To: Honorable Mayor and Members of Town Council
Through: David L. Corliss, Town Manager
From: Kristin Read, Assistant Town Manager
Title
2026 General Assembly Legislative Update
Body
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Executive Summary
This memo is intended to summarize the 2026 General Assembly session, including information on the total number of bills introduced and passed, along with more specific information on the 29 items on which Council held positions.
Discussion
A total of 626 bills were introduced during the 2026 General Assembly session, according to Capitol Commons, a legislative monitoring service. Of those, about 450 passed the General Assembly. Gov. Jared Polis vetoed 12 of the passed bills.
The Town had supported 11 bills, and five of those became law, for a 46% success rate. Another bill passed but was vetoed, HB 1255: Social Media Duty to Report & Search Warrants, which would have required social media platforms to provide a streamlined process for law enforcement contacts.
The five bills the Town had supported that were signed into law are:
• HB 1101: Criminal Offenses Related to Critical Infrastructure Metals - This law strengthens regulations and penalties related to the theft, sale and possession of metals used in critical infrastructure.
• HB 1138: Retail Theft Prevention Program - This law establishes a statewide retail theft prevention program, including policy recommendations and grant funding to help combat organized retail crime.
• SB 11: Search Warrants Provided to Covered Platforms - This law requires certain online platforms to establish a process for Colorado law enforcement agencies to submit and track search warrants.
• SB 64: Modify Colorado Agricultural Future Loan Program - This law expands eligibility for the Colorado Agricultural Future Loan Program to include certain water districts.
• SB 172: Front Range Passenger Rail District - This law changes the boundaries of the Front Range Passenger Rail District to remove Castle Rock, among other provisions.
The following five supported bills failed:
• HB 1021: Second Amendment Protection Act - This bill would have repealed various State laws related to firearms and other weapons.
• HB 1112: Regulation of Underground Injection Control Wells - This bill would have brought primacy for the permitting of aquifer storage and recovery wells to the State.
• HB 1329: Motor Vehicle Stunt Drive & Takeover Penalties - This bill would have enhanced penalties for drivers, spectators and organizers of street racing events.
• HB 1334: Modify Standards of Wildfire Resiliency Code Board - This bill would have delayed implementation of Statewide wildfire resiliency code requirements by one year.
• SB 98: State & Local Noise Abatement Authority - This bill would have created additional exemptions from Statewide noise limits for government activities.
The Town had opposed 18 bills. Eleven were defeated, and the Governor vetoed one. As a result, 12 of the 18 opposed bills did not become law, representing a 67% success rate.
• These nine bills were postponed indefinitely:
o HB 1037: Ban Government Purchase of Personal Data from Third Party - This bill would have prohibited law enforcement agencies from accessing commercially available personal data from third parties without a warrant.
o HB 1114: Allowed Minimum Lot Size for Subject Jurisdictions - This bill would have prohibited local governments from requiring single-family lots to be larger than 2,000 square feet.
o HB 1308: Lot Splitting Approval by Subject Jurisdictions - This bill would have required local governments to approve a residential lot split through an administrative approval process under certain conditions.
o SB 24: State & Local Unmanned Aircraft Regulation - This bill would have preempted local authority over drones.
o SB 71: Use of Surveillance Technology by Law Enforcement - This bill would have regulated how law enforcement agencies can use certain technology.
o SB 97: Decriminalize Adult Commercial Sexual Activity - This bill would have required the Statewide decriminalization of commercial sexual activity among consenting adults.
o SB 100: Youth Sports Safety Requirements - This bill would have required first aid, CPR and AED-certified adult supervision at youth athletic activities, background checks for coaches and chaperones, and created civil liability for noncompliance.
o SB 164: Regulation of Lawful Tetrahydrocannabinol Beverages - This bill had sought to regulate and allow the sale of high-dose THC-infused beverages in restaurants, bars and venues.
o SB 176: State Remedies for Constitutional Rights Violation - This bill would have created a new State cause of action against public employees in State courts for alleged violations of an individual’s rights under the U.S. Constitution.
• These two bills were killed by other means:
o HB 1054: Protections for Worker Safety - This bill would have allowed the State to develop its own OSHA-like health and safety standards in the event that the Federal government weakened its requirements.
o SB 70: Ban Government Access Historical Location Information Database - This bill would have restricted law enforcement's access to historical location information, including warrant requirements and limits on data sharing and retention.
• This bill was vetoed:
o SB 5: Rights Violation in Immigration Enforcement Remedy - This bill would have created a statutory cause of action for a person who is injured during a civil immigration enforcement action.
The six bills the Town had opposed that were signed into law are:
• HB 1001: Housing Developments on Qualifying Properties - This law preempts local zoning to allow schools, certain housing-related nonprofits, public housing authorities and other certain entities to develop residential properties on land they own.
• HB 1102: Funding for Colorado DRIVES Account - This law redirects HUTF fees to the Colorado Driver License, Record, Identification and Vehicle Enterprise Solution (DRIVES) account, taking funding resources away from Town road maintenance.
• HB 1134: Fairness & Transparency in Municipal Court - This law requires the live streaming of certain municipal court proceedings where jail is a possible penalty.
• HB 1272: Extreme Temperatures Worker Protections - This law requires employers with workers exposed to extreme temperatures to develop prevention plans and comply with related State safety requirements.
• SB 18: Legal Protections for Dignity of Minors - This law requires courts to suppress records related to a minor's name-change petition, eliminates public notice requirements and restricts publication of identifying information.
• SB 93: Workers' Compensation Insurance Coverage Verification - This law requires local governments to verify workers' compensation coverage for certain construction projects and investigate complaints alleging noncompliance.