The bill improves the organization and readability of the Colorado Revised Statutes by relocating definitions that are currently “hidden” within unrelated provisions.

• This change ensures that definitions for articles and parts are placed in dedicated “definitions” sections at the beginning of those units—where readers expect to find them.

What the Bill Does

• Relocation of Definitions:

  • Moves definitions that are now buried within larger sections to new or existing definitions sections.

  • This includes definitions written as standalone subsections and those embedded within broader provisions.

• Example:

  • The definition of “student election judge” from section 1-6-101(7)(b) is moved to a new definitions section for article 6 of title 1.

• Repeal of Redundant Text:

  • After relocating a definition, the bill repeals the old version so the definition doesn’t appear in two places.

• Conforming Amendments:

  • Makes technical edits to other parts of the law that reference the moved definitions so they now point to the correct location.

  • These edits are made in specific sections such as Sections 5, 6, 13, 29, 31, etc.

Impact

• No substantive legal changes are made.

• The bill is a clean-up measure to enhance statutory clarity, consistency, and ease of navigation for legal readers, citizens, and practitioners.

Overall
This bill is part of a regular statutory maintenance effort by the Statutory Revision Committee to make Colorado law easier to use without changing the meaning or application of the statutes.

Statutory Revision Committee. The Colorado Revised Statutes
are meant to be organized in such a way that a reader knows generally
where to find information. Each title is broken up into articles, parts, and
sections, and articles, parts, and sections often have definitions
provisions. For parts and articles, readers expect to find those definitions
at the beginning of each part or article.
However, a number of definitions are hidden in the statutes,
meaning a definition for an entire article, part, or title is not in a
definitions section. Instead, the definition is one sentence of many in a
section within the part or article. The purpose of the bill is to unhide
these definitions by moving them into definitions sections where readers
would expect to, and can more easily, find them.
In the bill, when a term is defined for a part or article and the term,
in current law, is in its own subdivision, that entire provision is relocated
to a new or existing definitions section. For example, section 4 of the bill
relocates the definition of student election judge from section 1-6-101
(7)(b), Colorado Revised Statutes, to a newly created definitions section
for article 6 of title 1, Colorado Revised Statutes. When a provision is
relocated to a new or existing definitions section, the language in the
current provision must be repealed, so that the 2 references don't
simultaneously exist in statute. Section 338 repeals all the relocated
provisions in the bill.
When a term or phrase is defined for a part or article and the term
in current law is embedded within another provision, the phrase
containing the defined term is removed from that provision and the term
is added to:
  • A newly created definitions section for that part or article;
or
  • An existing definitions section for that part or article.
In a very few instances, when definitions were moved, conforming
amendments were needed, meaning that a reference to that definition in
another section of law needed to be deleted or updated to reference the
new definitions section. Sections 5, 6, 13, 29, 31, 128, 157, 182, 183,
206, 207, 218, 274, 279, and 292 are conforming amendments.

• April 21, 2025: House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee Report
• April 10, 2025: Senate State, Veterans, & Military Affairs Committee Report

• Past bill versions
• Past fiscal notes
• Committee activity and documents
• Bill History