Colorado LegiSource

An informational and educational resource for the Colorado General Assembly by the Office of Legislative Legal Services.

Category: State Government

  • Colorado State Government Spotlight: The Department of Education

    by Julie Pelegrin

    The Department of Education stands out as an anomaly among the 19 executive branch agencies: it is the only executive branch agency that is not under the direct control of the Governor or another single, statewide-elected officer. The Department of Education is led by the State Board of Education, whose seven members are elected from around the state, and the Commissioner of Education, who is appointed by the State Board. Because both the State Board and the Commissioner are established in the state constitution, the Department of Education is as indispensable as the executive branch agencies that are led by elected state officers. (more…)

  • Colorado State Government Spotlight: The Secretary of State’s Office

    by Kate Meyer

    Second in a series focusing on state government organization. For Part 1 (DORA), click here        

    Introduction
    Although the Department of State is officially contained within the statutory “Administrative Organization Act of 1968”, the organization is fundamentally related to the state constitution through its leader: the Secretary of State. This position is one of five “absolutely indispensable” executive branch officers specifically enumerated under Article IV, Section 1 of the Colorado constitution. (more…)

  • Colorado State Government Spotlight: The Department of Regulatory Agencies

    by Chuck Brackney

    This post inaugurates a LegiSource series focusing on the workings of state government. Our goal is to bring to legislators’ attention the many and varied functions of state government in Colorado. We begin with a look at the state Department of Regulatory Agencies.

    DORA (more…)

  • Departments, Agencies, Boards, and Commissions – The Organization of the Executive Branch of State Government

    by Chuck Brackney

    Colorado’s constitution creates the three arms of state government we all know — the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. The legislative branch is the General Assembly, while the judicial branch encompasses all state courts. The executive branch is a bit more complicated. (more…)

  • “See you in court!” – But Which One?

    by Chuck Brackney

    The press often covers stories that involve the executive branch agencies and what they do, and, during the legislative session, the legislative branch is often in the news. Seldom, however, do we hear much about the judicial branch. We get reports of controversial or high-profile Supreme Court decisions, and we watch the progress of sensational trials, but there’s much more to the judicial branch than messy divorces, gory murder trials, and appeals to the Supreme Court. (more…)

  • Powers, Duties, and Functions of Executive Branch Agencies (Type 1, type 2, and type 3 transfers)

    by Rebecca Hausmann

    If you’re anything like me, you might find type 1, type 2, and type 3 transfers a little confusing. First of all, what are they for? What’s the difference between the three types of transfers? And just why, exactly, are they called “transfers”, even when a new agency is created? (more…)

  • How can I find executive branch agency rules?

    Rules adopted by executive branch agencies, boards, and commissions can be found through the Secretary of State’s website. The Secretary of State maintains the Code of Colorado Regulations (CCR), which contains all executive branch rules adopted over the years. The link to the website is: http://www.sos.state.co.us/CCR/Welcome.do

    From that page, you can start a search for a rule. One way is to search by agency name. A link on this page directs you to a detailed listing of state agencies, from the Board of Accountancy to the Division of Youth Corrections. Use these links to delve deeper into the rules of the agency you’re interested in until you find the subject that you are looking for.

    You can also start on the site linked to above and use the “search” button on the top left of the page. On that page, you can search using keywords or using the CCR number for the rule if you happen to know it. A typical cite to a rule is in this format: 1 CCR 1101-5. It doesn’t really help to use the agency’s internal rule numbering system because this database relies on the CCR number.

    Another way to find agency rules is to go directly to the website of the agency you’re interested in. You may have to dig a while, but you can often — though not always — find a version of the agency’s rules on its own website. Often, these are in pdf form. In other instances, you will be linked back to the Secretary of State’s website for the CCR version of the rules.