SB 158: Youthful Offender Early Parole Procedure - Colorado

Final Act → Signed Act · 4 edits · May 19, 2026

MODERATE

This bill amends Colorado statutes regarding early parole for youthful offenders who complete specialized rehabilitation programs. It clarifies that both the Governor and the State Board of Parole have the authority to grant early parole under specific conditions, streamlines the application process, and updates the timeline for program requirements to begin on January 1, 2027.

Scope change

The bill expands the authority to grant early parole from solely the Governor to include the State Board of Parole, allowing the Board to make final decisions if the Governor does not act within the statutory timeframe.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded early parole authority to include the State Board of Parole alongside the Governor for offenders completing specialized programs.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the specialized program requirements to mandate acknowledgment of crime impact on victims and ongoing trauma, effective January 1, 2027.

TIMELINE

Adjusted the effective date for new program requirements to January 1, 2027.

TECHNICAL

Corrected formatting inconsistencies, capitalization errors, and typos in the statutory text.

Rerevised → Final Act · 3 edits · May 4, 2026

MINOR

This bill modifies Colorado's early parole process for youthful offenders who complete specialized rehabilitation programs. The most significant change is that the State Board of Parole now has the authority to grant early parole directly if the Governor fails to act within 60 days of receiving a recommendation, whereas previously only the Governor could make the final decision. The bill also updates the definition of the specialized program to require specific components focused on independent living, reentry services, and victim impact awareness.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of early parole authority by adding the State Board of Parole as a decision-maker alongside the Governor, specifically for cases where the Governor does not respond within the statutory deadline.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a mechanism where the State Board of Parole's recommendation becomes the final decision if the Governor does not grant or deny early parole within 60 days of receiving the recommendation.

REQUIREMENT

Updated the definition of the required specialized program to include specific training on independent living skills, reentry services for long-term offenders, and victim impact awareness starting January 1, 2027.

ELIGIBILITY

Clarified that the State Board of Parole can recommend early parole for offenders who have successfully completed the specialized program, subject to the same safety and welfare standards as the Governor.

Revised → Rerevised · 2 edits · Apr 30, 2026

MINOR

The bill was re-revised to incorporate all amendments adopted during the second reading in the House, updating the document to reflect the final legislative text. The primary changes involve adding new House sponsors to the bill's sponsorship list and updating the reading status to indicate the bill is now '3rd Reading Unamended' with a specific date of April 30, 2026.

Scope change

The bill's substantive scope and applicability remain unchanged; the updates are procedural, reflecting the addition of new sponsors and the progression of the bill through the legislative calendar.

TECHNICAL

Added seven new House sponsors (Bacon, Boesenecker, Camacho, Jackson, Lindsay, Mabrey, Nguyen, Rydin, Smith, Zokaie) to the bill's sponsorship list.

Updated the document header from 'REVISED' to 'REREVISED' and changed the reading status to '3rd Reading Unamended' dated April 30, 2026.

Reengrossed → Revised · 2 edits · Apr 29, 2026

MINOR

The bill was renumbered from SB 158 to SB 26-158 and updated to reflect its status as a revised version adopted on second reading in the second house. The text includes minor formatting adjustments and capitalization changes, such as converting 'INMATE' to 'INMATE'S' in specific contexts, but no substantive policy, eligibility, or procedural changes were made.

TECHNICAL

The bill number was updated from SB 158 to SB 26-158, and the header was changed from 'REENGROSSED' to 'REVISED' to reflect the legislative stage.

Minor capitalization and punctuation adjustments were made to terms like 'INMATE' and 'INMATE'S' within the body text.

Engrossed → Reengrossed · 4 edits · Apr 20, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reengrossed to include additional sponsors and updated the header to reflect that it now includes all amendments adopted in the House of Introduction. A significant procedural change was made to the bill summary, which now explicitly states it applies to the unamended version and notes that a new summary for the reengrossed version will be released later. Additionally, a section regarding the Governor's authority to grant or deny early parole was removed, likely to streamline the text or incorporate changes from the amendment process.

Scope change

The bill's substantive scope regarding parole remains consistent with the removal of a specific procedural paragraph, while the administrative scope was updated to reflect new legislative sponsors and a revised summary status.

TECHNICAL

Added new sponsors (Coleman, Danielson, Gonzales J., Jodeh, Kipp, Kolker, Marchman, Wallace) to the Senate sponsorship list.

Updated the bill header from 'ENGROSSED' to 'REENGROSSED' and clarified that the version includes all amendments adopted in the House of Introduction.

TIMELINE

Added a note indicating the bill summary applies to the unamended version and that a new summary for the reengrossed version will be available on April 20, 2026.

REQUIREMENT

Deleted a paragraph detailing the Governor's specific timeline and procedure for granting or denying early parole based on Board of Parole recommendations.

Introduced → Engrossed · 3 edits · Apr 17, 2026

MINOR

The bill was amended to clarify that the State Board of Parole can approve early parole applications if the Governor fails to act within 60 days. Additionally, the text was updated to consistently refer to the applicant as an 'inmate' rather than mixing terms, and the bill's status was changed from 'Introduced' to 'Engrossed' to reflect completed legislative amendments.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding the Governor's authority was narrowed by establishing a specific 60-day deadline for the Governor to act on parole applications, after which the State Board of Parole gains the authority to grant parole.

TIMELINE

Added a 60-day deadline for the Governor to act on early parole applications; if the Governor does not act within this period, the State Board of Parole may approve the application.

REQUIREMENT

Standardized the terminology used to describe the applicant throughout the text, changing references from 'offender' to 'inmate' for consistency.

TECHNICAL

Updated the bill header from 'Introduced' to 'Engrossed' to indicate that all amendments have been adopted.

Youthful Offender Early Parole Procedure

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