Colorado Bills

The bill creates definitions of a student 'threat assessment' and a student 'suicide assessment'. The bill requires that when a student transfers to a new public school, including a charter or pilot school (public school), if the student's file contains a threat or suicide assessment and if the new public school, or a person acting on behalf of the student, requests copies of the student's records, the previous public school, or out-of-home placement if applicable, is required to transfer the student's threat or suicide assessment to his or her new public school with the other records requested. If a request for records is not made, the previous public school is not required to independently transfer the threat or suicide assessment. Current law allows for the transfer of threat or suicide assessments, but it does not require it.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Currently, the 'Colorado End-of-life Options Act' requires an attending physician or hospice medical director to sign the death certificate of an individual who obtained and self-administered aid-in-dying medication. The bill removes this requirement. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The concurrent resolution deletes the prohibition in the state constitution on new or increased transfer tax rates on real property. The concurrent resolution imposes a tax upon the recording of each real property deed at the rate of 1/10 of one percent of the value of the real property as specified in the deed for the privilege of transferring the title to real property (tax). A conveyance from one spouse or other marital partner to another or a correction deed are exempt from payment of the tax. At the time any deed evidencing a transfer of title subject to the tax imposed is offered for recording, the county clerk and recorder is required to ascertain and compute the amount of the tax due and to collect the same from the purchaser of the real property as a prerequisite to acceptance of the deed for recording. The amount of tax is computed on the basis of the value of the transferred property as specified in the deed. The county clerk and recorder is required to collect the amount due under the tax and certify the date of payment and the amount collected on the deed. The county clerk and recorder is authorized to retain 5% of the amount collected as his or her fee for collection and to further remit the balance on a quarterly basis to the county treasurer. The county treasurer is then required to transmit the same to the state treasurer for the deposit of such money into the already existing state housing investment trust fund (fund). Under existing legal requirements not changed by the concurrent resolution, the fund is administered by the division of housing within the department of local affairs (division). In addition to the permissible uses of money deposited into the fund under existing statutory requirements, the concurrent resolution specifies that permissible uses of the money collected from the imposition of the tax that are deposited into the fund pursuant to the resolution include the uses specified in the resolution. The concurrent resolution specifies the type of new or existing programs that must be supported with money collected by the tax. The concurrent resolution requires that any new or existing programs supported by the tax are to be administered by the division. The concurrent resolution contains additional requirements governing the use of money in the fund. The concurrent resolution specifies that its approval by the registered electors of the state voting on the ballot issue at the general election held in November 2017 constitutes a voter-approved revenue change to allow the retention and expenditure of state revenues in excess of the limitation on state fiscal year spending. The general assembly may modify any of the provisions as necessary in order to facilitate a more effective administration of the provisions. However, such legislation shall not limit or restrict the imposition of the tax or the use of the money raised by the tax to promote the provision of affordable housing. (Note: This summary applies to this concurrent resolution as introduced.)

Currently, Columbus day is one of 10 legal holidays in Colorado. Section 2 of the bill repeals Columbus day as a state legal holiday. Consequently, in order to maintain the number of days off enjoyed by state employees, section 3 grants state employees an annual 'floating' holiday, on a day in October of each employee's choice, in accordance with rules promulgated by the department of personnel and subject to approval by each employee's supervisor. Section 1 contains a nonstatutory legislative declaration, and sections 4 and 5 make conforming amendments.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current law requires engineering plans involving excavation to include only general information about the location of underground facilities, and the excavator is the party with the duty to seek specific information about these facilities' locations. The bill requires: Engineering plans involving excavation to include specific information about the location of underground facilities; Engineers to use their official stamps on the plans; and The stamped plans to be given to the person who will conduct the excavation.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill, addressing appraisals conducted for insurance purposes, sets standards for when an appraiser, including an appraisals umpire, is considered fair, impartial, and neutral. The bill imposes the following requirements: An appraiser is prohibited from having a direct, material interest in the amounts determined by the appraisal process; An appraiser, including an appraisals umpire, must disclose to all parties any known fact discovered at any time that a reasonable person would consider likely to affect the appraiser's interest in the amount determined by the appraisal; Both the insurer and the insured, and their representatives, are prohibited from communicating with the other party's appraiser without the consent and participation of both parties; except that appraisers may directly communicate with each other to reach an agreed-upon settlement amount; The insurer, the insured, and their representatives, including adjusters, attorneys, and appraisers, must not have ex parte communications with the umpire during the appraisal process; and The umpire must not have ex parte communications with the insurer, including adjusters, the insured, and their representatives, including public adjusters.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Joint Technology Committee. The bill creates a new source selection and contract negotiation timeline that a state agency is required to follow when it plans to submit a budget request to the joint technology committee (committee) for a major information technology project (project). The office of state planning and budgeting is required to ensure that state agencies adhere to the new timeline prior to submitting a budget request to the committee as follows: On or before November 1 of the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which a state agency intends to submit a budget request to the committee for a project, the state agency is required to notify the committee of its intent to begin the source selection and contract negotiation process. On or before January 1 of the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which a state agency intends to submit a budget request to the committee for a project, the state agency is required to issue a competitive solicitation in accordance with the 'Procurement Code'. The competitive solicitation is required to specify that the terms of a contract resulting from the solicitation require the vendor to honor its contract price through the date that work on the contract commences and that vendors are directed to estimate costs accordingly for the purpose of responding to the solicitation. A state agency that has issued a competitive solicitation is required to receive and review the responses from vendors and determine whether to pursue the project and the budget request on or before April 15 of the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which the state agency intends to submit the budget request to the committee. If the state agency intends to pursue a budget request for the project, the state agency must award a contract to the selected vendor on or before June 30 of the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which the state agency intends to submit the budget request to the committee. The terms of a contract awarded for a project must specify that: The state agency will pursue a budget request for the project in the fiscal year immediately following the fiscal year in which the contract is awarded; The contract is contingent upon the state agency receiving an appropriation from the general assembly for the project; Work on the contract will not commence until the bill enacted by the general assembly that appropriates the money for the project becomes law; The vendor is required to honor its contract price through the date that work on the contract commences; The state agency may amend terms of the contract, as necessary, following the date on which the bill that appropriates the money for the project becomes law; The state agency will authorize the vendor to begin work on the contract within 30 days of the date that the bill that appropriates the money for the project becomes law; and The contract is null and void if the general assembly does not appropriate money to the state agency for the project. A state agency may include in a contract awarded any other terms or conditions related to the appropriation of money to the state agency by the general assembly as deemed necessary by the state agency. A state agency that has awarded a contract for a project is required to submit a budget request for the project to the committee in the fiscal year immediately following the fiscal year in which the contract was awarded. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill authorizes a local government master plan to include goals specified in the state water plan and to include policies that condition development approvals on implementation of those goals. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

'Approval voting' is a method of voting that allows an elector to cast a vote for as many of the candidates per office as the elector chooses. The winner of each office is the candidate who receives the most votes or, for elections in which multiple candidates fill open seats, the winners are those candidates, in a number equal to the number of seats being filled, attaining the greatest number of votes. The bill authorizes cities, towns, counties, cities and counties, school districts, and special districts (collectively, 'local governments') to conduct nonpartisan elections using approval voting on and after November 1, 2017. A nonpartisan election is an election in which the political party affiliations of candidates are not printed on the ballot. The secretary of state is directed to adopt rules and provide advice to local governments regarding approval voting and to submit a report by February 15, 2020, regarding approval voting to the state, veterans, and military affairs committees of the general assembly. County clerk and recorders may decline to coordinate an election if a local government elects to employ approval voting in the election. The bill makes necessary modifications to current law occasioned by the use of approval voting, such as excluding approval voting from the definition of 'overvote' and adjusting provisions prescribing the form of ballots and automatic recount triggers. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill adds to the current descriptions of forcible detainer the act of a person preventing an owner from access to or possession of property by locking or changing the lock on the property. The bill creates a procedure for the plaintiff to seek a temporary, mandatory injunction giving the plaintiff possession of the property if a complaint for forcible entry or detainer is filed. The procedure requires the plaintiff to store any personal property found on the property but allows the plaintiff to recover the costs of the storage. The bill establishes as new crimes related to forcible entry and detainer the crimes of unlawful occupancy and unlawful reentry. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill requires that, in any sale or lease of real estate, the amounts payable to anyone acting as a broker in the transaction (e.g., buyer's agent, seller's agent, transaction-broker) be disclosed in writing, either as part of the contract or otherwise, and accounted for. If the amount payable is allocated between the parties, the portion for which each party is responsible must be separately stated. Brokers are required to disclose their fees or the basis for calculating their fees on all marketing materials relating to any specific property, including on-line multiple listing services. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)