Source: Colorado Politics
Gov. Jared Polis has completed his statewide bill signing tour, having signed over 450 pieces of legislation into law.
According to the Governor’s Office, Polis signed 476 bills this session, 87.5% of which received bipartisan support.
“This session we continued delivering on our commitment to reduce the cost of living in our state by passing laws to build more housing people can afford, increase student funding to drive student success, improve public safety and more,” said Polis. “I am proud of the progress we delivered this year and was thrilled to travel the state from Grand Junction to Alamosa, Keenesberg, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Fort Collins and more to sign these transformational laws in the communities that make Colorado the best state in the nation to live, raise a family, and thrive.”
Any bills passed by the legislature that the Governor has not signed will automatically become law on June 6.
Polis touted several bills passed in some of his top priority areas: housing, public safety, education and workforce development, climate action, and reducing the cost of living.
Here are a few of those bills, briefly summarized:
HOUSING
HB 1273, Residential Building Stair Modernization: requires municipalities to adopt building codes allowing for apartments five stories and under to only need a single stairway exit. “This legislation will cut through red tape and make it easier to build more homes that Coloradans can afford,” Polis said.
HB 1272, Construction Defects and Middle Market Housing: The result of a yearslong battle between builders, homeowners, and trial lawyers regarding construction defects, defined as deficiencies in the design, construction, or repair of homes, condos, and apartment complexes.
SB 006, Investment Authority of State Treasurer for Affordable Housing: Authorizes the treasurer to invest up to $50 million of state money in bonds at below-market rates if their proceeds are used to create new affordable, income-restricted for-sale housing that would otherwise not be made available at similar rates. “This legislation helps remove government barriers to housing Coloradans can afford, and unlocks new home-ownership opportunities through increasing access to for-sale housing,” said Polis.
PUBLIC SAFETY
SB 310, Proposition 130 Implementation: Implements the voter-approved Proposition 130, which provides state funding for the recruitment, training and retention of law enforcement officers and death benefits for family members of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.
HB 1062, Penalty for Theft of Firearms: Increases the penalty for firearm theft to a class six felony, regardless of the firearm’s value.
HB 1171, Possession of Weapon by Previous Offender Crimes: Adds first-degree motor vehicle theft to the list of crimes that make an individual ineligible to own or use a firearm.
EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE
HB 1320, School Finance Act: Implements a new school finance formula and sets school funding levels for FY 2026-2027.
HB 1192, Financial Literacy Graduation Requirement: Requires high school students to complete a financial literacy course to graduate successfully.
SB 315, Postsecondary & Workforce Readiness Program: Creates a postsecondary workforce readiness funding distribution mechanism in the Colorado Department of Education. “This law will support students by providing more information about how their credits earned through prior learning, concurrent and dual enrollment, and GT Pathways courses will transfer to each Colorado public institution. By allowing students to evaluate and compare the value of their transfer credits across institutions and programs, students can save money and more successfully plan their educational journeys,” said Polis.
ECONOMY
HB 1005, Tax Incentives for Film Festivals: Creates a $34 million tax credit for major film festivals that choose to relocate to Colorado. “This legislation supports film festivals in Colorado and helped the state land the iconic Sundance Film Festival, starting in 2027, which will bring in hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefits and thousands of jobs,” said Polis.
HB 1090, Protections Against Deceptive Pricing Practices: Requires businesses to disclose the total prices of goods and services clearly and prohibits landlords from requiring tenants to pay specific “junk fees.”
HB 1001, Enforcement Wage Hour Laws: Modifies wage theft enforcement laws to expand penalties for violations and increase the cap for wage theft claims from $7,500 to $13,000.
REDUCING COSTS
SB 071, Prohibit Restrictions on 340B Drugs: Prohibits pharmaceutical manufacturers from imposing limitations or restrictions on health care centers and pharmacies participating in the 340B program, which provides discounted rates for medications to health care facilities that treat low-income and uninsured patients.
SB 258, Temporarily Reduce Road Safety Surcharge: Temporarily reduces the state’s road safety surcharge by $3.70 and adjusts the allocation of revenue from the surcharge and other vehicle registration fees to the highway users tax fund.
HB 1010, Prohibiting Price Gouging in Sales of Necessities: Prohibits sellers from increasing the price of goods and services by 10% or more during declared emergencies.
“FREE STATE OF COLORADO”
In his annual State of the State Address in January, Polis repeatedly referred to “the free state of Colorado,” citing recently passed ballot measures that enshrine the right to abortion and removing language from the state Constitution that only marriages between a man and a woman were valid.
“In the free state of Colorado, we understand what government is and is not here to do,” he said. “Government is not here to dictate who you love, who you marry, or if, when, and how you choose to start a family.”
SB 001, Colorado Voting Rights Act: Implements a state-level version of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which banned certain discriminatory voting practices. Read more here. “This legislation will strengthen Colorado’s gold-standard elections system and help more Coloradans make their voices heard at the ballot box,” said Polis.
SB 014, Protecting the Freedom to Marry. Implements a voter-approved ballot measure eliminating a provision in the state constitution stating marriage is only valid if it’s between a man and a woman.
SB 129, Legally Protected Health-Care Activity Protections: Prohibits attorneys, Colorado residents and entities, as well as local agencies, from complying with out-of-state investigations into providers believed to have prescribed abortion pills to out-of-state residents.
SB 130, Coverage for Pregnancy-Related Services: Requires emergency departments to life-saving treatment to patients, including abortions, regardless of their ability to pay or insurance status.
THE ENVIRONMENT
HB 1269, Building Decarbonization Measures: Updates energy use benchmarking and performance standard requirements for owners of buildings over 50,000 square feet and creates a building decarbonization enterprise to help building owners comply with the new requirements.
HB 1165, Geologic Storage Enterprise & Geothermal Resources: Creates the geologic storage stewardship enterprise in the Department of Natural Resources, which will fund the oversight of underground “geologic storage sites,” where carbon dioxide is injected and stored in rock formations.
