school districts to adopt a written policy setting forth the school district’s attendance requirements. The bill requires the policy to include excused absences for behavioral health concerns.

Bill B: Concerning the need for services for juveniles with severe behavioral health conditions in the context of school safety, including residential treatment.
The bill instructs the School Safety Resource Center (center) in the Department of Public Safety to convene a working group of stakeholders to assess the needs of school districts with respect to the adequacy and availability of residential mental health treatment for children and youth who are identified by school personnel as having severe behavioral or mental health disorders and potential ways to resolve these needs. The working group must gather information on the availability, need, and cost associated with residential treatment services for children and youth in Colorado. The center shall use the data to prepare a report and make any legislative recommendations to address the mental health needs of children and youth in Colorado. The center must present the report and any legislative recommendations as part of its presentation to its committee of reference at a hearing held pursuant to the “State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act” in January 2021.

Bill C: Concerning expanding behavioral health training for kindergarten through twelfth grade educators.
The bill requires the Department of Education (department) to offer a train-the-trainer program (program) designed to improve school culture, promote youth behavioral and mental health, and prepare attendees to teach a youth behavioral and mental health training course. The program must include evidence-based instruction on, and prepare an attendee to teach, a youth behavioral and mental health training course. Participation in the program by local education providers is voluntary. The department may enter into an agreement with an organization to provide the program. The department must annually evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The general assembly must annually appropriate up to $1 million for the program. The program is repealed June 30, 2024.

Bill D: Concerning enhancements to the safe2tell program.
Under current law, the safe2tell program must provide awareness and educational materials to preschools. The bill repeals this requirement.

The bill requires the safe2tell program to:

• Devise a process to direct all calls and texts initially to a crisis operator and then route non-crisis calls and texts appropriately;
• Align the process and procedures for tips received via all communication methods; and
• Conduct an annual advertising campaign regarding awareness, use, and misuse of safe2tell.

The bill allows the attorney general to disclose to law enforcement personnel any materials or information obtained through operation of the safe2tell program if the attorney general reasonably deems the disclosure necessary to prevent imminent physical harm or serious bodily injury to one or more persons.

Bill E: Concerning creating a multi-agency working group to address school safety.
The bill creates the Colorado interagency working group on school safety (working group) to enhance school safety through the cost-effective use of public resources. The working group consists of 14 voting members, including four legislative members. The bill describes the working group’s duties and areas of study. 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 bill repeals the working group on September 1, 2023.

Resolution A: Concerning the support of the “I Love U Guys” foundation.
The joint resolution highlights the extraordinary work the “I Love U Guys” foundation is doing for school safety and provides the General Assembly’s support for the foundation’s work.

To review the bills and the resolution recommended by the School Safety Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Michael Dohr.

Transportation Legislative Review Committee

During the 2019 interim, the Transportation Legislation Review Committee held two hearings at the State Capitol to get reports and make bill recommendations. In accordance with the committee’s charge, the committee also toured mountain areas and western Colorado. During the tour, the committee met with:

• Park County Senior Coalition;
• Breckenridge Free Ride and Summit Stage;
• Loma Port of Entry;
• CDOT regarding Bustang;
• ECO Transit;
• I-70 Coalition;
• Clear Creek County Transportation; and
• Regional Transportation District (RTD).

At the last committee hearing on October 28, the committee voted to recommend five bills to the Legislative Council, all of which were approved.

Bill A: Concerning license plates:
This bill creates a license plate reissuance process and changes Colorado’s license plate color scheme on January 2021. The new scheme will display white letters and numbers over a background of dark green mountains and a white sky. Starting in 2021, the license plates expire when an owner transfers title or interest in a vehicle, so the plates may not be transferred to another vehicle. Owners of expired license plates will pay any associated fees with the issuance of new license plates, but the Department of Transportation (department) may not recover any incremental costs from producing or distributing the new license plates.

The bill applies to all Class C motor vehicles, except for horseless carriages. The department must exhaust its stock of current license plates before issuing license plates with the new color scheme.

Bill B: Concerning a requirement that the high-performance transportation enterprise include information about its public-private partnerships in its annual report to the legislative committees of the house of representatives and the senate that have jurisdiction over transportation.
By February 15, 2021, this bill requires the high-performance transportation enterprise (HPTE) to include the following information for each public-private partnership in its report:

• A summary of HPTE’s processes and activities leading up to the public-private partnership, including information on the public comment and selection processes; and
• A summary of the major financial, performance, and length-of-term provisions in actual or anticipated public-private partnership agreements.

Bill C: Concerning the acquisition of drivers’ licenses by certain persons in the custody of the state department of human services.
This bill creates a grant program within the Department of Human Services (department) to reimburse counties for the cost of driver education classes for 15- to 17-year-old youth in foster care. The state board of human services must promulgate rules to administer the program. Each county that receives a grant must submit an annual report to the department, and the department must submit an annual summary report to the General Assembly. The program repeals on September 1, 2030, pending a sunset review.

The bill clarifies that county departments of human or social services are not liable for any injury that may occur while a youth in foster care is receiving driving instruction. The bill also clarifies that a certified court order is sufficient documentation for eligible foster youth to apply for driver licenses.

Bill D: Concerning permanent authorization for third-party providers to perform vehicle identification number verification inspections for commercial vehicles.
Under current law, the Colorado state patrol administers a pilot program that allows a third-party transportation organization to perform vehicle identification number (VIN) verifications on commercial vehicles. This bill makes the program permanent.

Bill E: Concerning the creation of a single annual fleet overweight permit for a commercial motor vehicle fleet that includes both vehicles that have a quad axle grouping and vehicle combinations with a trailer that has two or three axles.
Under current law, owners of commercial motor-vehicle fleets may apply to the department of transportation for two separate annual non-interstate overweight divisible load permits: quad axle and two- or three-axle trailer. The bill combines the two permits and creates one annual fleet permit for non-interstate overweight divisible load quad axles and two- or three-axle trailers.

To review the bills recommended by the Transportation Legislative Review Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Jason Gelender or Jery Payne.

Wildfire Matters Review Committee

The Wildfire Matters Review Committee is charged with reviewing and proposing legislation or other policy changes related to wildfire prevention, mitigation, and related matters, including public safety and forest health issues. The Committee met three times during the 2019 interim and heard presentations from representatives of a wide variety of entities involved in wildfire prevention, mitigation, and response. Among other presentations, the committee heard from the Division of Fire Prevention and Control within the Department of Public Safety and the federal Bureau of Land Management about state and federal efforts to respond to wildfires. The committee heard from the Colorado State Forest Service and the West Region Wildfire Council about managing the state’s forests. The committee also heard about new technologies used for early detection of wildfires, insurance coverage for wildfires, and the benefits of improving residences to protect against wildfires. The committee heard from the Colorado Resiliency Office within the Department of Local Affairs about its work with local entities to aid in the recovery from natural disasters.

The committee recommended five bills to the Legislative Council for consideration in the 2020 legislative session, all of which were approved.

Bill A: Concerning modifications to the “Forest Restoration and Wildfire Risk Mitigation Act”.
The bill modifies the forest restoration and wildfire mitigation grant program in the Department of Higher Education. Under current law, the grant program’s share of a project cannot exceed 50% of the total cost of the project. The bill allows a project to receive up to 75% of its costs through the grant program if the project is located in an area with fewer economic resources, thereby reducing the applicant’s share to 25 percent. Additionally, the bill:

• Directs the Colorado State Forest Service to establish a policy that specifies the criteria by which a project will satisfy the requirement of being in an area with fewer economic resources;
• Expands the list of eligible recipients to include fire protection districts and nonprofit organizations engaged in firefighting or fire management activities; and
• Extends the grant program repeal date from September 1, 2022, to September 1, 2029.

Bill B: Concerning surplus military vehicles.
The bill clarifies that a surplus military vehicle is not included in the definition of an off-highway vehicle if a municipality, county, or fire protection district uses the surplus military vehicle for firefighting efforts, including mitigation.

Bill C: Concerning the inclusion of firefighters employed by the department of public safety in the division of fire prevention and control in certain employee benefits.
The bill makes benefit changes for Division of Fire Prevention and Control employees in the Department of Public Safety, including insurance for certain heart conditions and cancers, as well as pension benefits.

Bill D: Concerning programs to reduce wildfire risk through outreach to people experiencing homelessness.
The bill creates the wildfire risk reduction through homeless outreach grant program in the Department of Local Affairs (department). The program awards grants to conduct outreach to individuals experiencing homelessness to reduce wildfire risks in the wildland-urban interface. The department is directed to convene a working group to identify emerging, promising, and best practices for conducting this type of outreach and to issue grants consistent with the identified practices.

Bill E: Concerning wildfire mitigation assistance for landowners.
The bill creates the wildfire mitigation resources and best practices grant program in the Department of Local Affairs. Local governments, special districts, tribal agencies or programs, faith-based organizations, and nonprofit organizations are eligible for grant funding to conduct outreach to landowners to inform them of resources available for wildfire mitigation and best practices for wildfire mitigation.

To review the bills recommended by the Wildfire Matters Review Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Bob Lackner.

Water Resources Review Committee

The Water Resources Review Committee (WRRC) met five times during the 2019 interim, including one meeting in Steamboat Springs held during the annual Colorado Water Congress summer conference, and toured the South Platte River basin in northeastern Colorado with the Colorado Foundation for Water Education. The WRRC heard presentations on a variety of water issues, including various basin-specific issues; proposed water infrastructure projects; the instream flow program; the status of Colorado River compact compliance, including proposed demand management programs; water reuse, including the use of graywater; and Colorado’s water plan.

At its final hearing on October 24, the WRRC considered six bills, recommending four of them to the Legislative Council. The Legislative Council approved all four bills for introduction in the 2020 legislative session.

Bill A: Concerning the inclusion of public input in the development of a state water resources demand management program.
The bill requires the Colorado Water Conservation Board and the WRRC to involve the public and provide opportunities for public comment, using procedures similar to those used for initial adoption of the state water plan, before adopting a final or significantly amended water resources demand management program as part of the Colorado upper basin states’ drought contingency plan.

Bill B: Concerning a requirement that the university of Colorado study potential uses of emerging technologies to more effectively manage Colorado’s water supply.
The bill declares that new technologies, such as blockchain, telemetry, improved sensors, and advanced aerial observation platforms, can improve monitoring, management, conservation, and trading of water and enhance confidence in the reliability of data underlying water rights transactions. To advance the potential use of these new technologies, the bill:

• Authorizes and directs the university of Colorado, in collaboration with the Colorado water institute at Colorado state university, to conduct feasibility studies and pilot deployments of these new technologies to improve water management in Colorado; and
• Appropriates $40,000 from the general fund, contingent on the university of Colorado’s receipt of a matching $40,000 in gifts, grants, and donations, for the purpose of funding the studies and pilot programs.

Bill C: Concerning the inspection of water wells.
The bill requires the state engineer to employ a minimum of four water well inspectors in the state’s water well inspection program.

The bill requires the State Board of Water Well Construction and Pump Installation Contractors, on or before November 1, 2020, to promulgate rules for identifying high-risk water wells that should be prioritized for inspection. Thereafter, the state engineer shall use the rules to identify high-risk water wells and shall prioritize the inspection of high-risk water wells.

The bill clarifies that money in the well inspection cash fund shall be appropriated to and expended by the state engineer only for the well inspection program.

Bill D: Concerning a study to consider the strengthening of the prohibition on speculative appropriations of water.
Current law specifies that an appropriation of water cannot be based on speculation, as evidenced by specified circumstances. The bill requires the executive director of the Department of Natural Resources to convene a work group to explore ways to strengthen current anti-speculation law and to report to the WRRC by August 15, 2021, regarding any recommended changes.

To review the bills recommended by the Water Resources Review Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Thomas Morris.

Investor-owned Utility Review Interim Study Committee

The Investor-owned Utility Review Interim Study Committee was created to examine the programs and practices of electric investor-owned utilities (IOUs) in Colorado, with a particular focus on issues involving consumer choice and affordability in electric supply. The committee met twice during the 2019 interim, once on August 22 to receive testimony from a variety of individuals and groups, and once on October 3 to take more testimony and consider proposed legislation. Both meetings were held at the State Capitol.

At the October 3 meeting, the following three bills were proposed and he committee recommended all three to the Legislative Council. The Legislative Council approved all three bills at its November 15 meeting, so they will be introduced during the 2020 legislative session.

Bill A: Concerning investigations by the public utilities commission to evaluate the implications of allowing community choice of wholesale electric supply in Colorado through the vehicle of community choice energy authorities.
The bill directs the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to evaluate the viability of the wholesale, opt-out model of community choice energy (CCE) in Colorado. CCE is defined as a mechanism that allows cities, counties, or groups of cities and counties, to combine their purchasing power and choose alternative electricity suppliers while the IOU continues to own and operate the transmission and distribution system. The PUC is directed to study CCE through a third-party feasibility study and an investigatory docket.

Bill B: Concerning the stabilization of state funding for energy efficiency improvement programs.
Beginning in FY 2020-21, the bill establishes conditional annual transfers from the general fund to both the energy outreach Colorado low-income energy assistance fund and the Colorado energy office low-income energy assistance fund. The transfers take place if the amount of severance tax revenue transferred to either fund in a given year falls below $1.0 million. The amount transferred to either fund is 75 percent of the difference between $1.0 million and the amount of severance tax received for the year. The conditional general fund transfers are authorized for four years and are repealed on September 1, 2024.

Bill C: Concerning increased consumer protections for customers of investor-owned utilities.
Bill C requires the PUC to collect information from utilities on medical exemptions from tiered electricity rates; adopt standard practices for gas and electric utilities to follow when disconnecting service due to nonpayment; and conduct a proceeding to evaluate a policy of requiring public utilities to report positive information to credit reporting agencies. The bill also prohibits public utilities from employing certain rate structures without obtaining opt-in from customers.

To review the bills recommended by the Investor-owned Utility Review Interim Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Duane Gall.

Early Childhood and School Readiness Legislative Commission

The Early Childhood and School Readiness Legislative Commission met four times during the 2019 interim. The commission heard presentations from state departments, early childhood professionals, members of the nonprofit and advocacy communities, and members of the public on a wide range of subjects related to early childhood and school readiness, including:

• Early care and education access, affordability, quality, and workforce;
• Early childhood mental health;
• Child maltreatment and fatality prevention recommendations;
• School readiness, literacy, preschool, and full-day kindergarten; and
• Community-based resource centers.

The commission considered four bills at its October 31 meeting, all of which it voted to move forward to the Legislative Council for consideration. The Legislative Council approved all four bills.

Bill A: Concerning measures to support the early childhood educator workforce.
The bill makes several changes to state law related to early childhood workforce programs, including requiring that:

• The Department of Human Services (CDHS) recognize prior experience in the educator credentialing system;
• CDHS create a pathway for programs to be licensed while aspiring educators pursue a credential;
• CDHS and the Department of Education (CDE) align the early childhood credential system, educator licensing system, and the childcare program licensing, and report on the current supply and future need for qualified early childhood educators;
• CDHS, CDE, and the Department of Higher Education develop resources to increase concurrent enrollment opportunities and support career pathways that allow students to serve as early childhood educators;
• CDHS establish the early care and education recruitment and retention grant and scholarship program for individuals pursuing a career in early care and education, nonprofit entities administering a similar scholarship program, or licensed early care and education programs; and
• The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment establish the early childhood educator apprenticeship program to create pathways into the early childhood profession.

Bill B: Concerning the creation of the “Helping Others Manage Early (HOME) Childhood Act”.
The bill requires CDHS to issue a request for proposals to implement a statewide public awareness campaign. The campaign must be in place no later than the 2021-22 academic year. The public awareness campaign must ensure that people connected to early childhood education are aware of:

• What is expected from early childhood education;
• What a child is expected to know by kindergarten; and
• What resources are available for early childhood education.

The bill also requires CDHS, in collaboration with CDE and the early childhood councils, to offer two types of workshops throughout the state, multicounty workshops focused on professional development in the early childhood education field and regional workshops focused on how to open a child care center or preschool.

Bill C: Concerning state assistance to increase quality levels in early childhood education programs.
The bill requires CDHS to provide technical assistance and financial incentives to help early childhood care providers with a Colorado Shines quality rating advance to or maintain at least a level-three rating. Early childhood councils must assist CDHS by providing local community outreach and engagement strategies. Under current law, early childhood councils that apply for school-readiness quality improvement funding must submit a school readiness plan that includes targeting or recruiting programs rated as level two or higher, or that are actively working towards a level-two rating but face demonstrated hardship. The bill requires that plans instead target or recruit programs that are rated at level one or higher. If an early childhood council received funding prior to FY 2020-21, the council must amend their plan.

Bill D: Concerning creation of a statewide program of early childhood mental health consultation.
The bill requires CDHS to develop and implement a statewide voluntary program of early childhood mental health consultation by July 1, 2022. The program is intended to increase the number of qualified mental health consultants supporting professionals who work with young children and to give guidance and support to families, caregivers, and providers in addressing the healthy social-emotional developmental needs of children through age eight. In developing the program, CDHS must create a model of consultation, a professional development plan, and a certification process for the consultants, as well as a data collection and information system to analyze implementation and outcomes. CDHS and the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing must also explore funding options for the program and report their findings to the Joint Budget Committee by January 1, 2022.

To review the bills recommended by the Early Childhood and School Readiness Legislative Commission, please visit the commission’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Jane Ritter.

Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal Justice System

The Legislative Oversight Committee Concerning the Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal and Juvenile Justice Systems met three times during 2019 to monitor and examine the work, findings, and recommendations of the statutorily created advisory task force. Specifically, the committee:

• Received updates on the activities of the advisory task force and its subcommittees;
• Discussed re-authorization of the legislative oversight committee and associated advisory task force; and
• Considered legislation recommended by the advisory task force.

The advisory task force met monthly through 2019 and focused on the issues of housing, data and information sharing, and diversion, as those topics relate to persons with mental health disorders who are involved in the criminal and juvenile justice systems.

At the Oversight Committee’s October 10 meeting it considered five bills, all of which it voted to move forward to the Legislative Council for consideration, all of which were subsequently approved.

Bill A: Concerning eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits for workers who are exposed to psychologically traumatic events.
Current law defines a “psychologically traumatic event” for determining workers’ compensation benefit eligibility to include visual exposure to death or serious bodily injury within a worker’s usual experience. The bill adds audible exposure to death or serious bodily injury within a worker’s usual experience to the definition of “psychologically traumatic event”.

Bill B: Concerning the implementation of recommendations from the legislative oversight committee concerning the treatment of persons with mental health disorders in the criminal and juvenile justice systems regarding juveniles who have committed sex offenses.
Under current law, an adult or juvenile convicted of certain sex offenses must be placed on the Colorado sex offender registry. The bill places fewer convicted juveniles on the registry. More specifically, the bill removes the requirement of registration for juveniles who relocate to Colorado if the juvenile’s duty to register in another state has been terminated by court order. The bill also eliminates the requirements of lifetime registration for an adult who has more than one adjudication as a juvenile. Further, it expands the discretion of judges not to require juveniles to register as sex offenders if an evaluator recommends exemption and the juvenile is otherwise statutorily eligible. Additionally, the bill allows for juveniles adjudicated for multiple sex offenses to petition to deregister, as well as for “lookbacks” by courts to remove someone from the registry, or add someone, depending on new information. Lastly, the measure partially seals the juvenile list from the public and limits access to law enforcement, probation, and parole personnel, the division of child welfare in the department of human services, and victims of an offense.

Bill C: Concerning programs to build statewide capacity to access supportive housing services.
The bill establishes new grant programs within the Division of Housing in the Department of Local Affairs. Specifically, the bill designates grant programs for supportive housing services to individuals in underserved communities with behavioral, mental health, or substance abuse disorders who have been involved in the criminal justice system. The grant programs include funding for: pre-development for creating supportive housing interventions; supportive housing and homelessness prevention; training and technical assistance for supportive housing; and homelessness data integration and resource collection.

Bill D: Concerning the development of a strategic plan to implement a trusted interoperability platform.
The bill creates the trusted interoperability Platform Advisory Committee in the Department of Public Safety. The advisory committee is charged with developing a strategic plan to implement a trusted interoperability platform that is capable of securely exchanging information between criminal and juvenile justice systems and community health agencies. The bill outlines that the advisory committee is to consist of 11 members from various agencies, and the plan must be submitted to the General Assembly by September 1, 2021.

Bill E – Concerning the implementation of recommendations from the legislative oversight committee concerning the treatment of persons with mental health disorders in the criminal and juvenile justice systems regarding juveniles who have committed sex offenses.
The bill extends the repeal date for the Legislative Oversight Committee and the associated advisory task force from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2023. The bill decreases the membership on the task force by four members and clarifies the roles and additional duties of both oversight and task force committee members. The bill includes funding for task force support, to be provided by Legislative Council Staff.

To review the bills recommended by the Treatment of Persons with Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal Justice System, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Jane Ritter.

The General Assembly approved 20 legislative study committees to meet and recommend bills during the 2019 interim. The deadline for most of the committees to approve bills for consideration by the Legislative Council was November 4. The Legislative Council met last Friday, November 15, and considered bills recommended by 15 of those interim committees. This week we will provide a summary of the bills that the Legislative Council approved for introduction during the 2020 legislative session.

For more information on interim committees generally and how they operate, see “Interim Committees: Just the Facts, Ma’am“, posted 7/21/2017.

Energy Legislation Review Interim Study Committee

The Energy Legislation Review Interim Study Committee met four times over the interim and toured a number of facilities throughout the state including a wind project; oil and gas facilities; a wastewater reclamation facility; a generation station; a hydroelectric facility; and a net-zero, all electric community. The committee heard from a number of retail electric providers, renewable energy companies, oil and gas policy groups, state regulators, and county commissioners. The committee initially requested the drafting of six bills, one of which was withdrawn before the hearing at which bill drafts were considered, one of which was withdrawn at the hearing at which bill drafts were considered, and three of which the committee voted to recommend to Legislative Council for introduction. The Legislative Council approved all three of the recommended bills as follows:

Bill A: Concerning the valuation of property used to store electricity.
The bill ensures that clean energy resources and energy storage systems used to store electricity are assessed for purposes of property tax valuation in the same manner that renewable energy facility property is assessed.

Bill B: Concerning the establishment of a statewide standard for the sale of biodiesel‑blended diesel fuel in Colorado.
This bill establishes a statewide requirement starting in 2021 that all diesel fuel sold or offered for sale in Colorado between June 1 and September 15 of a given year contain at least 5% biodiesel, which increases to 10% biodiesel in 2023. The air quality control commission, in consultation with the director of the division of oil and public safety, must establish through rulemaking a waiver process for the biodiesel‑blending requirement and require labeling of biodiesel­-blended fuel to reflect the percentage of biodiesel included in the blended fuel.

Bill C: Concerning the transmission of renewable energy through transmission lines that cross property subject to a conservation easement.
The bill authorizes the installation and maintenance of electric transmission lines that transmit renewable energy across land that is subject to a conservation easement if the installation and maintenance is consistent with the conservation purposes of the conservation easement.

To review the bills recommended by the Energy Legislation Review Interim Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Jennifer Berman. 

Making Higher Education Attainable Interim Study Committee

The Making Higher Education Attainable Interim Study Committee met five times during the 2019 interim, including tours of Emily Griffith Technical College in Denver and each of the three institutions of higher education at the Auraria Higher Education Campus. The committee heard testimony on a number of subjects, including the costs of higher education, state funding related to higher education, student degree and program completion, student debt, and programs and counseling that help prepare students for postsecondary education. The committee requested that staff draft eight bills, three of which were ultimately recommended to the Legislative Council. All three bills were approved by the Legislative Council.

Bill A: Concerning changes to the continuing administration of the Colorado opportunity scholarship initiative, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation.
This bill amends provisions relating to the Colorado opportunity scholarship initiative, including:

• Removing the definition of “tuition assistance” and replacing it with a definition for “financial assistance” that is tied to cost of attendance, as defined in the bill;
• Removing the statutory restriction that not more than 10% of money in the fund in a fiscal year may be awarded to state agencies and nonprofit organizations for student success and support services and for other services, and the requirement that a certain percentage of the money awarded for student success and support services and for other services be awarded to nongovernmental entities;
• Removing the requirement that the initiative be administered by existing personnel; and
• Changing the current provision that, to the extent practicable, scholarships must be equally distributed between students who are eligible for federal PELL grants and students within a certain range of income. Instead, the bill requires scholarships to be equitably distributed between students with an expected family contribution, as defined in the bill, of less than 100% of the annual federal PELL grant award and students with an expected family contribution between 100% and 250% of the annual federal PELL grant award.

The bill appropriates $5 million to the Colorado opportunity scholarship initiative fund to implement the initiative.

Bill B: Concerning a statewide plan for awarding college credit for work-related experience.
This bill requires an existing council charged with looking at general education courses (council) to implement a plan for determining and awarding academic credit for postsecondary education based on work-related experience.

Furthermore, state institutions of higher education (institutions) are required to evaluate student learning from work-related experience and award appropriate academic credit for the experience. Also, institutions shall accept and transfer academic credit awarded for work-related experience as courses with guaranteed-transfer designation, unless the council creates a plan concerning awarding and transferring academic credit for work-related experience for courses with guaranteed-transfer designation.

Bill C: Concerning an improve student success innovation pilot program through the collaboration of multiple institutions of higher education to increase the number of students who successfully complete postsecondary education.
This bill creates the improve student success innovation pilot program (pilot program) in the department of higher education (department) to implement a program designed to incentivize collaboration among multiple institutions of higher education to improve student success and increase the number of students who complete postsecondary education.

When selecting a program or programs for the pilot program, the department and commission on higher education (commission) shall prioritize program proposals that address common barriers to student success and the completion of postsecondary education, as well as other factors.

The department and commission shall submit an annual report to the joint budget committee and the education committees of the General Assembly regarding the efficacy of the program.

The general assembly shall appropriate $20 million each year for the 2020-21, 2021-22, and 2022-23 fiscal years, from the general fund to the department to distribute to the state institutions of higher education selected to implement their projects. The pilot program repeals on July 1, 2024.

To review the bills recommended by the Making Higher Education Attainable Interim Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Conrad Imel.

Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee

The Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee met six times during the 2019 interim to study issues relating to the prevention, treatment, harm reduction, recovery, and criminal justice aspects of opioids and other substance use disorders. The committee heard testimony from experts, state agencies, and laypersons on issues related to these aspects. The committee requested the drafting of five bills and voted to advance all five bills to Legislative Council, all of which the Legislative Council approved.

Bill A: Concerning the prevention of substance use disorders.
The bill requires the commissioner of insurance (commissioner) to promulgate rules that establish diagnoses of covered conditions for which nonpharmacological alternatives to opioids are appropriate. The bill establishes minimum requirements for health benefit plans regarding coverage for physical therapy and occupational therapy or for acupuncture, and requires the commissioner to conduct an actuarial study to determine the economic feasibility before including acupuncture as a covered alternative treatment.

The bill prohibits an insurance carrier (carrier) from limiting or excluding coverage for an atypical opioid or a nonopioid medication, which the federal food and drug administration approves, by mandating that a covered person undergo step therapy or obtain prior authorization if the atypical opioid or nonopioid medication is prescribed by the covered person’s health care provider. The carrier must make the atypical opioid or nonopioid medication available at the lowest cost-sharing tier applicable to a covered opioid with the same indication.

The bill precludes a carrier that has a contract with a physical therapist, occupational therapist, or acupuncturist (therapy provider) from prohibiting the therapy provider from, or penalizing the therapy provider for, providing a covered person information on the amount of the person’s financial responsibility for received services or from requiring the therapy provider to charge or collect a copayment from a covered person that exceeds the total charges the therapy provider submits. The commissioner must take action against a carrier that violates these prohibitions.

The bill continues the current opioid prescribing limitation indefinitely. The bill requires the executive director of the department of regulatory agencies (department) to consult with the center for research into substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery support strategies (center) and the state medical board to promulgate rules establishing competency-based continuing education requirements for physicians and physician assistants concerning prescribing practices for opioids.

The bill modifies requirements for adding prescription information to the prescription drug monitoring program (program) and allows the department of health care policy and financing and the health information organization network access to the program. The bill continues indefinitely the requirement that a health care provider query the program before prescribing a second fill for an opioid and requires each health care provider to query the program before prescribing a benzodiazepine, unless certain exceptions apply. The bill also requires the director of the division of professions and occupations in the department to promulgate rules designating additional controlled substances and other prescription drugs that the program must track. In addition to queries related to autopsies, the bill allows medical examiners and coroners to query the program when conducting a death investigation.

The bill directs the office of behavioral health in the department of human services to convene a collaborative with institutions of higher education, nonprofit agencies, and state agencies to gather feedback from local public health agencies and the institutions and other agencies concerning evidence-based prevention practices.

Bill B: Concerning measures to reduce the harm caused by substance use disorders.
The bill requires a carrier that provides coverage for opiate antagonists to reimburse a hospital if the hospital provides a covered person with an opiate antagonist upon discharge. The bill allows a pharmacist or pharmacy technician to sell a nonprescription syringe or needle to any person. The bill extends civil and criminal immunity for a person who acts in good faith to furnish or administer an opiate antagonist to an individual the person believes to be suffering an opiate-related drug overdose when the opiate antagonist was expired. The bill removes the requirement that entities must receive local board of health approval before operating a clean syringe exchange program. Finally the bill continuously appropriates the money in the harm reduction grant program cash fund to the department of public health and environment for purposes of the program and establishes an annual appropriation of an amount equal to the appropriation for the 2019-20 fiscal year plus $250,000.

Bill C: Concerning treatment of individuals with substance use disorders who come into contact with the criminal justice system, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation.
The bill requires the department of corrections (DOC), local jails, multijurisdictional jails, municipal jails, and department of human services (DHS) facilities to provide at least one opioid agonist and one opioid antagonist to a person in custody with an opioid use disorder throughout the duration of the person’s incarceration or commitment. Under the bill, a person may dispose of controlled substances at a safe station and request assistance in gaining access to treatment for a substance use disorder. The DOC and jails must ensure that inmates receive continuity of care before release. The executive director of the DOC, in consultation with the offices of behavioral health and economic security in DHS, the department of health care policy and financing, the department of local affairs, and local service providers must develop resources for inmates post-release that provide information to help prepare inmates for release and reintegration into their communities.

The bill requires a court to consider whether a person who is the subject of a petition to seal criminal records has entered into or successfully completed a licensed substance use disorder treatment program. Under the bill, the office of behavioral health in DHS may contract with cities and counties for the creation, maintenance, or expansion of criminal justice diversion programs, and the bill appropriates money to the office for criminal justice diversion programs.

Bill D: Concerning treatment for substance use disorders.
The bill requires updated community assessments every two years of the sufficiency of substance use disorder services in the community. The department of human services (DHS) must contract with an independent entity to compile the assessments. Insurance carriers must provide coverage for the treatment of substance use disorders in accordance with the American society of addiction medicine (ASAM) criteria for placement, medical necessity, and utilization management determinations in accordance with the most recent edition of the ASAM criteria.

The bill increases funding by $1 million for provider loan forgiveness and scholarships from the Colorado health service corps fund in the department of public health and environment (CDPHE).

Under the bill, a pharmacy that enters into a collaborative pharmacy agreement with one or more physicians may receive an enhanced dispensing fee for administering all injectable medications for medication-assisted treatment that are approved by the federal food and drug administration, and not just injectable antagonist medication.

DHS must commission a state child care and treatment study and final report to make recommendations concerning gaps in family-centered substance use disorder treatment. DHS must identify alternative payment structures for funding child care and children’s services alongside substance use disorder treatment of a child’s parent.

The bill prohibits managed service organization contracted providers, withdrawal management services, and recovery residences from denying access to medical or substance use disorder treatment services, including recovery services, to persons who are participating in prescribed medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorders. In addition, the bill prohibits courts and parole, probation, and community corrections from prohibiting the use of prescribed medication-assisted treatment as a condition of participation or placement. The bill requires managed care entities to provide coordination of care for the full continuum of substance use disorder and mental health treatment and recovery services, including support for individuals transitioning between levels of care.

The bill appropriates money to the office of behavioral health in DHS to allocate to the center for research into substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery support strategies for the continued employment of grant writers to aid local communities in accessing federal and state money to address opioid and other substance use disorders in their communities.

The commissioner of insurance, in consultation with CDPHE, may promulgate rules, or seek a revision of the essential health benefits package, for prescription medications for medication-assisted treatment to be included on insurance carriers’ formularies. Insurance carriers must report to the commissioner of insurance the number of in-network providers who are licensed to prescribe medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorders, and of that number, must indicate how many providers are actively prescribing medication-assisted treatment.

The bill requires insurance carriers to provide coverage for naloxone hydrochloride, or other similarly acting drugs, without prior authorization and without imposing any deductible, copayment, coinsurance, or other cost-sharing requirement.

DHS must implement a program for training and community outreach relating to, at a minimum, the availability of and process for civil commitment of persons with an alcohol or substance use disorder. The bill consolidates statutes to create a single process for emergency treatment that includes all substances.

Bill E: Concerning measures to assist an individual’s recovery from a substance use disorder.
The bill annually appropriates $250,000 to the department of labor and employment to provide peer coaching and peer specialist training for individuals recovering from substance use disorders. The opioid and other substance use disorders study committee (committee) is continued for an additional four years, meeting every other year beginning in 2021.

The bill directs the state substance abuse trend and response task force to convene stakeholders to review progress on bills the committee introduces and the general assembly passes and generate policy recommendations related to opioid and other substance use disorders and to submit its annual report to the committee.

The bill modifies how the determination of child abuse, neglect, or dependency is made in situations involving alcohol or substance exposure.

The bill creates the recovery support services grant program in the office of behavioral health (office) in the department of human services to provide grants to recovery community organizations, and annually appropriates $3.5 million to implement the program. The bill also imposes the following requirements on the office and appropriates money for these purposes:

• Expanding the individual placement and support program; and
• Establishing a program to assist individuals with substance use disorders by providing the individuals with temporary financial housing assistance.

The bill imposes the following requirements on the center for research into substance use disorder prevention, treatment, and recovery support strategies, and appropriates money to the center for these purposes:

• Designing and conducting a comprehensive review of Colorado’s substance use disorder treatment and recovery services to inform a state plan for the delivery of services across the continuum of care for individuals at risk of relapse;
• Conducting, through the statewide perinatal substance use data linkage project, ongoing research related to the incidence of perinatal substance exposure or related infant and family health and human service outcomes

To review the bills recommended by the Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Yelana Love. 

Sales and Use Tax Simplification Task Force

The Sales and Use Tax Simplification Task Force met five times over the interim. Briefings and presentations were made by the Office of Legislative Legal Services, The Colorado department of Revenue (DOR), the Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT), the Colorado Municipal League, the Tax Foundation, the Coalition to Simplify Colorado Sales Tax, the Office of the State Auditor, and members of the public on a wide range of topics, including:

• 2019 sales and use tax legislation;
• The implementation of Senate Bill 19-006;
• The Colorado Municipal League’s standardized definitions project;
• The evaluation of tax expenditures by the Office of the State Auditor;
• The state’s use tax;
• Third-party administration; and
• The sunset review of the task force by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies.

The task force requested the drafting of three bills and voted to advance two bills to Legislative Council, both of which the Legislative Council approved.

Bill A: Concerning the sales and use tax simplification task force, and, in connection therewith, extending the task force, modifying the task force’s duties, and removing the requirement that the task force undergo an evaluation by the department of regulatory agencies prior to the task force’s repeal.
The bill continues the sales and use tax simplification task force for five years, modifies the task force’s duties, and removes the requirement that the task force undergo an evaluation by the department of regulatory agencies before the task force’s repeal.

Bill B: Concerning certain address database systems used for sales and use tax collection.
The bill establishes a hold harmless provision for vendors who use the state’s geographic information system database (GIS database) to determine the jurisdictions to which sales or use tax is owed and to calculate appropriate sales or use tax rates for individual addresses.The department of revenue (department) must notify vendors when the GIS database is online, tested, and verified in writing by the department to be operational, supported, and available for use. The department must ensure that the GIS database data is at least 95% accurate based on a statistically valid sample of addresses from the database, or based on another acceptable method of proving accuracy. The executive director of the department must promulgate rules for the administration and use of the GIS database.

The bill specifies that the statutory section regarding certified address location databases used for collecting and remitting sales and use tax is repealed 90 days after the department notifies the revisor of statutes that a geographic information system that meets the defined scope of work set forth in the request for solicitation is online, tested, and verified in writing by the department to be operational, supported, and available for use. The department must notify the revisor of statutes no later than 15 days after the system is online, tested, and verified.

To review the bills recommended by the Sales and Use Tax Simplification Task Force, please visit the task force’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Esther van Mourik.

Tax Expenditure Evaluation Interim Study Committee

The Tax Expenditure Evaluation Interim Study Committee met four times over the interim to review the Office of the State Auditor’s tax expenditure evaluations. The committee heard from the Office of the State Auditor, the Colorado Department of Revenue, Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Tax Foundation. The committee also heard from individual and business taxpayers who benefit from the tax expenditures reviewed by the Office of the State Auditor, and from their advocates. The committee requested the drafting of 19 bills, voted to advance five of these bills to Legislative Council, recommended five more of these bills to the Statutory Revision Committee, and sent a letter to the Joint Agricultural Committee recommending that the Joint Agricultural Committee review the sales and use tax exemptions for agricultural inputs. The Legislative Council approved the bills recommended to it for introduction.

Bill A: Concerning certain requirements that must be included in a tax expenditure bill.
Current law requires a legislative declaration stating the intended purpose of a new tax expenditure or the intended purpose for extending an expiring tax expenditure. The bill expands that law by:

• Requiring a statutory legislative declaration, not nonstatutory;
• Requiring a bill that creates a new tax expenditure to include a repeal of the expenditure after a specified period of tax years and a bill that extends an expiring tax expenditure to extend the expenditure only for a specified period of tax years; and
• Requiring the statement of the intended purpose to be part of a tax preference performance statement, which includes:
  • The classification of the type of the tax expenditure; and
  • Detailed information regarding the legislative purpose of the tax expenditure, which, at a minimum, includes clear, relevant, and ascertainable metrics and data requirements that allow the tax expenditure to be measured for effectiveness in achieving the intended purpose.

Bill B: Concerning the repeal of the state sales tax exemption for long-term lodging.
Under current law, the sales tax exemption for long-term lodging exempts stays of 30 days or more at hotels, apartment hotels, lodging houses, motor hotels, guesthouses, guest ranches, trailer coaches, mobile homes, auto camps, or trailer courts and parks from the state sales tax on lodgings. The bill limits this exemption so that it only applies to natural persons.

Bill C: Concerning modifications to the state’s net operating loss deduction.
Currently, Colorado taxpayers can claim a net operating loss deduction on their Colorado tax return. Unless statute otherwise provides, the state deduction is currently allowed in the same manner that a similar deduction is allowed under the internal revenue code to determine federal taxable income.

Under current law, corporate taxpayers in Colorado are allowed to carry forward their net operating loss deduction for the same number of years as allowed for a federal net operating loss. For many years, taxpayers were limited to a 20-year carryforward period for both state and federal taxes. The federal “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA), enacted in 2017, allowed federal taxpayers unlimited years to carry forward net operating losses. Because Colorado’s statute specifies that net operating losses may be carried forward “for the same number of years as allowed for a federal net operating loss”, the TCJA’s change resulted in the same change to Colorado’s law. The bill partially decouples the corporate net operating loss deduction from the federal net operating loss deduction by returning the state’s carryforward period to 20 years.

The bill also repeals a state provision that was effective only for financial institutions, so that, for purposes of the period of years a loss can be carried forward, financial institutions will now be treated the same as any other taxpayer.

Bill D: Concerning the creation of the legislative oversight committee concerning tax policy.
The bill creates the legislative oversight committee concerning tax policy (committee), and the associated task force (task force).

The committee must consider the policy considerations contained in the tax expenditure evaluations prepared by the state auditor and is responsible for overseeing the task force. The committee may recommend legislative changes that are treated as bills recommended by an interim legislative committee.

The task force must study tax policy and develop and propose for committee consideration any modifications to the current system of state and local taxation.

The task force also may, upon request by a committee member, provide evidence-based feedback on the potential benefits or consequences of a legislative or other policy proposal not directly affiliated with or generated by the task force, including legislation introduced by the general assembly that affects tax policy.

Bill E: Concerning modifications to the sales tax exemption for certain energy uses.
Under current law, the sales tax exemption for energy use exempts from state sales tax the sale and purchase of electricity, gas, fuel oil, steam, coal, coke, or nuclear fuel used in processing, manufacturing, mining, refining, irrigation, construction, telegraph, telephone, and radio communication, street and railroad transportation services, and all industrial uses, and newsprint and printer’s ink used by newspaper publisher and commercial printers. The bill modifies this sales tax exemption to apply only when the energy is used by a metered machine.

To review the bills recommended by the Tax Expenditure Evaluation Interim Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Pierce Lively. 

Prison Population Management Interim Study Committee

The prison population management interim study committee met five times during the 2019 interim to study strategies to reduce the prison population and reduce recidivism and to monitor prison population reform legislation passed by the General Assembly. The committee heard testimony on a wide range of issues from prison population drivers, recidivism drivers, inmate treatment needs, community corrections, juvenile sentencing, and many more. The committee requested the drafting of three bills and voted to advance all three bills to Legislative Council. Bill A was withdrawn before the Legislative Council vote, and is not described in this article. Bills B and C received favorable votes by Legislative Council.

Bill B: Concerning measures to manage the state prison population.
Under current law, the Centennial south campus of the Centennial correctional facility is only able to house inmates under limited circumstances. The bill opens the facility for close custody inmates and requires that, for each inmate who is housed at the facility, an inmate must be removed from a private prison until the facility is full.

The bill directs the department of corrections (department) to study how to end the practice of using private prisons by 2025 in a responsible way.

The bill adds the following to the list of achievements that allow an inmate to receive earned time: Showing exemplary leadership through mentoring; community service; and distinguished actions benefiting the health, safety, environment, and culture for staff and other inmates.

Under current law, an offender is not entitled to an evidentiary hearing for resentencing when the offender is rejected for placement in a community corrections program. The bill requires the sentencing court to provide the offender with an evidentiary hearing, or in the alternative a new sentencing hearing, for termination from a community corrections program.

The bill amends the escape statutes to exclude direct sentences, transitioning from the department to a community corrections program, or placement in an intensive supervision parole program from the concepts of custody or confinement for purposes of escape. The bill lowers the penalties for escape and attempted escape crimes. The bill creates a new crime of absconding if the location of a person on intensive supervision parole or a person in a community corrections program is unknown to the authorized agency responsible for the person’s supervision.

Bill C: Concerning a study to examine operational processes within the criminal justice system.
The bill requires the department of corrections (department) to conduct a study to examine how individuals proceed through the various stages of criminal proceedings, including the various sentences and programs to which a person may be sentenced or placed. Subject to available appropriations, the department shall issue a request for proposals for an entity to assist with the study. The department must produce a report of its findings to the joint budget committee and the judiciary committees of the General Assembly.

To review the bills recommended by the Prison Population Management Interim Study Committee, including Bill A, which was withdrawn, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Michael Dohr. 

Zero Waste and Recycling Interim Study Committee

The Zero Waste and Recycling Interim Study Committee met during the 2019 interim to study waste and recycling infrastructure, composting, and zero-waste efforts in Colorado. On October 22, 2019, the Committee considered four bills drafts and subsequently voted to approve two of the drafts for the consideration of the Legislative Council on November 15, 2019. The Legislative Council approved both bills for introduction.

Bill A: Concerning the expansion of market mechanisms for the further development of recycling.
The bill directs the pollution prevention advisory board (board) within the department of public health and environment (department) to recommend to the department a structure and governing guidance for a recycling market development center to support the development of end-market businesses within the state. The bill also directs the department to conduct a literature review of what industry and other states are doing around the country regarding producer responsibility and to create policy and legislative recommendations regarding the feasibility of requiring producers to design, manage, and finance programs for end-of-life management of their products and packaging as a condition of sale.

The bill also allows the board to use the recycling resources economic opportunity fund and the front range waste diversion cash fund to reimburse eligible recycling businesses for locally assessed personal property taxes paid in the current tax year in this state on personal property. The bill directs the board to establish a formula to use in awarding personal property tax reimbursements.

The bill also requires the department, on and after October 1, 2020, to administer a statewide campaign to educate Colorado residents concerning recycling. The requirement is repealed, effective September 1, 2021.

Bill B: Concerning the development of a statewide organics management plan to promote compost use.
The bill tasks the executive director of the department of public health and environment (executive director) or the executive director’s designee and the commissioner of agriculture (commissioner) or the commissioner’s designee with developing an organics management plan (plan) on or before September 1, 2022. The department of public health and environment may incorporate the plan into the department’s existing work regarding organics management if its existing work meets the standards established for the organics management plan.

In developing the plan, the executive director and the commissioner must study and make recommendations regarding organic waste management practices to encourage compost use on soil to promote carbon storage. The executive director and the commissioner must also complete two statewide surveys as part of the plan: A survey that examines end uses for the major categories of organic waste feedstock generated within the state; and a survey that examines existing organic waste generation facilities and processing capacity. On or before February 1, 2023, the executive director must submit a report summarizing the plan to the legislative committees with jurisdiction over energy or agricultural matters.

To review the bills recommended by the Zero Waste and Recycling Interim Study Committee, please visit the committee’s website. For questions concerning the legislation, please contact Richard Sweetman.