SB 177: Access Adjoining Property to Repair or Maintain - Colorado

Final Act → Signed Act · 3 edits · May 30, 2026

MINOR

This bill updates the formatting and official text of Senate Bill 177, changing the bill number to 26-177 and adding the names of the sponsoring legislators. It also corrects minor spacing and punctuation errors within the new statute regarding property access for repairs. No substantive policy changes, new laws, or funding were added; the core legal provisions remain identical to the previous version.

TECHNICAL

Updated the bill number from SB 177 to SB 26-177 and added the full list of sponsoring Senators and Representatives.

Corrected minor spacing and punctuation inconsistencies in the statutory text (e.g., extra spaces around words like 'HAVE' and 'PROPERTY').

Removed the preliminary note regarding the Governor's signature status, which is standard procedural text included in drafts but not part of the final law.

Rerevised → Final Act · 4 edits · May 21, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was finalized and signed into law, transitioning from a draft stage to an enacted statute. The core policy content regarding property access remains largely consistent, but the final version includes a specific effective date and a referendum clause, allowing citizens to vote on the law before it takes effect.

Scope change

The bill's scope is now fixed as an active law (Section 2), whereas the draft version indicated it was awaiting final passage. The applicability to single-family residences and the requirement for court petitions remain unchanged.

TIMELINE

Added a specific effective date (August 12, 2026, or later if a referendum is filed) and established a 90-day window for citizens to petition for a referendum before the law takes effect.

TECHNICAL

Updated the bill's title and summary to reflect that it has been enacted, and reorganized the text to match the final legislative format.

DEFINITION

Included formal definitions for 'adjoining owner,' 'refuse,' 'requesting owner,' and 'single-family residence' within the new statute.

REQUIREMENT

Formalized the process for requesting court access, including requirements for the owner to specify repairs, demonstrate refusal by the neighbor, and potentially post a bond or insurance.

Revised → Rerevised · 3 edits · May 7, 2026

MINOR

The bill was rerevised to include an additional House sponsor, Boesenecker, and to update the reading status to reflect amendments adopted in the Second House. Substantively, the text removed a list of specific conditions that must be met before a court can order access to a property, including requirements for notice, compensation, insurance, and exemptions for government-owned land.

Scope change

The scope of the bill was narrowed by removing the specific criteria and exemptions that previously governed court-ordered access to adjoining properties.

TECHNICAL

Added House sponsor Boesenecker to the list of sponsors.

REQUIREMENT

Removed the requirement that a requesting owner must provide reasonable notice, compensation, insurance, or other conditions before a court can order access.

ELIGIBILITY

Removed the exemption stating that the section does not apply if the adjoining property is owned or controlled by the federal government, the state, or a political subdivision.

Reengrossed → Revised · 3 edits · May 6, 2026

MINOR

The bill was updated to include new requirements for property owners seeking court-ordered access to adjacent land for repairs. Specifically, the owner must now agree to purchase insurance or post a bond to cover potential damages or injuries caused by the work. The text was also cleaned up to remove redundant phrasing regarding dispute resolution.

Scope change

The bill's scope of required conditions for the court was expanded to include financial security measures.

REQUIREMENT

Added a new requirement that the requesting owner must purchase insurance or post a bond to cover property damage, personal injury, or loss of life resulting from the repairs.

Reorganized the list of court conditions by removing 'any other condition' as a separate item and splitting the remaining conditions into distinct subsections for clarity.

TECHNICAL

Removed redundant wording in the dispute resolution section that duplicated the phrase 'pursuant to'.

Engrossed → Reengrossed · 3 edits · May 4, 2026

MINOR

The bill was reengrossed to include all amendments adopted during the House of Introduction, updating the sponsor list to include seven new legislators. A new notice was added to the summary stating that the current text is unamended and that a future version reflecting House amendments will be available online.

TECHNICAL

Added seven new sponsors (Coleman, Cutter, Gonzales J., Hinrichsen, Kipp, Snyder, Wallace) to the Senate sponsorship list.

Inserted a notice indicating the bill is in its 3rd Reading Unamended state and that a reengrossed summary will be posted later.

Removed the 'ENGROSSED' header and the specific date reference for the House amendments.

Introduced → Engrossed · 4 edits · May 1, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was amended to add a mandatory dispute resolution step requiring owners to attempt mediation before filing a lawsuit for access. The text was also cleaned up to remove formatting artifacts and update the page numbering to reflect the final version.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on single-family residences, but the process for obtaining access now includes a new requirement to try mediation first.

REQUIREMENT

Added a requirement that the requesting owner must attempt alternative dispute resolution, such as mediation, with the adjoining owner before filing a court action.

TECHNICAL

Added a header indicating the bill is Engrossed and includes all amendments adopted on Second Reading.

Reordered and renumbered subsections to integrate the new dispute resolution requirement into the legal text.

Removed formatting artifacts, including the 'Introduced' status and extraneous page headers.

Access Adjoining Property to Repair or Maintain

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