The act authorizes the department of higher education to enter into a limited purpose fee-for-service contract with the board of regents of the university of Colorado for allocation to programs or institutions of higher education to expand an existing rural track program. If an allocation is made to a program or institution to expand an existing rural track program, the department of higher education shall utilize a formula developed and revised annually by the rural program office, in collaboration with the institutions, that is based on data that documents the program's or institution's fulfillment of certain requirements. The act requires the rural program office to submit a report to the general assembly each year that includes the allocation formula developed by the rural program office. The act creates the rural hospital cash fund and on July 1, 2024, requires the state treasurer to transfer $1,742,029 from the general fund to the rural hospital cash fund for the purpose of distributing money in equal amounts to rural hospitals. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $866,667 from the general fund to the department of higher education for the college opportunity fund program to be used for limited purpose fee-for-service contracts with institutions of higher education. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Public trustees are entitled to set fee amounts for performing the functions and exercising the powers conferred upon them by statute. The act doubles each fee, except for the fee for conducting a public foreclosure sale by means of the internet. The act also creates a new fee in the amount of $300 for performing actions related to processing a foreclosure sale if the holder of a certificate of purchase is not the holder of an evidence of debt. Additionally, the act requires the director of research of the legislative council to adjust the amount of each fee to which public trustees are entitled for inflation every other year if the adjustment will result in an increase. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE July 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act amends the existing definition of "immature plant" to mean a nonflowering marijuana plant that is no taller than 15, rather than 8, inches; no wider than15, rather than 8, inches; and produced from a cutting, clipping, or seedling. Current law requires beneficial owners and people who have access to the limited access areas of a medical marijuana business or retail marijuana business to have identification cards. The act repeals this requirement for beneficial owners. The act requires the state licensing authority to promulgate rules that do not require a licensee to use radio frequency identification technology to track regulated marijuana. Current law requires the marijuana enforcement division in the department of revenue (division) to promulgate rules requiring testing of marijuana and marijuana products for contaminants or substances that are harmful to health and allows a licensee to remediate marijuana or marijuana products that fail a test. The act clarifies that if a licensee is able to remediate or decontaminate a product and the product passes retesting, the licensee need not provide an additional label that would otherwise not be required for a product that passed initial testing. Current law requires every marijuana business to post, at all times and in a prominent place, a warning about using marijuana while pregnant or breastfeeding. The act requires the warning to be posted at each point of sale. Current law allows a person who qualifies as a social equity licensee to apply for any regulated marijuana business license or permit, including an accelerator store, accelerator cultivator, or accelerator manufacturer license. The act establishes new criteria under which a natural person may qualify as a social equity licensee and excludes certain persons from qualifying as a social equity licensee. The act extends initial license and license renewal periods from one year to 2 years. Local authorities may decide what licenses they will issue for one year or 2 years. The act requires the state licensing authority to promulgate rules authorizing multiple regulated marijuana business licensees with identical controlling beneficial owners to submit a single initial or renewal application. The act requires a medical marijuana store, when completing a sale of medical marijuana concentrate, to physically attach to the receipt, container, or packaging the tangible educational resource created by the state licensing authority regarding the use of medical marijuana concentrate. Current law allows the transfer of immature plants, seeds, and genetic material between a medical or retail cultivation facility and certain people, including people approved by rule. The act allows such a transfer from or to a medical or retail marijuana cultivation facility from or to a person permitted by another jurisdiction to possess or cultivate marijuana. The medical or retail cultivation facility must establish a process to confirm that the purchaser is 21 years of age or older using an age verification process. The cultivation facility may accept online payments for the transfer. A cultivation facility may accept online payment for genetic material but is prohibited from transferring genetic material to consumers that are on the licensed premises. The state licensing authority may promulgate rules to implement the provision, but limits are placed on the rules that the state licensing authority may adopt. The act prohibits a licensed retail marijuana store from selling food in excess of 20% of the store's annual gross revenues. Current law sets the amount of the application fee for a retail marijuana business at $5,000. The act allows the state licensing authority to set the initial application fee in an amount not to exceed $5,000. The state licensing authority must set the amount of the application fee to offset the direct and indirect costs of regulating retail marijuana businesses. Current law requires that excise tax be levied on the first transfer of unprocessed retail marijuana. The act specifies that the transfer of unprocessed retail marijuana exclusively for microbial control is not the first transfer of unprocessed retail marijuana for taxation purposes. Current law requires a taxpayer to be engaged in a business that is legal under both state and federal law in order to claim an enterprise zone tax credit. The act removes this restriction for a marijuana business that is licensed under state law. APPROVED by Governor June 5, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
For income tax years commencing before January 1, 2025, the law allowed any individual who was 65 years of age or older at the close of a taxable year to subtract the total amount of social security benefits that the individual received from the individual's federal taxable income, to the extent those benefits were included in federal taxable income, when determining the individual's state taxable income. The act expands this subtraction to any individual who is 55 years of age or older but less than 65 years of age and whose adjusted gross income for the applicable tax year is less than or equal to $75,000 if filing individually or $95,000 if filing jointly. The act requires the department of revenue, in consultation with the state auditor, to collect information necessary to measure the effectiveness of the income tax subtraction. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act modifies the "Property Tax/Rent/Heat Credit Rebate" (PTC),which is available to qualifying seniors and individuals with a disability who earn income below a threshold amount and who pay real property tax, or a tax equivalent through rent, or heat or fuel expenses, or an equivalent through rent, by: Merging the separate statutory sections that provide the PTC for assistance in the payment of real property tax and provide the PTC for assistance in the payment of heat or fuel expenses into a single statutory section; Updating certain dollar values used to calculate the PTC to their current levels; and For tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, allowing the PTC only to qualifying seniors. Qualified individuals with a disability for tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, are allowed an income tax credit. Eligibility with respect to disability mirrors the eligibility as it exists under current law for the PTC. The income tax credit is allowed in the following amounts: $1,200 for a qualified individual filing a single return with federal adjusted gross income less than or equal to $10,000 or for 2 qualified individuals, or a qualified individual and a nonqualified individual, filing a joint return with federal adjusted gross income less than or equal to $16,000; $1,000 for a qualified individual filing a single return with federal adjusted gross income between $10,001 and $12,500 or for 2 qualified individuals, or a qualified individual and a nonqualified individual, filing a joint return with federal adjusted gross income between $16,001 and $20,000; $800 for a qualified individual filing a single return with federal adjusted gross income between $12,501 and $15,000 or for 2 qualified individuals, or a qualified individual and a nonqualified individual, filing a joint return with federal adjusted gross income between $20,001 and $24,000; $600 for a qualified individual filing a single return with federal adjusted gross income between $15,001 and $17,500 or for 2 qualified individuals, or a qualified individual and a nonqualified individual, filing a joint return with federal adjusted gross income between $24,001 and $28,000; and $400 for a qualified individual filing a single return with federal adjusted gross income between $17,501 and $20,000 or for 2 qualified individuals, or a qualified individual and a nonqualified individual, filing a joint return with federal adjusted gross income between $28,001 and $32,000. The department of revenue must adjust the amounts of the credit and the amounts of adjusted gross income annually for inflation. An individual who is both a qualifying senior and a qualified individual with a disability and meets the eligibility requirements to claim both the income tax credit and the PTC can only claim one or the other in the same income tax year. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act prohibits a debt collector or collection agency that is not a creditor or debt buyer from being the named plaintiff in a legal action or taking any legal action on a debt against a consumer unless the debt collector or collection agency: Ensures that the name of the original creditor or assignor and the name of the debt collector or collection agency are included in the case of the caption of the complaint, in that order; and Has a complete and effective assignment, including complete settlement authority and authority to resolve the litigation. The act requires credit services organizations to file notification with and pay an annual notification fee to the administrator of the uniform consumer credit code (administrator) within 30 days after commencing business in Colorado and, thereafter, on or before July 1 of each year. The state treasurer shall credit the annual notification fee to the consumer credit unit cash fund. The administrator may order a person to cease and desist from engaging in violations of the "Colorado Credit Services Organization Act" (CCSOA). An order issued by the administrator may require the person to pay to a buyer a refund of any unlawful charges that have been charged to the buyer and to pay an administrative penalty of up to $1,500 per violation. A person aggrieved by an order of the administrator may seek judicial review of the order in the Colorado court of appeals. The act clarifies that a plan that a debt management services provider prepares for an individual that requires the individual to make regular, periodic payments must meet the definition of "plan" in the "Uniform Debt-Management Services Act". The act also clarifies that if a debt management services provider utilizes the internet or other electronic means to meet specific compliance requirements, including disclosures, reporting requirements, and record-keeping requirements, the provider must obtain a consumer's consent at the time of satisfying the requirements. The act repeals provisions outlining the fees a debt management services provider may charge and requires the administrator to adopt rules specifying the nature and amount of permitted fees. The rules must not unduly limit consumer access to debt management services programs based on available state and national data. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE March 1, 2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The Colorado veterans' service-to-career program (program) authorizes nonprofit agencies to partner with work force centers selected by the department of labor and employment (department) to provide veterans and other eligible participants with skills training, internships, work placements, mentorship opportunities, career and professional counseling, and support services. Under current law, the general assembly is allowed to annually appropriate money from the marijuana tax cash fund to the department to be used for the program. The act extends the repeal date for the program from July 1, 2024, to September 1, 2027. In addition, the act removes the provision permitting the appropriation of money from the marijuana tax cash fund and instead allows the general assembly to appropriate money from the general fund to be used for the program. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act requires the department of education (department) to enter into an agreement with an organization (selected organization) to develop best practices for local education providers to effectively respond to reports of harassment or discrimination. The department shall convene an evaluation committee to select the organization. The evaluation committee consists of representatives from school districts, an organization that advocates for students who face harassment or discrimination, and the office of school safety; persons with lived experience of harassment or discrimination; and students. The selected organization shall submit a report to the department, the office of school safety, and the general assembly's education committees that includes an explanation of the best practices developed by the selected organization. Current law requires public schools to provide training to all employees about harassment and discrimination, beginning no later than July 1, 2024. The act repeals that deadline and instead requires harassment and discrimination training beginning with employee training for the 2025-26 school year, but beginning no later than December 31, 2025. The act requires that harassment and discrimination training that occurs after August 1, 2025, be consistent with the best practices developed by the selected organization. The act requires the selected organization to develop a harassment or discrimination training program for use by schools that is consistent with the best practices developed by the selected organization and that complies with the requirements for public schools' harassment and discrimination training. The department shall make the training program materials available to public schools at no cost. The act appropriates $111,111 from the state education fund to the department for training for local education providers on responding to harassment and discrimination reports. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act creates the agricultural and rural community behavioral health program (program) in the behavioral health administration (BHA). The BHA is required to identify a specific BHA staff person to serve as a liaison between the BHA, the department of agriculture (department), behavioral health-care providers, rural community leaders, agricultural communities, and nonprofit organizations that serve agricultural communities. The program shall: Engage in statewide community outreach to educate communities on behavioral health issues facing farmers, ranchers, other agricultural industry workers, their families, and rural communities; Establish interdepartmental relationships; and Develop an understanding of and address the root causes of behavioral health issues in the agricultural industry and in rural communities. The act creates the agricultural behavioral health community of practice work group (work group) in the department. The purpose of the work group is to convene a group of leaders and experts in agriculture and behavioral health care to improve access to behavioral health care for those involved in agriculture and their families. The work group consists of at least 7 members and shall: Compile best practices to provide behavioral health care to those involved in agriculture and their families; Identify gaps in the provision of behavioral health care to those involved in agriculture; Engage with other stakeholders involved in behavioral health care focused on those involved in agriculture; Collect data, as permitted by state and federal data privacy laws, on behavioral health-care outcomes in agricultural communities and steps taken to support those involved in agriculture through behavioral health initiatives and programs; and Report to the department and the BHA on the data collected and recommend legislative or policy changes to further improve agricultural behavioral health care. The work group is scheduled for sunset review and repeal on September 1, 2029. The act establishes the agricultural behavioral health grant program (grant program) in the department. Subject to available appropriations, the department may administer the grant program. The purpose of the grant program is to: Continue existing programs or create new programs that address the root causes of behavioral health issues in the agricultural industry or in rural communities; Strengthen collaborative efforts between organizations and communities in addressing the root causes of behavioral health issues in the agricultural industry or in rural communities; and Improve access to health, wellness, and behavioral health care for farmers, ranchers, other agricultural industry workers, and their families. The act requires the department to contract with a statewide agricultural organization to convene an in-person annual summit for organizations with an interest in promoting and providing behavioral health care to agricultural communities. The department and the BHA are required to enter into an interagency agreement to share data collected in the course of addressing behavioral health-care issues in the agricultural industry and in rural communities. The interagency agreement must state that the data shared will be aggregated and anonymized, and data sharing must be in compliance with state and federal data privacy laws. On or before January 1, 2026, and each January 1 thereafter, the department is required to submit a report summarizing data collected by the work group, and data collected from grant recipients, to the agriculture, water, and natural resources committee and the health and human services committee of the house of representatives and the agriculture and natural resources committee and the health and human services committee of the senate, or their successor committees, and the BHA. On or before January 1, 2027, and each January 1 thereafter, the department shall include in the report a summary of the data collected regarding the in-person annual summit. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the general assembly appropriates $61,989 from the general fund for use by the department to implement the act. For the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the general assembly appropriates $145,116 to the department of human services for use by the BHA to implement the act. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act prohibits an insurance carrier that provides coverage for a drug used to treat a substance use disorder under a health benefit plan from requiring prior authorization for the drug based solely on the dosage amount. The act requires an insurance carrier to reimburse a licensed pharmacist prescribing or administering medication-assisted treatment (MAT) pursuant to a collaborative pharmacy practice agreement (collaborative agreement) at a rate equal to the reimbursement rate for other health-care providers. The act amends the practice of pharmacy to include prescriptive authority for any FDA-approved product indicated for opioid use disorder in accordance with federal law, if authorized through a collaborative agreement. The act requires the state board of pharmacy, the Colorado medical board, and the state board of nursing to develop a protocol for pharmacists to prescribe, dispense, and administer certain FDA-approved products for MAT. The act requires reimbursement to pharmacies of an enhanced dispensing fee for administering injectable antagonist medication for MAT that aligns with the administration fee paid to a provider in a clinical setting. The act requires the medical assistance program to reimburse a pharmacist prescribing or administering medications for opioid use disorder pursuant to a collaborative agreement at a rate equal to the reimbursement rate for other providers. The act authorizes licensed clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, and licensed professional counselors (professionals) within their scope of practice to provide clinical supervision to individuals seeking certification as addiction technicians and addiction specialists, and directs the state board of addiction counselors and the state board of human services, as applicable, to adopt rules relating to clinical supervision by these professionals. Further, a licensed addiction counselor is authorized to provide clinical supervision to individuals seeking licensure as marriage and family therapists or professional counselors if the licensed addiction counselor has met the education requirements for those professions, or the equivalent, as determined by the respective boards regulating those professions. The act expands the medication-assisted treatment expansion pilot program to include grants to provide training and ongoing support to pharmacies and pharmacists who are authorized to prescribe, dispense, and administer MAT pursuant to a collaborative agreement or drug therapy protocol to assist individuals with a substance use disorder. The act requires the department of health care policy and financing (HCPF) to seek federal authorization to provide MAT, case management services, and a 30-day supply of prescription medication to medicaid members upon release from jail or a juvenile institutional facility. The act adds substance use disorder treatment to the list of health-care or mental health-care services that are required to be reimbursed at the same rate for telemedicine as a comparable in-person service. The act requires HCPF to seek federal authorization to provide partial hospitalization for substance use disorder treatment with full federal financial participation. The act requires each managed care entity (MCE) that provides prescription drug benefits or methadone administration for the treatment of substance use disorders to: Set the reimbursement rate for take-home methadone treatment and office-administered methadone treatment at the same rate; and Not impose any prior authorization requirements on any prescription medication approved by the FDA for the treatment of substance use disorders, regardless of the dosage amount. The act requires the behavioral health administration (BHA) to collect data from each withdrawal management facility on the total number of individuals who were denied admittance or treatment for withdrawal management and the reason for the denial and to review and approve any admission criteria established by a withdrawal management facility. The act requires each MCE to disclose the aggregated average and lowest rates of reimbursement for a set of behavioral health services determined by HCPF and authorizes behavioral health providers to disclose reimbursement rates paid by an MCE to the behavioral health provider. Beginning in the 2024-25 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $150,000 from the general fund to the Colorado child abuse prevention trust fund (trust fund) for programs to reduce the occurrence of prenatal substance exposure. For the 2024-25 and 2025-26 state fiscal years, the act also annually appropriates $50,000 from the general fund to the trust fund to convene a stakeholder group to identify strategies to increase access to child care for families seeking substance use disorder treatment and recovery services. The act requires the BHA to contract with an independent third-party entity to provide services and supports to behavioral health providers seeking to become a behavioral health safety net provider with the goal of the provider becoming self-sustaining. The act creates the contingency management grant program in the BHA to provide grants to substance use disorder treatment programs that implement a contingency management program for individuals with a stimulant use disorder. The act authorizes the BHA to apply for federal funding for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder programs and to receive and disburse federal funds to public and private nonprofit organizations. The act extends the opioid and other substance use disorders study committee until September 1, 2026. The act appropriates money to implement the act. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE August 7, 2024 PORTIONS EFFECTIVE July 1, 2025(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The act authorizes a pharmacy technician or a pharmacy intern, under the supervision of a pharmacist, to replenish medication in a cassette device used for the automatic packaging of medication. The act also allows: A prescription drug that has been dispensed by a cassette device to be returned to the cassette device for redispensing as long as certain safety requirements are met; and A prescription drug that is dispensed but not delivered to a patient to be returned to stock and redispensed as long as it is stored in the container in which it was dispensed and maintains a label that accurately identifies its contents with respect to the original prescription label. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE July 1, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Regarding the regulation of natural medicine, the act: Authorizes the director of the division of professions and occupations in the department of regulatory agencies to approve facilitator education and training programs; Exempts facilitator education and training programs from regulation as private educational schools; Updates rule-making by the department of public health and environment and the state licensing authority related to laboratory testing and certification of natural medicine products; Prohibits individuals, rather than all persons, from having a financial interest in more than 5 natural medicine business licenses; Authorizes the state licensing authority to promulgate rules regarding requirements for the destruction of natural medicine or natural medicine products; Clarifies that a person may operate a natural medicine testing facility at the same location as a regulated marijuana testing facility; and Specifies which transfers and distributions of regulated natural medicine and regulated natural medicine products are authorized between persons licensed as healing centers, facilitators, natural medicine cultivation facilities, and natural medicine manufacturers. APPROVED by Governor June 6, 2024 EFFECTIVE June 6, 2024(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
