More than 600 bills were debated this year in the Colorado legislature’s 120-day lawmaking term, which ended Monday.
The Colorado Sun combed through the measures to pick out 101 bills that passed — and some that didn’t — that you should know about. The legislation in this list will or would have affected the lives of people across the state. Much of it is awaiting Gov. Jared Polis’ signature.
The notable ones that passed:
Tightening gun regulations
House Bill 1219: Coloradans will have to wait three days after purchasing guns to take possession of the weapons under this measure meant to prevent heat-of-the-moment suicides and homicides. The bill was signed into law by Polis in late April. It takes effect Oct. 1. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 168: This measure makes it easier to sue the gun industry in Colorado by rolling back extra protections against civil litigation for firearm and ammunition manufacturers and sellers. The bill was signed into law by Polis in late April. It takes effect Oct. 1. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 169: Anyone purchasing a firearm in Colorado must now be at least 21 years old under this bill signed into law by Polis in late April. Previously, people 18 years and older in the state could purchase rifles and shotguns, while the minimum age to purchase a handgun was 21. The law takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session.
Senate Bill 170: This measure, which was signed into law by Polis in late April, expanded the state’s red flag law, which allows judges to order the temporary seizure of firearms from people deemed a significant risk to themselves or others. The bill added health care providers, mental health providers, district attorneys and teachers to the list of people who can petition a judge to order a firearm seizure. The law immediately went into effect.
Senate Bill 279: This bill would make it illegal to manufacture, possess and/or sell so-called ghost guns — homemade firearms that are untraceable because they don’t have a serial number. The weapons have been used in several recent, high-profile shootings in Colorado. Ghost guns are made through 3D printers and make-it-yourself gun kits. The measure is awaiting Polis’ signature. If it’s signed, it would go into effect on Jan. 1. >> READ MORE
Abortion-related measures
Senate Bill 188: This legislation, signed into law by Polis in mid-April, shields people who receive, facilitate or provide abortion or gender-affirming care in Colorado from criminal prosecution or lawsuits initiated in other states. The law bars state courts, law enforcement and regulators from recognizing or participating in out-of-state criminal or civil investigations into abortions or gender-affirming care. The measure went into effect as soon as it was signed.>> READ MORE
Senate Bill 189: The legislation, signed into law by Polis in mid-April, requires large employer plans to cover the cost of abortions without policy deductibles, copayments or coinsurance starting Jan. 1, 2025. There is an exception for government employers, because the state is prohibited from spending taxpayer dollars on abortions, as well as for employers for whom abortion is against their “sincerely held religious beliefs.” Additionally, the new law requires health insurance plans issued or renewed after Jan. 1, 2025, that cover counseling, prevention and screening for sexually transmitted infections to offer those services without cost sharing, like through a deductible or copay. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 190: This measure, signed into law by Polis in mid-April, makes it illegal for anti-abortion clinics to falsely advertise that they provide abortions or Plan B, the emergency contraceptive. It also outlawed so-called abortion pill reversal treatment until the state’s three medical boards determine whether the controversial treatment is a “generally accepted standard of practice.” The boards have until Oct. 1 to make a decision. The new law is being challenged in court and state regulators and prosecutors say they won’t enforce the prohibition on abortion pill reversal treatment until the medical boards make their determination. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 284: State-regulated health insurance plans would be required to cover a 12-month supply of contraceptives under this bill awaiting the governor’s signature.
The bills affecting your wallet
House Bill 1006: This bill, which was signed into law, required that employers notify their employees about certain federal and state tax credits, including the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit.
House Bill 1112: The eligibility for the Earned Income Tax Credit would be expanded under the bill, including to eliminate an income requirement for eligibility. The measure, which hasn’t been signed yet, would decouple Colorado’s EITC from the federal one and expand the state benefit to 38% of the federal one, up from 25%.
House Bill 1134: Home warranty insurers that provide coverage for gas-fueled appliances — like furnaces, HVAC systems, boilers, water heaters and stoves — have to replace their clients’ broken appliances with electric-powered alternatives of their choosing under this bill that was signed into law. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1290: Colorado voters will be asked in November to let the state keep about $24 million in tax revenue collected through Proposition EE in excess of the revenue forecast for the 2020 ballot measure that raised tobacco and nicotine taxes. That’s because of House Bill 1290, which would direct the extra money be transferred to Colorado’s new universal preschool program. If voters reject the proposal, the money would be refunded to the tobacco industry. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1311: Colorado taxpayers would receive a Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights refund check of about $650 or $1,300, depending on whether they are single or joint filers, under this measure awaiting the governor’s signature. The bill overrides the default refund mechanism, through which TABOR surplus is returned to Coloradans through checks based on income levels, with higher earners getting more money and lower earners getting less. The change only goes into effect if Coloradans approve Proposition HH, a 10-year property tax relief plan, on the November ballot. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 143: This bill, which was signed into law by Polis in early May, exempts small businesses with up to $500,000 in sales from collecting Colorado’s 27-cent retail delivery fee, which was enacted by the legislature in 2021 and funds transportation projects. The measure also lets sellers pay the fee on a purchaser’s behalf so that it doesn’t need to be itemized for each delivery. The change is forecast to reduce state revenue by about $1.5 million a year.
☀️ READ MORE
Senate Bill 172: Colorado’s legal definition of what’s considered “severe” or “pervasive” workplace harassment would be redefined to make it easier for people to file legal complaints. The measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, also forces employers to internally respond and investigate complaints.
Senate Bill 214: Colorado’s $38.5 billion fiscal year 2023-24 budget, which takes effect July 1, increases education funding, sets aside money to battle wildfires and boost the pay of state employees. It was signed by the governor in early May. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 291: This measure aims to prevent Coloradans’ utility bills from spiking by increasing transparency in electric and gas rate cases and trying to reduce expensive natural gas investments long term. The bill, which hasn’t been signed yet, also limits what costs utilities can pass along to consumers, including around lobbying and advertising. Finally, the legislation aims to create an incentive for utilities to buy cheaper fuel through stricter regulation. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 303: Voters will be asked in November to approve a 10-year property tax relief plan aimed at blunting the effect of rising property values on the tax burden of homeowners and businesses. The measure would drive down property assessment rates and for two years let homeowners exempt some of their property’s value from taxation. >> READ MORE
Business
House Bill 1011: Colorado farmers and ranchers will be allowed to fix their equipment thanks to this “right to repair” measure signed by Polis. The legislation requires manufacturers of tractors, combines and other agricultural machines to provide their customers with manuals, tools, parts and software to keep their equipment running. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1146: Most Colorado businesses would be prohibited from stopping an employee from accepting a cash tip from a patron under the bill that awaits the governor’s signature. Exceptions to the measure include employees regulated by the Division of Gaming, those who work in a health care facility and those who work in facilities providing care or housing to senior citizens.
Senate Bill 17: This measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, would add to the list of reasons an employee can get paid leave compensation. Those new reasons would include: to care for a family member whose school or place of care has been closed due to unexpected occurrences, like inclement weather or loss of power, heating or water; because they were forced to flee their home; to grieve, attend memorial services, or deal with financial and legal matters that arise from the death of a family member.
Senate Bill 60: Ticket retailers would be required to show buyers all ticket fees up front as opposed to at checkout under this bill that hasn’t been signed by the governor yet. The measure also would ban speculative ticketing, which is when ticket resellers set prices for tickets before they go on sale. It would also ban tickets from being sold by websites with deceptive names that make patrons believe they are buying directly from a venue.
Senate Bill 259: Colorado casinos could offer lines of credit to their patrons under this measure that barely passed the legislature and hasn’t been signed into law yet. The bill was rejected in the House two days before the lawmaking term ended only to pass after the chamber reconsidered the bill. Critics of the measure worry it will make it easier for problem gamblers to go into debt, while supporters, including the gambling industry, say it will prevent people from having to travel to casinos with large amounts of cash. >> READ MORE
Wildfire
House Bill 1075: This measure, which hasn’t been signed into law yet, would require the Colorado Office of Emergency Management to conduct a study investigating the integration of evacuation and clearance time modeling in local emergency management plans. The study would have to be completed by Dec. 1, and the Department of Public Safety would have to report its findings to the legislature.
House Bill 1174: This bill would require that homeowner’s insurance policies issued or renewed as of Jan. 1, 2025, provide homeowners with additional information about replacement costs. The Division of Insurance would be charged under the measure, which hasn’t been signed yet, with drafting rules around the requirements. Additionally, the legislation would require insurers to notify homeowners within 60 days if they plan to cancel or not renew their policy, up from 30 days.
House Bill 1288: This measure would create a quasi-governmental property insurer of last resort in Colorado for property owners who are unable to get coverage on the private market. The bill, which is awaiting the governor’s signature, is aimed at preparing the state for a future in which there are more wildfires driven by climate change. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 13: Nearly $3 million would be set aside under this measure for fire investigations in Colorado. The bill, which is awaiting Polis’ signature, would require that the money be prioritized toward investigating the cause and origin of wildland fires.
Senate Bill 161: The legislature set aside $26 million through this measure to buy a second Firehawk helicopter for the state. The chopper is a modified version of the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk used by the military. The bill is awaiting the governor’s signature.
Senate Bill 166: This bill, which has not yet been signed, would create a 21-member Wildfire Resiliency Code Board to adopt statewide building codes and standards for preventing damage caused by wildland fires in urban areas by 2025. Local governments in the wildlife urban interface — which will be defined by the board — will have to adopt a local code that meets or exceeds those standards.
Housing
House Bill 1068: This measure would limit how much a landlord could charge in a security deposit or rent based on whether a tenant owns a pet. It also would stop home and fire insurance providers from charging premiums or denying coverage to a home based on their breed of dog — in most cases. The bill is awaiting the governor’s signature.
House Bill 1120: A landlord who rents to someone receiving federal Supplemental Security Income, federal Social Security Disability Insurance, or financial assistance from Colorado Works, the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, would not be allowed to evict that tenant without first going to mediation under this measure awaiting the governor’s signature. There would be some notable exceptions, including for landlords who manage five or fewer homes, or if the tenant does not disclose that they receive the financial assistance described in the law.
House Bill 1186: People going through eviction proceedings could be able to participate remotely in those court hearings under this bill, which awaits the governor’s signature.
House Bill 1190: Under this measure awaiting the governor’s signature, local governments could have the opportunity to purchase multifamily properties — defined as five units or more in rural areas and 15 units or more in urban and suburban areas — that were built more than 30 years ago. Local governments would have seven days to indicate that they’re interested in buying an eligible property before it’s listed on the open market, and then have 30 days to make an offer and 60 days to close. The local governments would have to pay market value for the properties and use them to increase their community’s affordable housing stock.
House Bill 1253: This bill awaiting the governor’s signature would create an eight-member task force to study corporate ownership of housing in the state since 2008. The members, two of whom would be legislators, would look at various home sales that resulted in partial or exclusive ownership by a corporation and could consider recommending a fee for corporations that buy housing could fund organizations that seek to address housing issues.
House Bill 1255: This measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, would ban local growth caps and repeal the existing growth limit policies in places like Boulder and Golden.
Senate Bill 184: Landlords could only reject a tenant on income grounds if their annual income is less than 200% the annual rent on the property they are seeking to live in under this bill, which is awaiting the governor’s signature. Traditionally, landlords have required that prospective tenants earn three times the annual rent for a home. The measure would also prohibit landlords from charging a security deposit greater than two months rent.
Education and child care
House Bill 1003: This bill awaiting Polis’ signature would create a mental health screening process for students in all public schools beginning in the sixth grade. If a student is found during an assessment to need treatment, their parents would be notified and given information about therapy resources. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1064: If nine other states also pass similar legislation, Colorado will enter into an interstate teacher mobility compact with them under this bill. That compact would allow licensed teachers in the member states to be licensed more easily in each other’s states. The governor signed this bill in early March. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1213: The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment would have to distribute bleed-control kits and training materials to schools that request them under this measure awaiting the governor’s signature. The bill is expected to cost the state about $160,000 a year.
Senate Bill 202: This bill, signed into law by the governor, requires that Colorado’s public colleges and universities allow qualifying students to wear traditional Native American dress at graduation ceremonies. The measure defines qualifying students as members of a Native American tribe and people who are eligible to be members of a tribe or who are of Native American descent.
Senate Bill 287: Per-pupil funding in Colorado public schools would be increased by $598.25, to $8,076.41 — an 8% boost — under the legislature’s 2023 school finance act, which is awaiting the governor’s signature. The bill also reduces the budget stabilization factor — sometimes referred to as the negative factor — by $180 million. The factor is a Great Recession-era scheme that allows the General Assembly to allocate to schools each year less than what they are owed. The IOU persists today, though Senate BIll 287 puts the state on a path to eliminate the deficit in fiscal year 2024-25. >> READ MORE
Environment
House Bill 1233: Under this bill, homebuilders would be required to include electric vehicle charging infrastructure in newly built single-family and multifamily homes. The measure, which hasn’t been signed into law yet, also seeks to boost electric vehicle charging infrastructure near highways and would exempt electric vehicle chargers from being subject to property taxes through 2030.
House Bill 1272: This bill would offer state income tax credits for people who lease or buy electric and/or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The measure, which hasn’t been signed yet, also would offer tax credits to people who purchase heat pumps or geothermal systems for their homes. The legislation also offers tax credits for people who purchase electric bikes and for the use of sustainable aviation fuel. The measure is expected to reduce state tax revenue by between $38 million and $50 million in each of the next three fiscal years.
House Bill 1294: This measure, which hasn’t been signed into law yet, would create an interim committee to investigate how Colorado can reduce its ozone levels. It also would force state regulators to parse out ozone sources to determine their cumulative impacts. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 16: Colorado must achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 under this bill, which also inserts additional interim greenhouse gas reductions in law between now and then. The measure, which hasn’t been signed yet, also offers 30% tax credits for electric lawn equipment that would be claimed by the retailer on a customer’s behalf. The credit begins in 2024.
Senate Bill 178: This measure aims to make it easier for people who live in areas governed by a homeowners association to install water-wise and ecologically beneficial landscaping. HOAs are already prohibited from preventing property owners from xeriscaping, but under this measure the associations would have less power over what that xeriscaping would be and they would also have to allow front yard vegetable gardening. The measure is awaiting the governor’s signature.
Senate Bill 255: If signed into law, this bill would create the Wolf Depredation Compensation Fund in the Department of Natural Resources to compensate landowners and agricultural producers for damage caused by the reintroduction of wolves in Colorado. It would get $175,000 in startup funds.
Senate Bill 256: This measure would prevent wolves from being reintroduced on the Western Slope by Colorado Parks and Wildfire, as directed by a 2020 ballot measure, until the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has completed a so-called 10(j) assessment about whether the gray wolf population is a nonessential experimental population. The classification offers an exemption to protections under the Endangered Species Act that allows for lethal management. The legislation is awaiting the governor’s signature.
Senate Bill 285: The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission would be renamed the Energy and Carbon Management Commission under this bill, which hasn’t been signed into law yet. The legislation would also expand the commission’s regulatory authority to include emerging energy generation and storage technologies, like deep geothermal and underground gas storage.
Senate Bill 295: This measure would create a yearlong Colorado River drought task force charged with making policy recommendations to the legislature. It’s awaiting Polis’ signature. >> READ MORE
Criminal justice
House Bill 1037: Those convicted of nonviolent felonies can shorten their sentences by completing a higher education degree or certification under this bill signed by Polis. They can receive two years for a doctoral degree, 1.5 years for a master’s degree, 1 year for an associate or bachelor’s degree and six months for completing 30 credit hours.
House Bill 1042: If a law enforcement officer lies to a child during interrogation, that child’s statements would no longer be able to be used in court proceedings under this bill. It also would require officers to record all interrogations of juveniles. It awaits Polis’ signature.
House Bill 1100: This bill, awaiting the governor’s signature, would stop jails and law enforcement in the state from entering into or renewing certain contracts with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement related to immigrant detention.
House Bill 1123: Motorists in Colorado must move one lane over or reduce their speed when approaching a vehicle parked on the shoulder with its hazard lights on under this bill that was signed into law by the governor. A violation is considered careless driving, which is either a Class 2 traffic misdemeanor or a Class 6 felony, depending on whether the violation causes injury or death.
House Bill 1133: The Department of Corrections would have to begin paying for inmate phone calls under this bill, which hasn’t been signed yet by Polis. It would begin with the state paying 25% of the cost later this year, 35% beginning 2024 and the full cost in 2025. Nonpartisan fiscal analysts expect the measure to cost the state $1 million annually in years where the cost is fully covered by the government.
House Bill 1167: People who aid someone experiencing a drug or alcohol overdose would get immunity from prosecution under this “good Samaritan” bill signed into law by the governor. Additionally, the measure makes it a level 1 drug misdemeanor — rather than a level 3 or level 4 drug felony — for the unlawful distribution, dispensing, transfer or sale of certain controlled substances where the person reports the overdose, remains at the scene and provides their identification to emergency responders.
House Bill 1182: This measure awaiting the governor’s signature would require municipal, county and district courts in Colorado to broadcast criminal court proceedings online, provided the court has the technology to do so. It would take effect in September.
House Bill 1187: People who are pregnant or recently gave birth could only be jailed or imprisoned if a judge finds they pose a substantial risk to the public and that risk outweighs the risk of their incarceration under this measure. The bill, which hasn’t been signed by Polis yet, requires staff at a county jails and in the Department of Corrections, or a juvenile detention facility, to provide a pregnancy test to anyone who requests one.
House Bill 1214: The process of asking the governor to commute a criminal sentence would change under this measure awaiting Polis’ signature. The bill would require the governor’s office to notify applicants that their request has been received and if it’s missing any information. It would also require the governor to consider an applicant’s good character before their conviction, good conduct during incarceration, and statements and supporting materials from the prosecuting district attorney. Finally, the bill would require the governor’s office each year to report data on commutations of sentences on its website.
House Bill 1249: This measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, allows prosecution of kids as young as 10 but lets law enforcement refer kids to community programs instead of the juvenile justice system. It also provides $1.5 million to help build up those community services. Originally, the legislation would have raised the age for prosecution in Colorado to 13 from 10 and required kids ages 10 to 12 who come into contact with law enforcement to be referred to services. The initial proposal passed the House but was gutted by the Senate after intense pushback from district attorneys, law enforcement officers and the child welfare system. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 97: This measure would change Colorado’s auto theft laws by decoupling the value of a vehicle that’s stolen from the level of offense a thief faces. Under the bill, awaiting the governor’s signature, would be three levels of auto theft in Colorado: first-degree motor vehicle theft, a Class 3 felony, for someone who has two prior convictions of auto theft; second-degree motor vehicle theft, a Class 4 felony, for a person who knowingly obtains another’s vehicle without authorization and there are vehicle alterations or damages; and third-degree motor vehicle theft, a Class 5 felony, for a person who knowingly obtains or receives a stolen vehicle. Finally, the bill would make it a Class 1 misdemeanor to take a vehicle without the owner’s authorization but return it within 24 hours without damaging the car or committing other criminal offenses, beyond misdemeanor traffic violations. >> READ MORE
Health care
House Bill 1002: This measure would cap how much a health insurance company can require a customer to pay for an epinephrine auto-injector — commonly known as an EpiPen — at $60. The bill awaits Polis’ signature.
House Bill 1071: Psychologists in Colorado will be allowed to write prescriptions if they’re willing to obtain an additional two-year degree under this bill signed into law by the governor. The measure is intended to increase access to mental health care in Colorado, which has a severe shortage of mental health professionals. Psychiatrists, who are medical doctors, fought the legislation. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1077: This measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, would require that health care workers get informed consent before performing pelvic examinations on a patient unless it’s a matter of life or death. Health care facilities would be allowed to develop their own consent forms or they could choose to use a form developed by the state health department.
House Bill 1195: Pharmacies are allowed to operate automated prescription dispensing machines — like vending machines — where people can pick up medications after normal pharmacy operating hours under this bill signed earlier this month.
House Bill 1215: This bill, awaiting the governor’s signature, would ban facility fees from being charged for preventative care. It would also require more transparency around the fees and initiate a state study on how they are used. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1218: Colorado hospitals and clinics that for ethical reasons do not provide certain types of health care would be required to disclose that to their patients or the public under House Bill 1218. The state health department is charged with working out the specifics under the measure, which awaits the governor’s signature, but the legislation is aimed at creating transparency about reproductive health care, gender-affirming care and end-of-life options. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1243: Nonprofit hospitals would have to make “community investments” under this bill awaiting the governor’s signature. The measure would give the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing the ability to enforce compliance through fines and additional reporting requirements.
Senate Bill 290: This bill, which awaits the governor’s signature, would create regulations and an oversight structure for the plant-based psychedelic substances — namely “magic mushrooms” — that were legalized by voters in November through Proposition 122. The measure would also make it a crime to consume psychedelics in public.
Elections and government
House Bill 1057: Starting on Jan. 1, 2024, any newly constructed or renovated bathroom owned, operated or controlled by the state, a county or a municipality would have to include nongendered facilities and at least one baby diaper changing station under this bill awaiting the governor’s signature. The measure would apply to publicly accessible buildings by Jan. 1, 2024, and buildings accessible by employees or students by July 1, 2025.
House Bill 1139: Salaries for commissioners, sheriffs, treasurers, assessors, clerks, coroners, and surveyors will be raised in Archuleta, Las Animas, Grand, Pitkin, Delta, Saguache, Ouray, Summit and Eagle counties under this measure, which was signed by the governor. The increases will take effect after people are elected to the relevant positions in 2024 or 2026.
House Bill 1185: This measure, which was signed into law by the governor, changed state law around recall elections and how local government vacancies are filled. The bill standardizes the process to replace city council members, mayors and public trustees when a vacancy occurs. It also requires city clerks to call special elections to fill municipal vacancies if a city council lacks a quorum to appoint a replacement.
House Bill 1245: This measure, awaiting the governor’s signature, would limit individual donations to municipal candidates to $400, while small-donor committees would be able give up to $4,000. The bill would apply to any city that isn’t a home-rule municipality with donation limits already in law. A home-rule city with higher campaign donation limits in law wouldn’t have to lower its amounts under the bill. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1306: Politicians would be allowed to block people from viewing their private social media accounts under this bipartisan bill awaiting the governor’s signature. Politicians would not be allowed to block people from their social media accounts if they are required for the position or if they are run using taxpayer dollars. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 53: State and local government agencies, including counties, cities and school districts, would be prohibited from requiring employees to enter into nondisclosure or nondisparagement agreements under this bill awaiting the governor’s signature.
☀️ READ MORE
Senate Bill 110: Metropolitan districts have to disclose more information and be subject to new regulations under this measure signed by the governor in early April. The bill imposes debt limits and mill levy caps for bond repayments and requires that districts organized after Jan. 1, 2020, hold an annual meeting with information about outstanding projects and debt and during that meeting allow for questions from the public.
Senate Bill 145: A favorite of Capitol staff, this measure would create the stegosaurus state fossil license plate. The plate would be available starting Jan. 1 and purchasers would be charged two, one-time $25 fees, in addition to normal license plate fees. The bill awaits the governor’s signature.
Senate Bill 276: This broad measure would tweak Colorado’s election code, including to prohibit the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office or any local election administrator from using state or federal funds for advertising that features candidates for federal, state or local office. It also seeks to make candidates’ personal financial disclosure forms more accessible to the public. Finally, the bill would require counties with more than 10,000 voters — more than half of Colorado’s 64 counties — to begin counting ballots at least four days before Election Day in an effort to ensure results are posted as quickly as possible to prevent election conspiracies from spreading. The measure awaits the governor’s signature. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 286: Records of sexual harassment complaints made against elected officials would be subject to public inspection under the Colorado Open Records Act should an investigation find the official guilty. The change made under Senate Bill 286 hasn’t been signed into law. The measure would also require public records to be sent in a digital format if available, and it would prevent government agencies from charging a per-page fee for providing digital records. Finally, the bill would require that government agencies let people seeking records pay by credit card or electronic payment if they accept credit card or electronic payment for other services or products. >> READ MORE
The big bills that failed
House Bill 1028: Former state lawmakers would have been able to get a name badge indicating their status as a former representative or senator under this bipartisan bill that was rejected in the Senate.
House Bill 1098: This bill would have required that student athletes participate in sports based only on their biological sex at birth. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House State, Civic, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee on Feb. 13.
House Bill 1090: This measure would have prohibited metropolitan district directors or board members who approve the issuance of debt from acquiring any interest in the debt individually or on behalf of an organization. The bill failed in a Senate committee in March.
House Bill 1115: Colorado’s 40-year ban on local governments enacting rent control policies would have been repealed by this bill. Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Avon, joined three Republicans on the Senate Housing and Local Government Committee in voting against House Bill 1115, which failed 4-3. Roberts cited concerns around the measure stifling development and hurting affordability overall. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1118: This bill would have required that certain employers, namely those in the retail and restaurant industries, provide their workers with schedules two weeks in advance so they could better plan their private lives. It was rejected in a House committee in March. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1119: Abortion would have become illegal in Colorado if this bill had been passed. The measure would have added fetuses to the definition of “person,” making the termination of a pregnancy subject to homicide and assault charges. The House Health and Insurance Committee heard three hours of testimony before voting 8-3 along party lines to reject the legislation Feb. 17.
House Bill 1163: This GOP bill would have prohibited state and local governments from classifying carbon dioxide as a pollutant or enforcing regulations on the chemical compound that deem it a pollutant. It was rejected 8-3 along party lines by the House Energy and Environment Committee on Feb. 23.
House BIll 1165: Counties would have had more power to regulate where people can shoot firearms in unincorporated areas, repealing a statute broadly giving people the right to fire guns on private property. The bill was rejected in the Colorado Senate.
House Bill 1171: This measure, which ran out of time in the Senate and was a cornerstone housing policy for progressive Democrats in the legislature this year, would have prohibited landlords from evicting their residential tenants or declining to renew their lease without “just cause.” The bill would have generally defined just cause as being when a tenant breaches a lease agreement. Just cause would have also been defined as when a landlord decides to substantially repair or renovate a housing unit or wants to move a family member into the unit. A landlord’s decision to withdraw a unit from the rental market also would have constituted just cause. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1202: This bill would have let cities authorize and regulate so-called overdose prevention centers, also known as safe-use or safe-injection sites, where people can openly use illicit drugs under the watch of health care workers. It was rejected by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee on a 9-6 vote, with three Democrats voting with the panel’s Republicans to block it from advancing. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1208: Public school teachers would have been eligible for an income tax credit of up to $1,000 for tax years 2023 through 2026 under this measure that never made it out of the House. The tax credit would have been refundable, meaning if the credit exceeded a taxpayers’ tax liability they would have received a check in the mail. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1209: The University of Colorado School of Public Health would have been charged with studying the possibility of implementing a single-payer health care system in the state and how it would affect health care facilities, insurance carriers and different socioeconomic and racial groups. A report, drafted with the help of a board that would have been appointed in part by legislative leadership and the governor, would have been due to the General Assembly by Oct. 1, 2024. The report would have been based on model legislation selected for analysis by the School of Public Health. The measure, which ran out of time in the Senate after passing the House, would have cost the state about $300,000.
House Bill 1230: The sale and transfer of so-called assault weapons in Colorado would have been banned under this measure. The bill was rejected in the House Judiciary Committee during its first hearing as three Democrats on the panel joined Republicans in blocking the legislation from advancing. >> READ MORE
House Bill 1248: Special investigative committees formed by leaders in the state legislature would have had streamlined subpoena power under this bill that was rejected during its first hearing. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 38: This measure was intended to outlaw the slaughter of horses for human consumption. It was rejected on the Senate floor in March. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 61: Elementary and middle schoolers would have stopped taking state standardized assessments in social studies starting next year under this bill. The measure was brought by a group of Democrats who wanted to spare Colorado teachers and students the time and stress of testing and save the state more than $1 million each year. The measure died in the House. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 98: Ride-share drivers would have gotten more information about how much money they would make each trip and how much their platform — Uber or Lyft, for instance — are keeping under this measure that was rejected by a Democratic-majority committee in the Senate.
Senate Bill 101: This bill from Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, R-Brighton, and Rep. Mary Bradfield, R-Colorado Springs, would have eliminated candidates’ ability to qualify for primary ballots through the caucus and assembly process. It would have instead forced candidates to collect petition signatures to make the ballot. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 109: The bill would have made it a level 1 drug felony to sell controlled substances that kill someone who ingests the substance or substances. The measure was aimed at expanding a law passed in 2022 that made it a level 1 drug felony to sell fentanyl or a fentanyl compound that ends up killing someone.
Senate Bill 158: The 30-member Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, which for nearly two decades helped guide the legislature on criminal justice policy, was shut down by the failure of Senate Bill 158. The measure was rejected in the House Judiciary Committee. >> READ MORE
Senate Bill 213: The Colorado Senate killed this measure, presented by the governor as a long-term way to solve the state’s affordable housing crisis. It would have forced the state’s largest cities to increase residential zoning density around bus and train stops. But cities and counties vociferously opposed the governor’s approach and Democratic lawmakers in the Capitol couldn’t reach a compromise. >> READ MORE
Colorado Sun staff writer Jennifer Brown contributed to this report. Colorado Sun correspondent Sandra Fish contributed to this report.