Bill Tracker

Usually, an owner of agricultural equipment must seek diagnostic,
maintenance, or repair services of the equipment from the agricultural
equipment manufacturer (manufacturer).
Starting January 1, 2024, the bill requires a manufacturer to
provide parts, embedded software, firmware, tools, or documentation,
such as diagnostic, maintenance, or repair manuals, diagrams, or similar
information (resources), to independent repair providers and owners of
the manufacturer's agricultural equipment to allow an independent repair
provider or owner to conduct diagnostic, maintenance, or repair services
on the owner's agricultural equipment.
The bill folds agricultural equipment into the existing consumer
right-to-repair statutes, which statutes provide the following:
  • A manufacturer's failure to comply with the requirement to
provide resources is a deceptive trade practice;
  • In complying with the requirement to provide resources, a
manufacturer need not divulge any trade secrets to
independent repair providers and owners; and
  • Any new contractual provision or other arrangement that a
manufacturer enters into that would remove or limit the
manufacturer's obligation to provide resources to
independent repair providers and owners is void and
unenforceable.

• March 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 06, 2023: HB23-1011 L.002 House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources
• February 06, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 06, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report

Section 1 of the bill authorizes an individual to move from one
corner of public land to another corner of public land where 2 public
parcels meet 2 private parcels and share a common border, without being
liable for criminal or civil trespass, if:
  • 2 parcels of public land touch so that the individual can
reasonably step from one parcel of public land to the other
parcel of public land, or if there's a fence, could make the
step as if there were not a fence;
  • The individual moves over private land only as much as
necessary to cross from one parcel of public land to the
other;
  • The individual does not step on or stand on the privately
owned land or touch a fence on or other improvement to
the privately owned land, but the individual may use
mechanical means to move over the privately owned land;
and
  • The individual does not use a vehicle other than a
wheelchair to cross over the private land.
This authorization does not apply to the following:
  • Moving over an improvement to public land that is
designed to be occupied by individuals;
  • Entering public land to use it in a way that violates the law;
  • Moving over public land that the governing entity has
prohibited the general public from entering or has
controlled access to.
Section 1 also prohibits a landowner from erecting an
improvement to such a corner that is more than 54 inches high within 4
feet of the corner.
Section 2 requires a court to dismiss a trespass tort if the defendant
has complied with section 1. A successful defendant is awarded costs,
including attorney fees.
Section 3 instructs the parks and wildlife commission to
promulgate rules codifying the actions allowed in section 1. The division
of parks and wildlife will publicize the rules.

• May 07, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 29, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• March 13, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 13, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill prohibits, on or after January 1, 2024, a nonresident
foreign citizen, foreign entity, or foreign government of the People's
Republic of China, the Russian Federation, or any country determined by
the United States secretary of state to be a state sponsor of terrorism
(covered foreign person) from acquiring a controlling ownership share in
agricultural land, mineral rights, or water rights (property interest) in the
state (prohibition). A covered foreign person who acquires a controlling
ownership share in a property interest in the state prior to January 1, 2024,
may continue to own the property interest but may not acquire a
controlling ownership share in any additional property interests in the
state.
No later than March 1, 2024, or 60 days after acquiring any
ownership in a property interest in the state, whichever is later, a covered
foreign person must register with the secretary of state (registration
requirement). The secretary of state is authorized to promulgate rules to
implement the registration requirement.
If the attorney general has reason to believe that a covered foreign
person has violated the prohibition or has not complied with the
registration requirement, the attorney general must commence a civil
action against the covered foreign person in a district court. If a district
court finds that the covered foreign person has violated the prohibition,
the district court must issue a judgment reverting the property interest to
the state. If the district court finds that the covered person has not
complied with the registration requirement, the district court must impose
a penalty of no more than $2,000 for each violation.

• February 23, 2023: House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee Report
• February 23, 2023: House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee Report

Current law allows a legislative measure to include a greenhouse
gas emissions report (report) prepared by the nonpartisan staff of the
legislative council that indicates whether the legislative measure is likely
to cause a net increase, decrease, or indeterminate amount of greenhouse
gas pollution in the 10-year period following its enactment. A report must
consider new sources of emissions, increases or decreases in existing
sources of emissions, and any impact on sequestration of emissions. The
department of natural resources, the Colorado energy office, and other
state agencies with relevant subject matter expertise are required to
cooperate with and provide information, if requested, to the legislative
council staff to assist in the preparation of a report.
The bill requires the director of research of the legislative council
(director) to prepare a preliminary report that requires an analysis on
whether a properly submitted initiative has a net change in greenhouse
gas emissions that directly impacts the following sectors:
  • Electric power;
  • Natural gas and oil systems;
  • Transportation;
  • Residential, commercial, or industrial fuel use;
  • Industrial processes;
  • Coal mining and abandoned mines;
  • Waste management;
  • Land use, land use change, or forestry; and
  • Agriculture.
The director is required to provide proponents of the proposed
initiative, or their representatives, and the secretary of state with the
preliminary report no later than the time of the title board meeting at
which the proposed initiated measure is to be considered.
The bill requires the ballot title of a measure that has a net increase
in greenhouse gas emissions as indicated by the preliminary report to
begin with Shall there be an increase in greenhouse gas emissions....
The ballot title of a measure that has a net decrease in greenhouse gas
emissions as indicated by the preliminary report must begin with Shall
there be a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions....
If it is determined in the preliminary report that the proposed
initiative is likely to directly cause a net increase or decrease, excluding
any de minimis net changes, in greenhouse gas pollution in the 10-year
period following the potential enactment of the initiative, staff of the
legislative council are required to prepare a full report. The department
of natural resources, the Colorado energy office, and other state agencies
with relevant subject matter expertise are required to assist the staff of the
legislative council with information in preparation of the report if
requested.
Proponents may file a motion for a rehearing with the secretary of
state within 7 days after the title board sets the initiative's title on the
grounds that the preliminary report is misleading or prejudicial. The title
board may modify the preliminary report based on information presented
at the rehearing. If the title board modifies the report, the secretary of
state shall provide the director with a copy of the amended report and the
director shall post the new version of the report on the legislative
council's website.
The bill further requires the ballot information booklet to include
any required preliminary report for any statewide measure and provide
information on how to obtain the full greenhouse gas emissions report if
one is available.

• March 09, 2023: House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee Report

Current law establishes water and energy efficiency standards
(standards) for certain appliances and fixtures sold in Colorado. Sections
1 through 7 of the bill expand the appliances and fixtures that are subject
to the standards and update the standards.
Specifically, section 4 updates standards for certain appliances and
fixtures that are sold in Colorado on and after certain dates, including:
  • Certain faucets and urinals;
  • Certain lamps;
  • Commercial hot food holding cabinets;
  • Portable electric spas;
  • Residential ventilating fans; and
  • Spray sprinkler bodies.
Section 4 also creates new standards for certain appliances and
other fixtures that are sold in Colorado on and after January 1, 2024,
including:
  • Air purifiers;
  • Commercial ovens;
  • Electric storage water heaters;
  • Electric vehicle supply equipment;
  • Gas fireplaces;
  • Irrigation controllers;
  • Tub spout diverters and showerhead tub spout diverter
combinations; and
  • Certain residential windows, residential doors, and
residential skylights.
Section 4 also removes standards for air compressors, general
service lamps, and uninterruptible power supplies.
Section 5 requires the executive director of the department of
public health and environment (executive director) to promulgate rules on
or before January 1, 2026, and every 5 years thereafter:
  • Adopting a more recent version of any standard; and
  • Establishing standards for appliances and other devices that
are not subject to the standards if certain conditions are
met.
Section 6 exempts manufacturers of products subject to the
standards from having to demonstrate that a product complies with the
law if the product appears in the state appliance standards database
maintained by the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, or a
successor organization. Section 6 also requires the executive director to
conduct periodic, unannounced inspections of major distributors or
retailers, including online retailers, of new products in order to determine
compliance with the standards.
Under current law, any person who sells or offers to sell in the
state any new consumer product that is required to meet an efficiency
standard but that the person knows does not meet that standard is subject
to a civil penalty of not more than $2,000 for each violation, which
amount is credited to the general fund. Section 7 credits any penalties
imposed to the energy fund created in the Colorado energy office rather
than to the general fund and specifies that each transaction or online
for-sale product listing constitutes a separate violation.
Section 8 establishes the Clean Lighting Act to phase out the
sale of general-purpose fluorescent light bulbs that contain mercury. With
certain exceptions:
  • On and after January 1, 2024, a person shall not
manufacture, distribute, sell, or offer for sale in Colorado
any new compact fluorescent lamp with a screw- or
bayonet-type base; and
  • On and after January 1, 2025, a person shall not
manufacture, distribute, sell, or offer for sale in Colorado
any linear fluorescent lamp or any compact fluorescent
lamp with a pin-type base.
Section 9 establishes standards for heating and water heating
appliances. With certain exceptions, on and after January 1, 2025, a
person shall not manufacture, distribute, sell, offer for sale, lease, or offer
for lease in Colorado any new water heater, boiler, or fan-type central
furnace unless the emissions of the product do not exceed certain limits
on emissions. On or before January 1, 2029, the air quality control
commission in the department of public health and environment must
promulgate rules lowering the emission limits. Section 9 also requires
manufacturers to use certain testing protocols, display certain information
on each product, and demonstrate compliance through one of various
described means.
Sections 8 and 9 both require the executive director to conduct
periodic, unannounced inspections of major distributors or retailers,
including online retailers, of new products to determine compliance and
to report violations to the attorney general. If the attorney general has
probable cause to believe that a violation occurred, the attorney general
may bring a civil action on behalf of the state to seek the imposition of
civil penalties, and any civil penalties are to be deposited in the energy
fund.

• April 28, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 24, 2023: Senate Transportation & Energy Committee Report
• April 10, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 10, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report

Under existing law, a board of county commissioners (board) may
designate unincorporated areas of a county where it is unlawful to
discharge firearms, except the board may not prohibit discharge of
firearms in shooting galleries, on private grounds, or in residences under
circumstances that do not endanger persons or property. A designated
area must have an average population density of 100 persons or more per
square mile.
The bill repeals the exception for private property, repeals the
minimum population density requirement, and instead requires that the
designated area have 30 dwellings or more per square mile. A board is not
allowed to prohibit discharge of a firearm in a designated area by a peace
officer, in an indoor shooting gallery located in a private residence, or at
a shooting range.

• May 04, 2023: Senate Local Government & Housing Committee Report
• February 08, 2023: House Transportation, Housing & Local Government Committee Report
• February 08, 2023: HB23-1165 L.001 House Transportation, Housing & Local Government
• February 08, 2023: House Transportation, Housing & Local Government Committee Report

In 1942, Colorado entered into an interstate compact (compact)
with Nebraska and Kansas regarding the allocation of water from the
Republican river basin (basin). Colorado ratified the compact in 1943. In
2016, Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas signed a resolution (resolution)
regarding a dispute about Colorado's compliance with the compact,
through which resolution and its amendment Colorado agreed to retire
25,000 acres of irrigated acreage in the basin by 2029.
The bill requires the Colorado water center (center) in the
Colorado state university to study the anticipated economic effects of the
forced elimination of groundwater withdrawals within and surrounding
the Colorado portion of the Republican river basin that could occur if
Colorado fails to comply with the resolution. The center is required to
prepare a progress report and, on or before January 1, 2026, a final report
of the center's findings and conclusions from the study and to post both
reports on the center's website. The center must present the progress and
final reports to certain legislative committees.

• May 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 21, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• March 20, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 20, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill requires the division of administration in the department
of public health and environment, on and after January 1, 2024, to use
quality-assured data to determine the maximum amount of a pollutant that
can be discharged daily into state waters without exceeding applicable
water quality standards.

• March 23, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report
• March 23, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report

The bill requires an oil and gas operator in the state (operator), on
or before January 31, 2024, and at least annually thereafter, to report
information to the Colorado oil and gas conservation commission
(commission) regarding the operator's use of water entering, utilized at,
or exiting each of the operator's oil and gas locations.
The bill also requires the commission to adopt rules requiring that:
  • When issuing an operator a new or renewed oil and gas
permit on or after June 1, 2024, the commission include as
a condition of the permit a requirement that the operator
use a decreasing percentage of fresh water and a
corresponding increasing percentage of recycled or reused
water in the operator's oil and gas operations; and
  • Each oil and gas operator, on and after January 1, 2024,
report on a monthly basis to the commission about the daily
vehicle miles traveled for any trucks hauling water to,
within, or from the operator's oil and gas operations in the
state.
From the information reported to the commission under the bill,
the commission is required to:
  • Include the information as part of the commission's annual
reporting on cumulative impacts of oil and gas operations;
  • Report to the division of administration (division) in the
department of public health and environment, on a
per-incident basis, any indication of technologically
enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material or PFAS
chemicals present in produced water; and
  • On a quarterly basis, submit a cumulative report to the
division and the department of transportation on reported
vehicle miles traveled and public roads traveled.

• May 03, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• May 01, 2023: Senate Transportation & Energy Committee Report
• April 18, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• March 23, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report
• March 23, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report

Current law authorizes the inspection, testing, quarantine,
condemnation, and destruction of livestock when there is an outbreak of
an infectious or contagious disease. The bill:
  • Removes the requirement that the inspection, testing, and
quarantine of livestock occur pursuant to rules promulgated
by the commissioner of agriculture (commissioner);
  • Moves the authority to condemn and destroy livestock from
the state agricultural commission to the commissioner and
only when the commissioner, state veterinarian, and
governor agree that the condemnation and destruction is
justified and necessary for the safety and protection of the
livestock of the state; and
  • Changes the appraisal process that is required before
livestock may be condemned and destroyed.
The bill gives the commissioner the authority to investigate all
buildings, yards, pens, pastures, and other areas in which any animals are
kept, handled, or transported to ensure compliance with the Livestock
Health Act. The commissioner may:
  • Administer oaths and take statements;
  • Issue administrative subpoenas requiring the attendance of
witnesses and the production of all books, memoranda,
papers, and other documents, articles, or instruments; and
  • Compel the disclosure by witnesses of all facts known to
them that are relevant to the matters under investigation.
Under current law, it is an unlawful act to alter or falsify a health
certificate issued for the import of livestock into the state. The bill makes
it an unlawful act to alter or falsify a health certificate issued for the
export of livestock out of the state.

• April 27, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report

Section 2 of the bill removes the requirement that the air quality
control commission (AQCC) promulgate rules setting the conditions and
limitations for periods of start-up, shutdown, or malfunction of a source
of air pollution (source) that justify temporary relief from an emission
control regulation.
Current law provides that a person shall not permit the emission
of air pollutants at a nonresidential structure unless an air pollution
emission notice has been filed with the division of administration in the
department of public health and environment (division). Section 5 adds
the requirements that any:
  • Relevant permits have been approved by the division; and
  • Applicable period of review by the federal environmental
protection agency has been completed.
Section 6 removes the prohibition against the AQCC adopting
rules covering indirect sources that are more stringent than applicable
federal law.
Section 6 also requires the division, in evaluating a construction
permit application for a source that includes new oil and gas operations,
to:
  • Aggregate emissions from a proposed or modified oil and
gas system; and
  • Consider emissions from exploration and preproduction
activities if a proposed or modified oil and gas system is in
an ozone nonattainment area and if the activities will be
conducted beginning May 1 and ending August 31 of any
year (ozone season).
Section 8 clarifies that only the filing of a renewable operating
permit application can operate as a defense to an enforcement action for
operating without a permit during the time period that the division or the
AQCC is reviewing the permit application.
Current law requires the division or the AQCC to give public
notice of certain construction permit applications or renewable operating
permit applications and of certain public hearings through a newspaper
publication or another method that ensures effective public notice.
Current law also requires the division to maintain a copy of a construction
permit application and applicable preliminary analysis or a notice of
public hearing with the county clerk and recorder of the county where the
applicable project is located. Section 8 also removes the newspaper
publication option and the county clerk and recorder filing requirements
and provides for alternative methods of giving public notice, including
posting information about the application or any public hearings on the
division's or the AQCC's website.
Current law requires the division or AQCC to make a finding that
a source or activity will meet all applicable emission control regulations,
including ambient air quality standards (AAQS), before granting a permit
for the source or activity. Section 8 also requires that, beginning January
1, 2024, for at least any source or activity that has the potential to emit
levels of air contaminants above certain modeling thresholds, the division
or AQCC must base any finding that the source or activity will not cause
or contribute to an exceedance of applicable AAQS on air quality
modeling.
Section 8 also allows the division, after an investigation into
whether an activity meets the requirements of a construction permit, to
propose additional terms and conditions of the construction permit.
With respect to a complaint alleging or the division's own belief
regarding a violation or noncompliance (violation), section 9 requires the
division to:
  • Cause a diligent investigation into the violation to be made
unless the complaint clearly appears to be frivolous or
trivial or the complainant withdraws the complaint;
  • Notify the owner or operator of the applicable air pollution
source of the complaint or the division's belief of an
alleged violation within 30 days after the complaint was
filed or the division discovered the alleged violation;
  • Consider all relevant evidence that it acquires when
investigating the alleged violation; and
  • Determine whether a violation occurred within 90 days
after the division gives notice that it has commenced an
investigation on the matter.
If the division determines that a violation has occurred, current law
requires the division to issue a compliance order unless the responsible
party gives timely notice that the violation occurred during a period of
start-up, shutdown, or malfunction. Section 9 removes the exception for
periods of start-up, shutdown, or malfunction.
Section 9 also requires, if a hearing is requested after the receipt
of a compliance order, the commission to provide at least 45 days' notice
to any complainant that submitted a complaint alleging the applicable
violation.
Section 9 also allows a complainant to submit a request for a
hearing within 20 calendar days after receipt of a determination by the
division that no violation occurred.
Current law provides that any noncompliance that occurs during
a period of start-up, shutdown, or malfunction exempts the owner or
operator of a source from the duty to pay penalties related to that
noncompliance. Section 9 removes this provision.
Section 9 also allows a person, with respect to certain clean air
regulations, to commence a civil action (action) against an alleged
violator for a current or past violation of the regulation. A person shall
not commence an action until at least 60 days after a notice has been
provided to the executive director of the department, the director of the
division, and the alleged violator. Except for violations of an ongoing or
recurring nature, any action that is not commenced within 5 years after
the discovery of the alleged violation is time barred.
Current law requires the division to consider certain factors in
determining the amount of a civil penalty to assess for a violation.
Section 10 requires the division to also consider the impact of the
violation on safety and wildlife and biological resources and the severity
of the violation.
Current law provides that any action related to an alleged violation
of air quality laws that is not commenced within 5 years after the
occurrence of the alleged violation is time barred. Section 11 excludes
actions commenced to address a failure to obtain a permit from this
statute of limitation.
Section 12 creates new electrification requirements and emissions
standards for stationary engines used in oil and gas operations.
Section 13 creates new control measures that must be included in
any state implementation plan for ozone adopted by the AQCC until a
serious, severe, or extreme ozone nonattainment area in the state is
redesignated as a maintenance area by the federal environmental
protection agency.
Section 15 requires the district court, in a suit against a person that
has violated a state law, rule, or order related to oil and gas, to award the
initial complaining party any costs of litigation incurred by the initial
complaining party if the court determines that the award is appropriate.
Section 16 allows any person to submit a complaint to the oil and
gas conservation commission (COGCC) alleging a violation of a state
law, rule, or order related to oil and gas. Upon receipt of the complaint,
the COGCC or the director of the COGCC is required to promptly
commence and complete an investigation into the violation alleged by the
complaint, unless the complaint clearly appears on its face to be trivial or
the complainant withdraws the complaint.
Section 17 requires the COGCC to evaluate and address adverse
cumulative impacts on the environment and disproportionately impacted
communities for each permit application for a new or substantially
modified oil and gas location through a cumulative impact analysis.

• May 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• May 04, 2023: Senate Transportation & Energy Committee Report
• April 28, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 20, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report

Water Resources and Agriculture Review Committee. The bill
removes a reference to the water resources and agriculture review
committee being an interim committee and removes an outdated reference
to Senate Bill 96-074 in the legislative declaration. The bill also removes
limitations on the number of meetings and the number of field trips the
committee may hold and requires the committee to meet at least 4 times
during each calendar year.

• February 16, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 16, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• January 26, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• January 26, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

Section 1 of the bill requires that, beginning in 2024, each
insurance company issued a certificate of authority to transact insurance
business that reports more than $100 million on its annual schedule T
filing with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC)
must participate in and complete the NAIC's Insurer Climate Risk
Disclosure Survey or successor survey or reporting mechanism.
Section 2 requires the public employees' retirement association
(PERA) board, on or before June 1, 2024, to adopt proxy voting
procedures that ensure that the board's voting decisions align with, and
are supportive of, the statewide greenhouse gas (GHG) emission
reduction goals.
Section 3 requires PERA to include as part of its annual
investment stewardship report, which report is posted on the PERA
board's website, a description of climate-related investment risks,
impacts, and strategies.
Section 4 adds wastewater thermal energy equipment to the
definition of pollution control equipment, which equipment may be
certified by the division of administration (division) in the department of
public health and environment (CDPHE). Similarly, section 5 adds
wastewater thermal energy to the definition of clean heat resource,
which resource a gas distribution utility includes in its clean heat plan
filed with the public utilities commission.
Section 6 updates the statewide GHG emission reduction goals to
add a 65% reduction goal for 2035, an 80% reduction goal for 2040, and
a 90% reduction goal for 2045 when compared to 2005 GHG pollution
levels. Section 6 also increases the 2050 GHG emission reduction goal
from 90% of 2005 GHG pollution levels to 100%.
Section 7 gives the oil and gas conservation commission
(COGCC) authority over class VI injection wells used for sequestration
of GHG if the governor and COGCC determine, in accordance with a
study that the COGCC conducted in 2021, that the state has sufficient
resources to ensure the safe and effective regulation of the sequestration
of GHG. If the governor and the COGCC determine there are sufficient
resources, the COGCC may seek primacy under the federal Safe
Drinking Water Act and, when granted, may issue and enforce permits
for class VI injection wells. The COGCC shall require, as part of its
regulation of class VI injection wells, that operators of the wells maintain
adequate financial assurance until the COGCC approves the closure of a
class VI injection well site.
Section 8 establishes a state income tax credit in an amount equal
to 30% of the purchase price for new, electric-powered lawn equipment
for purchases made in income tax years 2024 through 2026. A seller of
new, electric-powered lawn equipment that demonstrates that it provided
a purchaser a 30% discount from the purchase price of new,
electric-powered lawn equipment may claim the tax credit.
Current law requires an electric retail utility (utility) to offer a net
metering credit as the means of purchasing output from a community
solar garden (CSG) located within the utility's service territory and
establishes the means of calculating the net metering credit. Section 9
maintains that calculation if the CSG indicates to the utility that the CSG's
subscribers' bill credits change annually. If the CSG indicates to the utility
that the CSG's subscribers' bill credits remain fixed, however, section 9
provides a different calculation for determining the net metering credit.
Sections 10 through 12 incorporate projects to renovate or
recondition existing utility transmission lines into the Colorado Electric
Transmission Authority Act, allowing the Colorado electric transmission
authority to finance and renovate, rebuild, or recondition existing
transmission lines in order to update and optimize the transmission lines.
Section 13 requires a local government to expedite its review of
a land use application that proposes a project to renovate, rebuild, or
recondition existing transmission lines.
Section 14 makes a conforming amendment regarding the updated
statewide GHG emission reduction goals set forth in section 6.

• April 26, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 24, 2023: House Finance Committee Report
• April 20, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report
• April 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• February 21, 2023: Senate Finance Committee Report
• February 21, 2023: Senate Finance Committee Report
• January 25, 2023: L.001 Senate Transportation & Energy Committee
• January 25, 2023: L.002 Senate Transportation & Energy Committee
• January 25, 2023: L.003 Senate Transportation & Energy Committee
• January 25, 2023: Senate Transportation & Energy Committee Report
• January 25, 2023: Senate Transportation & Energy Committee Report

Section 1 of the bill establishes the crime of unlawful equine
slaughter. A person engages in unlawful equine slaughter if the person:
  • Slaughters an equine when the person knows or reasonably
should know that any part of the equine will be used for
human consumption;
  • Possesses, imports into the state, exports from the state,
buys, sells, gives away, or accepts an equine with the intent
of killing, or having another person kill, the equine if the
person knows or reasonably should know that any part of
the equine will be used for human consumption; or
  • Possesses, imports into the state, exports from the state,
buys, sells, gives away, or accepts equine meat if the
person knows or reasonably should know that the meat will
be used for human consumption.
Section 1 provides a safe harbor to the offense for equine
slaughtered for use by a facility in feeding predators housed at the facility.
Each equine that is unlawfully slaughtered and each 100 pounds
of equine meat derived from unlawful slaughter is a separate offense. A
first violation is a class 1 misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum fine
of $1,000, and a second or subsequent violation within a 10-year period
is a class 5 felony with a mandatory minimum fine of $5,000. If a person
obtains the equine by fraud and commits unlawful equine slaughter, it is
a class 4 felony with a mandatory minimum fine of $10,000. In addition,
a person that commits unlawful equine slaughter is forever prohibited
from owning, possessing, or caring for an equine and from participating
in a public livestock market for 3 to 5 years.
Sections 2 and 3 require notice of the crime of unlawful equine
slaughter to be given at livestock auctions and on bills of sale.

• February 16, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 16, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill updates the veterinary education loan repayment program
in the following ways:
  • The number of qualified applicants per year is increased
from 4 to 6;
  • The requirement that an applicant must have graduated
from an accredited veterinary school in 2017 or later is
eliminated;
  • The total amount an applicant is eligible for over a 4-year
period is increased from $70,000 to $90,000;
  • The yearly repayment amounts for successful applicants are
increased; and
  • The state treasurer is required to transfer $540,000 from the
general fund to the veterinary education loan repayment
fund on September 1, 2023.

• April 21, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 17, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 06, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• February 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill changes the definitions of eligible business and eligible
farmer or rancher under the Colorado agricultural future loan program
to specify that:
  • Eligible businesses include entities that are currently in
operation and ones that will be in operation;
  • Eligible businesses and eligible uses for the loan include
businesses that conduct agricultural processing or ones that
develop or manufacture technology designed to benefit
farmers and ranchers; and
  • Eligible farmers and ranchers include farmers and ranchers
that currently own or operate or will own or operate a farm
or ranch.
The bill removes the repeal of the loan program.

• March 06, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 06, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• February 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

In support of the use of agrivoltaics, which is the integration of
solar energy generation facilities with agricultural activities, section 2 of
the bill authorizes the agricultural drought and climate resilience office
(office) to award grants for new or ongoing demonstration or research
projects that demonstrate or study the use of agrivoltaics. On or before
October 1, 2023, the office is required to convene a stakeholder group to
advise on whether the office should impose any operational requirements
for agrivoltaic projects that apply for grants.
Section 4 authorizes the Colorado water conservation board
(board) to finance a project to study the feasibility of using aquavoltaics,
which are solar energy generation facilities placed over, or floating on,
irrigation canals or reservoirs.
Section 1 requires the director of the division of parks and wildlife
to consult on the impacts on wildlife of:
  • Any research projects for which the office awards money
to study the use of agrivoltaics; and
  • The project that the board finances to study the feasibility
of using aquavoltaics in the state.
Section 5 amends the statutory definition of solar energy facility,
used in determining the valuation of public utilities for property tax
purposes, to include agrivoltaics and aquavoltaics.
Section 3 requires the commissioner of agriculture or the
commissioner's designee (commissioner), in consultation with the
Colorado energy office, the air quality control commission, and an
institution of higher education with expertise in climate change
mitigation, adaptation benefits, and other environmental benefits related
to agricultural research, to examine greenhouse gas reduction and carbon
sequestration opportunities in the agricultural sector, including the use of
dry digesters and the potential for creating and offering a certified
greenhouse gas offset program and credit instruments in the agricultural
sector.
Section 3 requires the commissioner to submit a progress report
on the study to the general assembly on or before October 1, 2024, and a
final report, including any recommendations, on or before October 1,
2025.
Section 3 also authorizes the commissioner to adopt rules to
implement the recommendations, but requires that any greenhouse gas
offset program or other greenhouse gas reduction and carbon
sequestration program or mechanism established in rule not mandate
participation by agricultural producers.

• May 06, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• May 03, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 21, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 13, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill amends the Colorado recreational use statute (CRUS).
Section 1 of the bill amends the stated purposes of the CRUS.
Section 2 amends definitions of terms and adds a definition of the
term inherent dangers or risks.
Section 3 changes the conditions under which the CRUS limits a
landowner's (owner's) liability for damages that occur as a result of other
persons' use of the owner's land for recreational purposes. Section 3 also
repeals limitations on the total amount of damages that may be recovered
from a private landowner that leases land to a public entity for
recreational purposes or that grants an easement or other right to use land
to a public entity for recreational purposes. In place of these limitations,
the bill substitutes language stating that, except as otherwise agreed by a
public entity and an owner, an owner is not liable for losses resulting
from a public entity's management, or failure to provide adequate
management, of land that is used for recreational purposes. Section 3 also
removes unused and redundant definitions of terms.
Section 4 amends several exceptions that describe circumstances
under which the CRUS does not limit an owner's liability. Specifically:
  • The CRUS allows an owner to be found liable for willful
or malicious failure to guard or warn against a known
dangerous condition, use, structure, or activity likely to
cause harm. Section 4 limits this exception to apply only
to malicious failures and amends the exception to apply to
a known dangerous condition, use, structure, or activity
likely to cause harm or death.
  • The CRUS includes an exception in cases in which an
owner imposes a charge upon a person who goes on the
land for recreational purposes. Section 4 removes certain
language from this exception that is redundant with
language that appears elsewhere in the CRUS.
  • The CRUS includes an exception concerning attractive
nuisances. Section 4 provides that if a property used for
public recreational purposes contains active or inactive
agricultural operations; active or inactive mining
operations, gravel operations, or other mineral and energy
development; or certain water structures, neither the
property nor the agricultural operations, nor the mining or
gravel operations or other development, nor the water or
water structures constitute an attractive nuisance.
  • The CRUS allows an owner to be held liable for injury
received on land incidental to the use of land on which a
commercial or business enterprise of any description is
being carried on. However, when land is leased to a public
entity for recreational purposes or a public entity has been
granted an easement or other right to use land for
recreational purposes, the land is not considered to be land
upon which a business or commercial enterprise is being
carried on. Section 4 removes this qualification from the
exception.
Section 5 relocates language stating that the CRUS does not limit
the protections afforded to an owner under Colorado's premises liability
statute. Section 5 also states that nothing in the CRUS creates a
prescriptive easement on private land where an owner has acquiesced to
public use of existing trails that have historically been used by the public
for recreational purposes.
Current law allows the prevailing party in any civil action brought
by a recreational user for damages against a landowner who allows the
use of the landowner's property for public recreational purposes to
recover the costs of the action together with reasonable attorney fees as
determined by the court. Section 6 states that in the event that an action
is commenced by any party, the prevailing party is entitled to recover all
fees, costs, and expenses, including fees and expenses of attorneys and
experts and fees and expenses associated with appeals of the court's
decision.
Section 7 states that nothing in the CRUS may be construed to
limit the authority of an owner to:
  • Determine any or all of the recreational purposes that are
allowed on the owner's land;
  • Identify areas of the land where recreational purposes are
allowed or not allowed; or
  • Restrict persons from engaging in recreational purposes on
the owner's land.
Section 7 also describes means by which an owner who elects to take any
of these actions may provide notice to the public of such actions. Section
7 also states that except as otherwise provided in the CRUS:
  • An owner owes no duty of care to keep the owner's
premises safe for entry by other persons for recreational
purposes or to give any warning of a dangerous condition,
use, structure, or activity on the premises to persons
entering the land for such purposes; and
  • Neither the installation of a sign or other form of warning
of a dangerous condition, nor the failure to maintain or
keep in place any sign or other warning, nor the failure to
make any modification to improve safety creates any
liability on the part of an owner when there is no other
basis for liability.

• March 01, 2023: Senate Judiciary Committee Report
• March 01, 2023: Senate Judiciary Committee Report

Sunset Process - Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources
Committee. The Colorado food systems advisory council established
within Colorado state university is scheduled to repeal on September 1,
2023. The bill extends the sunset date until September 1, 2030.

• April 29, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 13, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 31, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 31, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 09, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill establishes a wildfire resiliency code board (board) in the
division of fire prevention and control (division) within the department
of public safety (department) for the purposes of ensuring community
safety from and more resiliency to wildfires by reducing the risk of
wildfires to people and property through the adoption of statewide codes
and standards. The board consists of 21 appointed voting members with
specific government or industry qualifications and 3 non-voting members.
The board is required to promulgate rules concerning the adoption and
administration of codes and standards for the hardening of structures and
parcels in the wildland-urban interface in Colorado, including rules that:
  • Define the wildland-urban interface and identify areas of
the state that are within it;
  • Adopt minimum codes and standards based on best
practices to reduce the risk to life and property from the
effects of wildfires;
  • Identify hazards and types of buildings, entities, and
defensible space around structures to which the codes
apply; and
  • Establish a process for a governing body to petition the
board for a modification to the codes and establish the
criteria and process for the board to grant or deny an appeal
from a decision of the board on a petition for modification.
The bill also creates the wildfire resiliency code board cash fund
and continuously appropriates the money in the fund to the department to
implement the provisions of the bill.
The bill requires a governing body with jurisdiction in an area
within the wildland-urban interface to adopt and enforce a code that
meets or exceeds the minimum standards of the codes adopted by the
board. Enforcement of the codes is done in accordance with the rules and
regulations for code enforcement adopted by the governing body. If the
governing body does not have rules and regulations for code enforcement,
the governing body may request support from the division to enforce the
code.

• April 21, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 18, 2023: House Transportation, Housing & Local Government Committee Report
• April 11, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 16, 2023: Senate Local Government & Housing Committee Report
• March 16, 2023: Senate Local Government & Housing Committee Report

Sunset Process - Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources
Committee. The bill implements some of the recommendations of the
department of regulatory agencies, as contained in the department's sunset
review of the Pesticide Applicators' Act (act), as follows:
  • Sections 1 and 2 of the bill continue the act for 11 years,
until September 1, 2034;
  • Section 3 updates the statutory definition of use to align
with the federal definition adopted by the federal
environmental protection agency;
  • Section 4 increases the maximum civil penalty for a
violation of the act from $1,000 to $2,500 for the first
violation, which results in the possibility of a maximum
civil penalty of $5,000 for a second violation;
  • Section 5 requires that money collected for civil penalties
imposed under the act be transferred to the general fund;
  • Section 6 requires the commissioner of agriculture
(commissioner) to publish and periodically update
information on the department of agriculture's website
about pesticide applicators' licensing and registration;
  • Section 7 requires the commissioner to establish an online
complaint process;
  • Section 8 limits the number of terms that members of the
advisory committee may serve to 2 terms, but allows a
member representing the Colorado state university
agricultural experiment station or extension service (CSU)
or the Colorado department of public health and
environment (CDPHE) to serve on the advisory committee
for unlimited terms during the duration of the member's
employment with CSU or CDPHE; and
  • Sections 9 to 11 place language in statutes governing local
governments that mirrors the language in the act requiring
a local government that adopts an ordinance or resolution
about pesticides to submit information to the commissioner
about the ordinance or resolution.

• April 26, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 24, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 14, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 05, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 05, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

Joint Budget Committee. The bill:
  • Removes a $50 fee for dairy plant employees who sample
or test milk, cream, or any other dairy product;
  • Increases the licensing fee a dairy plant is required to pay
by 30%; and
  • Creates a new fee of one cent for every 100 pounds of
milk, to be paid by a dairy plant that receives 20,000
pounds or more of milk each day.
The department of public health and environment is required to
cap the amount a dairy plant must pay in total for the licensing fee and
volume of production fee at $150,000.

• April 03, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 03, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• March 28, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 28, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report

The bill creates the wolf depredation compensation fund (fund) to
compensate landowners and agricultural producers for depredation of
livestock and working animals by wolves. For the 2023-24 state fiscal
year and each state fiscal year thereafter, the state treasurer is directed to
transfer $350,000 from the general fund to the fund. At the end of the
2023-24 and 2024-25 state fiscal years, any unencumbered balance in the
fund that exceeds $100,000 is transferred to the wildlife cash fund. At the
end of subsequent state fiscal years, the amount transferred to the wildlife
cash fund is any unencumbered balance in the fund that exceeds 120% of
the amount spent from the fund in the previous state fiscal year.
Each year, the director of the division of parks and wildlife will
issue a report and make a presentation at the appropriate SMART Act
hearing.
The bill reduces by $175,000 the fiscal year 2023-24 general fund
appropriation to the department of natural resources for use by the
division of parks and wildlife for the reintroduction and management of
gray wolves.

• April 25, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• April 24, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 14, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill prohibits the introduction of gray wolves into an area if:
  • The United States secretary of the interior has not made a
final determination as to whether the gray wolf population
in the area is experimental, which gives the state greater
flexibility to manage the wolves; or
  • The United States secretary of the interior or the United
States department of agriculture has not completed an
environmental impact study under federal law.

• April 24, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 14, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report
• March 30, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill requires that, on or before January 1, 2024, the
commissioner of agriculture adopt rules designating neonicotinoid
pesticides as limited-use pesticides, limiting their use to licensed pesticide
applicators, and authorizing only licensed dealers to sell them. The
commissioner's rules must exempt certain products that contain
neonicotinoid pesticides from the limited-use pesticide designation,
including products intended for use:
  • As pet care products;
  • By licensed veterinarians;
  • As indoor personal care products related to lice or bedbugs;
  • As agricultural products;
  • For academic research; and
  • As wood coating products.

• April 24, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 18, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 13, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill creates a rebuttable presumption that a project that is
designed and constructed within a natural stream system for certain
restoration purposes (stream restoration project) does not cause material
injury to vested water rights (rebuttable presumption). A holder of a
vested water right may challenge the rebuttable presumption by
sufficiently demonstrating in a court of competent jurisdiction that the
operation of the stream restoration project has caused material injury to
a vested water right.
The bill also requires that, at least 63 calendar days before the
commencement of a stream restoration project, the owner or proponent
of the stream restoration project register the project with the state
engineer and provide notice to the substitute water supply plan
notification list (registration and notice requirement).
Upon the completion of a stream restoration project, the owner or
proponent of the stream restoration project shall file a completion report
with the state engineer.
If a stream restoration project is limited to certain minor
restoration activities:
  • The stream restoration project does not cause material
injury to any vested water right;
  • The stream restoration project is not an unnecessary dam or
other obstruction; and
  • The owner or proponent of the stream restoration project is
not required to comply with the registration and notice
requirement.

• April 24, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 13, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

Section 1 of the bill increases the percent of appropriated funds
that the department of public health and environment (department) may
use for the administration and management of the public water systems
and domestic wastewater treatment works grant program from 5% to
10%.
Section 3 modifies the composition of the water quality control
commission (commission) by requiring that:
  • No more than 5 members of the commission be affiliated
with the same political party; and
  • The commission include members with specific types of
expertise, including expertise in areas of science and
environmental law or policy or areas such as municipal
water or wastewater treatment, industry, or labor.
Section 4 requires the commission, on or before October 31, 2025,
and after engaging in stakeholder outreach, to set the following fees by
rule:
  • Drinking water fees assessed on public water systems;
  • Commerce and industry sector permitting fees;
  • Construction sector permitting fees;
  • Pesticide sector permitting fees;
  • Public and private utilities sector permitting fees;
  • Municipal separate storm sewer systems sector permit fees;
  • Review fees for requests for certification under section 401
of the federal Clean Water Act;
  • Preliminary effluent limitation determination fees;
  • Wastewater site application and design review fees;
  • On-site wastewater treatment system fees; and
  • Biosolids management program fees.
The commission's fee-setting rules must become effective on or
before January 1, 2026, and the commission may by rule authorize the
division to phase in the fee-setting rules.
Section 4 also creates the clean water cash fund into which the
fees collected under the commission's rules, other than the drinking water
fees assessed on public water systems, are credited.
The statutory fee provisions in sections 2, 5, 6, and 8 repeal on
July 1, 2026. Before the repeal, the state treasurer is required to transfer
any money remaining in the various funds into which the statutory fees
are credited to the clean water cash fund; except that section 2 specifies
that drinking water fees will continue to be credited to the drinking water
cash fund and that any money in the drinking water cash fund will remain
in that cash fund.
Section 7 repeals the division's regulatory authority concerning
nuclear and radioactive wastes.
Section 9 requires the division to include, in its annual reporting
to the commission and the general assembly, information on:
  • The division's implementation and enforcement of the
discharge permitting program (program);
  • For reports submitted before October 1, 2025, the division's
fee revenue and direct and indirect costs associated with
the program; and
  • For the report submitted in 2025, the fee structure set forth
in the commission's proposed or adopted fee-setting rules.

• April 27, 2023: House Energy & Environment Committee Report
• April 18, 2023: Senate Finance Committee Report

The bill creates the Colorado wild horse management project (wild
horse project), which is a nonprofit, state-owned corporate entity that
manages and operates programs benefitting wild horses and supports wild
horse management. The director of the wild horse project will be selected
by a committee of the governor, the commissioner of agriculture, the
executive director of the department of natural resources, and the majority
leader of the house of representatives. The wild horse project has the
powers normally afforded to a nonprofit corporate entity. The wild horse
project will annually report to the governor, the joint budget committee,
and the appropriate joint legislative committee at SMART Act hearings.
The wild horse project may seek federal payment for wild horse
management support activities and gifts, grants, or donations. On the
effective date of the bill, the state treasurer is required to transfer $1.5
million from the general fund to the wild horse project fund, which is
created for use by the wild horse project.
A working group is established by the wild horse project to study
and pursue long-term solutions for wild horses that are removed from
federal horse management areas or held in federal facilities and make
recommendations to the governor and the general assembly. The working
group will have representation from the executive branch, the legislative
branch, nonprofit organizations, businesses, the western slope, and the
ranching community. The Colorado state director of the federal bureau of
land management (bureau), the Southern Ute Tribe, and the Ute Mountain
Ute Tribe may appoint representatives to the working group.
A wild horse stewardship program is created to help manage range
health and infrastructure. The wild horse fertility control program is
created to manage the wild horse herd population by collaborating,
coordinating, and training people and entities to manage wild horse
populations. Both programs are overseen by the wild horse project.
The commissioner of agriculture is required to provide support in
the form of grants and contracts to assist with managing wild horse
populations using fertility control methods, subject to approval by the
bureau, until July 31, 2024, or until the wild horse project commences its
own program to manage wild horse populations if commenced earlier
than July 31, 2024.

• May 04, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• May 03, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 26, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 20, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report

The bill creates the Colorado river drought task force (task force).
The members of the task force must, to the extent practicable, reflect the
racial and ethnic diversity of the state and have experience with a wide
range of water issues. The task force must begin meeting no later than
July 31, 2023, and may hold up to 12 meetings in the 2023 legislative
interim.
The purpose of the task force is to develop recommendations for
state legislation that provides additional tools for the Colorado water
conservation board to collaborate with the Colorado river water
conservation district, the southwestern water conservation district, and
other relevant stakeholders in the development of programs that address
drought in the Colorado river basin and interstate commitments related to
the Colorado river and its tributaries through conservation of the waters
of the Colorado river and its tributaries (recommendations).
No later than December 15, 2023, the task force must submit a
written report that includes the recommendations and a summary of the
task force's work to the water resources and agriculture review
committee.

• May 04, 2023: House Appropriations Committee Report
• May 03, 2023: House Agriculture, Water & Natural Resources Committee Report
• April 28, 2023: Senate Appropriations Committee Report
• April 26, 2023: Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee Report