Existing law specifies that an individual must be a certified death investigator or forensic pathologist to be eligible to hold the office of county coroner in a county with a population greater than 150,000. The act changes this requirement to apply in a county with a population greater than 300,000. The act also requires a county coroner to disclose, on the coroner's website, their financial interest in businesses regulated by their office, including a mortuary, funeral home, crematory, embalming service, or other death-care business. A coroner who has disclosed a financial interest shall not participate in an official action that would directly and specifically affect the business in which the coroner has a financial interest. The act does not prohibit a coroner or candidate for coroner from operating a death-care business.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill makes the following changes to the "Colorado Open Records Act" (CORA):Excludes from the definition of a "public record" a written document or electronic record that is produced by a device or application that is used to assist an individual with a disability or individuals with language barriers to facilitate communication if the written document or electronic record has been produced to facilitate communication in lieu of verbal communication;Requires a public entity to post any rules or policies adopted pursuant to CORA, including any records retention policy, and to post information for members of the public regarding how to make a public records request; Changes the reasonable time to respond to a CORA request from 3 to 5 working days and changes the extension of time for the response period if extenuating circumstances exist from not exceeding 7 additional days to not exceeding 10 additional days;Adds an extenuating circumstance that allows extension of the response period when the custodian is not scheduled to work within the response period;If public records are in the sole and exclusive custody and control of a person who is not scheduled to work within the response period, requires a custodian to provide all other available responsive public records within the response period and to notify the requester of the earliest date on which the person is expected to be available or that the person is not expected to return. The requester may make a subsequent request for additional responsive records, if any, on or after the date the custodian provides.Allows a custodian to determine that a request, other than a request for a contract or other information delivered using computer data extraction methods that require minimal human intervention for retrieval, is made for the direct solicitation of business for pecuniary gain and provides a 30-day response period for such request; requires the custodian to provide written notice of the custodian's determination to the requester and permits the requester to appeal the determination to the district court; and allows a custodian to charge the requester for the reasonable cost of directly responding to the request notwithstanding the allowance for the first hour of research and retrieval to be free of charge and notwithstanding the statutory cap on fees which otherwise would apply;In addition to the prohibition on disclosing public elementary or secondary school students' addresses and telephone numbers, prohibits disclosure of any other student information that could be used to directly contact, address, or send a message to a student through any means or method;Allows a requester to ask a custodian for a reasonable breakdown of costs that comprise the fee charged for the research and retrieval of requested public records and requires a custodian to provide such a breakdown upon request;Clarifies that the custodian of records for a public entity must allow a requester to pay any fee or deposit associated with a request for public records with a credit card or electronic payment if the public entity allows members of the public to pay in this manner for any other service or product provided by the public entity;Allows a custodian to treat a CORA request received within 14 calendar days of another CORA request for information pertaining to facially similar content and made by the same person as one request for purposes of calculating the fee that the custodian may charge the requester for research and retrieval of responsive public records;Requires a custodian who fails to respond to a request for inspection within the applicable time period to provide the requester with one additional hour of research and retrieval time without charge for each calendar day that the response is late; andClarifies that if a custodian imposes any requirements concerning the prepayment or payment of a fee in connection with a request for inspection of public records, the requirements must be in accordance with the custodian's adopted rules or written policies and must not be inconsistent with the provisions of CORA.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The bill requires any caucus, committee, club, organization, or group that consists of one or more legislative members and accepts, receives, or expends money (legislative group) to deliver to the legislative council staff a monthly report that lists all money that the legislative group received, accepted, or expended during the previous month. Legislative council staff is required to post each report received on a publicly accessible page on the website of the general assembly.Each legislative group is required to provide the legislative council staff with accurate contact information for the group and shall promptly inform the legislative council staff of any changes to that contact information. A legislative group that does not receive, accept, or expend any money in a month shall file a no activity report as prescribed by the legislative council staff.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act requires each school district or, for an institute charter school or nonpublic school, the school, (local education provider) to install an exterior key box that contains keys and other access control devices necessary for law enforcement agencies to access each building and room located on the school grounds. A local education provider is not required to install an exterior key box at a school if:The school has a key box that does not satisfy the requirements in the act and has an alternative plan and procedures to provide emergency access for local law enforcement; orThe local education provider applied for but does not receive a disbursement from the school security disbursement program that may be used to install an exterior key box at the school. The contents of an exterior key box and the information contained therein are not a public record for the purposes of the 'Colorado Open Records Act'.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act makes the following changes to statutes concerning accessible housing standards:Defines 'accessible story' as a story on an accessible route that contains living, sleeping, cooking, bathing, and toilet facilities and, if available in the dwelling unit, laundry facilities. A basement is not an 'accessible story' if the basement floor is located more than 4 feet below the exterior finished grade, which is determined by assessing the vertical difference at any point along the exposed periphery of the dwelling unit.Defines 'dwelling unit' as any portion of a building that contains living facilities, including a room or rooms in a living facility that have shared cooking, bathing, toilet, or laundry facilities, such as dormitories, shelters, assisted living facilities, and boarding homes. 'Dwelling unit' also means living facilities that include provisions for sleeping, cooking, bathing, and toilet facilities for one or more persons and that are used for extended stays, such as time-shares and extended-stay motels. 'Dwelling unit' does not mean a guest room in a motel or hotel.Defines 'ICC A117.1' as the 'Standard for Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities' 2017 edition, or any successor standard, as adopted by reference by the building code of the responsible enforcement agency;Clarifies that 'Type A' and 'Type B multistory dwelling units' must include at least one accessible story that can be accessed via an accessible entrance; Requires projects with fewer than 50 units may use any combination of accessible dwelling units to comply with the standards; Requires projects with 50 or more units to include at least 2% accessible dwelling units, and that they must include at least on unit that is either a 'Type A', 'Type B', 'Type A Multistory', 'Type B Multistory', or 'Type C visitable' dwelling unit; andPermits covered enforcing agencies to develop alternative processes to resolve appeals of orders, decisions, or determinations made by the enforcing agency regarding the application and interpretation of the standards for accessible housing law.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, a court is required to release a person on a personal recognizance bond if the person was charged with an offense for a violation with a maximum penalty that does not exceed 6 months' imprisonment and the court cannot require the person to give security of any kind for their appearance for trial other than their personal recognizance, unless certain conditions exist. The bill clarifies that these provisions apply in both state and municipal courts. The bill adds to the conditions for which a person may be required to give security that the defendant previously failed to appear in court 2 or more times in the present case.Existing law prohibits a court from imposing a monetary condition of release for a defendant charged with a traffic offense, petty offense, or comparable municipal offense, or a municipal offense for which there is no comparable state misdemeanor offense, with specified exceptions. The bill adds exceptions for:A petty offense for theft, criminal mischief, or arson, or a comparable municipal offense, or a municipal offense involving threats of violence, injury, or property damage, if the defendant has previously failed to appear in court 2 or more times in the present case; andAny other petty offense, traffic offense, or a comparable municipal offense, or a municipal offense for which there is no comparable state offense, if the defendant has previously failed to appear for a court proceeding 2 or more times in the present case and has another pending charge for the same offense in the same jurisdiction.The bill states that if a defendant's counsel is present at a court proceeding as required by a court and the defendant is not present, with the exceptions of trial, arraignment, contested hearings, and hearings in which a witness or victim is testifying before the court, the defendant's absence may not be considered a failure to appear. The bill applies the exceptions involving previous instances of a defendant's failure to appear for a municipal court proceeding only when, prior to issuing a warrant for the arrest of the defendant for the previous failure to appear, the court conducted a search to determine whether the defendant was being held in a correctional facility or county jail, and at the time of the previous failure to appear, the court had certain processes in place governing failures to appear.The bill requires municipal courts to not consider a person's absence from a place and time specified in a summons or summons and complaint as a failure to appear if the person's counsel is present on their behalf.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

A manufacturer of spirituous liquors (manufacturer) that seeks to serve and sell alcohol beverages acquired from wholesalers licensed in the state (wholesaler) at the manufacturer's licensed premises and any approved sales room is required to apply for a permit from the local and state licensing authorities for on-premises consumption for each location where the manufacturer will serve and sell alcohol beverages acquired from a wholesaler. Prior to issuing the permit, the local licensing authority shall provide public notice and consider the reasonable requirements of the neighborhood, zoning restrictions, and other local licensing concerns. The act includes fees that a permit applicant must pay to a local licensing authority. Upon approval from the local licensing authority, a manufacturer shall apply to the state licensing authority for a state permit. If the state permit is approved:The manufacturer must serve sandwiches and light snacks if selling and serving alcohol beverages acquired from a wholesaler; andThe proceeds from the sale of alcohol beverages acquired from wholesalers must not account for more than 50% of the manufacturer's gross annual revenue from alcohol beverage sales. The state permit is valid until the expiration of the local permit or for one year after the date of issuance of the state permit, whichever is sooner, unless the permit is inactive, suspended, or revoked. If a manufacturer does not obtain a permit from the local and state licensing authority to serve and sell alcohol beverages acquired from a wholesaler, the manufacturer may purchase and use common alcohol modifiers to combine with the manufacturer's spirituous liquors to produce cocktails for consumption on and off the sales room premises.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Current law permits a court to sentence a sex offender to probation for an indeterminate period that can range from 10 years for a class 4 felony and 20 years for a class 3 felony to a maximum of the sex offender's natural life.The bill prohibits a court from sentencing to probation a sex offender convicted of:Class 4 felony sexual assault on a child;Class 4 felony sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust; orClass 3 felony sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust when the child is under 15 years old.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current law requires a recovery residence operated in Colorado to be certified by a third-party certifying body, unless the recovery residence has been operating in Colorado for 30 or more years as of May 23, 2019. Beginning July 1, 2027, the act requires a recovery residence to obtain a license from the behavioral health administration (BHA). The act sets forth application procedures and rules for minimum standards of operating a recovery residence. A recovery residence must report specified occurrences to the BHA, including occurrences that result in the death of or specified injury to a resident, involve abuse and neglect of a resident, involve misappropriation of a resident's property, or in which a resident's drugs are diverted for use by another person. Recovery residence licensing is subject to sunset review prior to its repeal in 2033.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The act requires a bank, broker-dealer, depository institution, credit union, or financial or institutional investor (covered entity) that holds benefits that are designated by a donor to a charitable organization to pay the designated benefits no later than 60 calendar days after the charitable organization submits an affidavit attesting to the death of the donor and other information to the covered entity, except as described in federal law. If a covered entity that holds designated benefits is unable to pay the designated benefits to a charitable organization because federal law requires the covered entity to take certain actions or satisfy certain criteria in order to pay the designated benefits, the covered entity must take the actions or satisfy the criteria that are required by federal law and comply with the act no less than 120 calendar days after the charitable organization submits the affidavit to the covered entity. If a charitable organization receives designated benefits that concern a creditor claim, statutory allowance, or the unsatisfied balance of an elective-share or a supplemental elective-share claim (outstanding claim) for which the charitable organization may be liable, the charitable organization must return to the donor's estate a portion or all of the designated benefits in order to satisfy the outstanding claim within 60 days after receiving written notice of the liability, with certain exceptions. If the charitable organization fails to comply, it must pay statutory interest to the donor's estate for each day the unreturned amount remains outstanding. Upon receiving notice of the outstanding claim from the personal representative of the donor's estate, the charitable organization must hold all or a portion of the designated benefits in a constructive trust pending a determination of the outstanding claim. Moreover, the charitable organization may be subject to one or more court actions. A covered entity that holds benefits that are designated to a charitable organization shall not:Require the charitable organization to establish an account with the covered entity as a condition of receiving the designated benefits; orRequire an individual employed by, or serving on the board of, the charitable organization to submit personal information as a condition of receiving designated benefits. The act may be enforced by the division of banking, the financial services board, or the division of securities, as appropriate.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

The bill amends the "Colorado Local Government Election Code" (local code) and the "Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965" to add authorization for special districts and municipalities to use electronic ballot return in elections under the local code. Electronic ballot return allows a voter to return a marked ballot to the designated election official or clerk using a qualified electronic transmission system. A qualified electronic transmission system must:Provide for secure identification and authentication;Transmit encrypted information over a secure network;Protect the privacy, anonymity, and integrity of each elector's ballot;Protect against abuse; andProvide any additional security or other measures identified as necessary in the rules of the secretary of state.The designated election official or clerk is responsible for ensuring electronic ballot returns are anonymously transcribed to paper ballots, counted, and secured pursuant to the law for all ballots. Any electronic data generated by an elector using the electronic transmission system is confidential. The secretary of state is required to publish guidance and may also adopt rules as necessary to further specify the qualifications for an electronic transmission system used for electronic ballot return.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

The act requires a person seeking certification or recertification from the peace officers standards and training board to undergo training on various missing person alerts active within the state. The department of public safety is required to create a missing person alert training program for persons seeking certification or recertification of their peace officer status. The act requires an institution of higher education (institution) to either conduct a preliminary wellness assessment for no longer than 6 hours or immediately contact a law enforcement agency if a student is reported missing. If the student is not found within the 6-hour period, or if there is evidence of a credible risk to the student's safety, the institution shall notify the institution's police department or the nearest law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the student's current local address on file with the institution or the student's permanent address on file with the institution if the institution does not have its own police department. An institution is required to adopt and publish a preliminary wellness assessment policy. The preliminary wellness assessment must consist of at least the following steps: A digital contact attempt, a residential verification, and an academic and social inquiry. An institution that conducts a preliminary wellness assessment is immune from civil liability if the institution acted in good faith. An institution is required to maintain contemporaneous written documentation regarding the steps the institution took to complete the preliminary wellness assessment. The records are subject to certain disclosure requirements.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Beginning January 1, 2027, the act requires an agricultural employer to pay certain agricultural employees overtime pay for time worked in excess of 56 hours in a workweek. The act also increases penalties for an agricultural employer who commits wage theft and repeals the authority of the director of the division of labor standards and statistics to adopt rules concerning overtime pay for agricultural employees.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Under current law, poultry owners may be required to destroy or depopulate their entire flock of poultry when one of their birds tests positive for a disease. Effective July 1, 2029, the bill prohibits an owner of poultry from using ventilation shutdown and ventilation shutdown plus, which methods kill poultry by gradually inducing fatal hyperthermia or heat stroke, as methods of depopulating their poultry.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current law requires that the automated protection order notification system (notification system) include information about whether a restrained person completed and submitted a firearm purchase or transfer application that indicated the restrained person was ineligible to possess a firearm pursuant to state or federal law. The act repeals this provision. Current law requires the Colorado bureau of investigation to make the information in the notification system available to the division of criminal justice (division) for the purpose of providing the information to a protected person. The act requires the Colorado integrated criminal justice information system program to also make the information available to the division.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)