Sen. Joann Ginal

The act creates the offense of unlawfully aiming a laser device at an aircraft (offense), which is a class 6 felony. A person commits the offense when the person knowingly points, focuses, or aims a laser device at an aircraft while the aircraft is occupied and the incident is reported to law enforcement by the pilot or crew member of the impacted aircraft. The act provides exemptions for a person who points a laser device at an aircraft under certain circumstances. APPROVED by Governor March 23, 2023 EFFECTIVE July 1, 2023 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill authorizes a physician, a physician assistant, and an advanced practice registered nurse licensed health-care professional who is authorized to prescribe drugs (prescriber) to prescribe and administer a drug approved by the federal food and drug administration (FDA) for an off-label use. if: The off-label use of the drug for the indication has longstanding, common use; There is medical evidence to support the off-label use and no known evidence contraindicating such off-label use; and The prescriber has provided the patient or a minor patient's parent or guardian with an informed consent form, and the patient or parent or guardian has signed the form. The bill applies the same standard of care for the off-label use of the drug as for the on-label use of the drug. The bill clarifies that: The prescription and administration of an FDA-approved drug for an off-label use is not, by itself, a grounds for discipline; and A pharmacist who fills a prescription for off-label use is not subject to discipline by the state board of pharmacy. (Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.) (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The act clarifies the procedures for emergency and nonemergency continuing placement of a child or youth that a county department of human or social services (county department) or a local law enforcement agency (law enforcement) with custody of the child or youth shall follow before making the emergency or nonemergency continuing placement of a child or youth with a relative or kin. For emergency placements, the county department or law enforcement shall perform an initial criminal history record check (initial check) on the relative or kin and any adult who resides at the home (adults) using Colorado and federal databases. If the initial check reveals certain criminal convictions, the county department or law enforcement shall not place the child or youth in that home on an emergency basis. If the initial check does not reflect certain criminal convictions on the part of the adults, the child or youth may be placed in the home on an emergency basis. If the child or youth has been placed with a relative or kin on an emergency basis, the adults shall, no more than 14 days after the placement, submit a complete set of fingerprints to the county department or another designated third party to conduct a state and national fingerprint-based criminal history record check. If the results of the fingerprint-based criminal history record check reveal a felony conviction, the child or youth must be immediately removed from the placement unless there is a motion regarding placement pending before the court. A court may review the placement and affirm or deny placement of the child or youth with the relative or kin. The act sets forth the criminal offenses or other matters that qualify for the denial of placement of a child or youth with the relative or kin. A county department may make a placement with a relative or kin who would otherwise be disqualified if such placement conforms with rules promulgated by the state board of human services or if a court affirms the placement. The state board of human services is granted authority to promulgate rules concerning emergency and nonemergency, continuing placement of children and youth with relatives or kin. APPROVED by Governor March 17, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Effective July 1, 2024, the bill: Establishes the minimum standards and labeling requirements for kratom products; Requires that, prior to selling or offering for sale any kratom product, the processor of the kratom product (processor) register the kratom product with the department of revenue (department) and provide a certificate of analysis for the kratom product to the department; Requires a processor to notify the department if an adverse event report is submitted to the federal food and drug administration for any of the processor's kratom products; and Allows the department, if there is a reasonable basis, to require a test for compliance of a processor's kratom product by a third-party laboratory, to coordinate with a third-party laboratory to conduct the test, and to require the processor to pay the department's cost for the test. The executive director of the department is required to promulgate rules to administer and enforce the bill and is authorized to impose fines on processors that violate the bill. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

The bill prohibits a prescriber from issuing to a patient a prescription for an opioid that will be dispensed or administered outside of a health-care facility or the prescriber's practice location if the amount of the opioid exceeds 90 morphine milligram equivalents per day, unless the patient suffers from intractable pain.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Section 5 of the act prohibits a person, on or after January 1, 2024, from tampering with a motor vehicle's emission control system, conveying or offering to convey a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with, or operating a motor vehicle with an emission control system that has been tampered with (anti-tampering provisions). Section 5 also: On and after July 1, 2025, provides a "safe harbor" from enforcement of the anti-tampering provisions for a period up to one year for a person that self-reports noncompliance with the anti-tampering provisions; Authorizes the air quality control commission to adopt rules as necessary to implement the anti-tampering provisions; Exempts motorcycles from the anti-tampering provisions; and Authorizes the department of public health and environment, on or before January 1, 2025, and on or before January 1 of each year thereafter, to report to the legislative committees that hear energy matters a summary of the complaints filed, enforcement actions taken, and penalties assessed for violations of the anti-tampering provisions. Section 1 authorizes the attorney general to bring a civil action to enforce the anti-tampering provisions, and sections 3 and 4 establish penalties for the anti-tampering provisions. Section 3 requires penalties collected to be credited to the catalytic converter identification and theft prevention grant program cash fund (fund), which fund is created in section 2 and is to be used for the catalytic converter identification and theft prevention grant program created in House Bill 22-1217, concerning measures to prevent catalytic converter theft, if that bill becomes law. Sections 2 and 3 take effect only if House Bill 22-1217 becomes law. Alternatively, if House Bill 22-1217 does not become law, section 4 takes effect and requires penalties collected to be credited to the AIR account in the highway users tax fund for the administration of the automobile inspection and readjustment program. Section 6 makes nonsubstantive changes to the definition of "motor vehicle". Section 7 extends the period during which a motor vehicle dealer remains liable to a consumer for a recently purchased motor vehicle's compliance with emissions standards from 3 business days after purchase to 5 business days after purchase. Section 8 authorizes the department of revenue to deny, suspend, or revoke a motor vehicle dealer's, wholesale motor vehicle auction dealer's, wholesaler's, buyer agent's, or used motor vehicle dealer's license for selling to a retail customer a motor vehicle that is not equipped with a properly functioning emission control system. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act states that if the United States food and drug administration approves a prescription medicine that contains 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), and if that medicine has been placed on a schedule of the federal "Controlled Substances Act", other than schedule I, or has been exempted from one or more provisions of such act, then thereafter prescribing, dispensing, transporting, possessing, and using that prescription drug is legal in Colorado only if the medicine is possessed by a person authorized to legally possess such a controlled substance in Colorado. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act enacts the "Interstate Licensed Professional Counselors Compact", which, once effective, will allow licensed professional counselors in any state that has joined the compact (member state) to provide: Licensed professional counselor services in each member state under a privilege to practice; and Telehealth services in each member state under a privilege to practice. The act authorizes the state board of licensed professional counselor examiners (board) to promulgate rules and to facilitate Colorado's participation in the compact, including notification to the Counseling Compact Commission (commission) established by the compact of any adverse action taken by the board against a Colorado licensed professional counselor. The commission includes a delegate from each member state and has the powers and duties set forth in the act. The compact becomes effective on the date the compact is enacted in the tenth member state. The act appropriates $104,538 to the department of regulatory agencies from the division of professions and occupations cash fund for use by the division of professions and occupations to implement the act. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires the Colorado state forest service to make certain upgrades and improvements to its seedling tree nursery in order to expand its capacity and its ability to contribute to reforestation efforts in the state. The act is repealed as of January 1, 2025. For the 2022-23 state fiscal year, $5,000,000 is appropriated to the department of higher education for use by the board of governors of the Colorado state university system for the Colorado state forest service tree nursery. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)