Search Results

Legislation protects consumers from health insurer insolvency and adds biometric data protections to the Colorado Privacy Act < Back February 20, 2024 Bills to Improve Consumer Protections Pass House Legislation protects consumers from health insurer insolvency and adds biometric data protections to the Colorado Privacy Act DENVER, CO – The House today passed two pieces of legislation to improve consumer protections in Colorado. HB24-1258 passed by a vote of 43 to 17 and would ensure that Coloradans who reached their health care deductible and out-of-pocket maximums are credited by their new insurer if their old insurer goes out of business. HB24-1130 passed unanimously and would amend the Colorado Privacy Act to include protections for biometric data. “While it’s rare for health insurers to go bankrupt, we need to ensure Coloradans don’t lose the money they already spent reaching their deductible,” said Rep. Kyle Brown, D-Louisville, HB24-1258. “This legislation protects Coloradans if their insurer files for bankruptcy by allowing them to credit any out-of-pocket payments and deductibles toward their new insurer. Our bill saves Coloradans money by not requiring them to pay their health care deductible twice and honors the health care payments they’ve already made.” “When Friday Health unexpectedly closed over the summer, it left thousands of Coloradans uninsured, frustrated and worried about the money they’d already spent reaching their health care deductible and out-of-pocket costs,” said Rep. Andrew Boesenecker, D-Fort Collins, sponsor of HB24-1258. “This important legislation removes unnecessary barriers to receiving health care coverage and makes sure insurance companies honor previously paid out-of-pocket maximums and deductibles. We’re stepping up to protect Coloradans from insurer insolvency, save them money and make accessing everything from routine to life-saving health care easier.” HB24-1258 comes as a direct response to the recent Friday Health insurer shutdown and aims to protect and save Coloradans money by not requiring them to pay their health insurance deductibles twice. Specifically, Coloradans would be able to credit all out-of-pocket expenses and deductibles paid to a previous, out of business insurer to their new health insurer with a new benefit plan. “From fingerprint scanners to the facial recognition that unlocks our smartphones, our biometric data is intertwined with current and emerging technology,” said Rep. Lindsey Daugherty, D-Arvada, sponsor of HB24-1130. “Biometric data is incredibly personal, and this legislation would amend the Colorado Privacy Act to ensure our biometric data is protected and stored safely. This bill improves consumer protections of some of our most personal, individualistic data and reduces the risk of our biometric data being used improperly.” HB24-1130 , also sponsored by Rep. Mike Lynch, R-Wellington, would amend the Colorado Privacy Act to require protections for biometric data. Biometric data is highly unique to an individual and includes fingerprints, facial recognition used to unlock smartphones, and iris scanning. Specifically, this bill would require biometric data to be destroyed within a year of collection or upon request and stored at a higher level of security. Previous Next

Viewers accessed the video live stream of committees more than 15,000 times this interim < Back November 14, 2025 Speaker McCluskie Highlights Success of Committee Video Streaming Pilot Project DENVER, CO – The Executive Committee of the Legislative Council today received a report from Legislative Council Staff (LCS) on a recent pilot project to live stream and record video from legislative committee hearings. The pilot program is set to expire at the end of 2025. Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon: “The committee video streaming pilot has been a resounding success – viewers accessed the live streams of 35 committee hearings more than 15,000 times this interim. For example, during our hearing with state economists and department leaders on the devastating impacts of the federal GOP budget on Medicaid, SNAP and health care, viewers accessed the live stream more than 2,500 times. “Video streaming increases transparency, improves civic engagement and helps modernize the legislative process. There is no doubt that video streaming is popular. While cost and budgetary constraints are certainly factors, I would like to find a way to continue streaming video of our committee hearings, and I want to thank our nonpartisan staff for their efforts to make this pilot possible.” According to LCS, viewers accessed livestreamed video a total of 15,251 times during 35 committee meetings between July 30 and November 5, 2025. Nearly 60-percent of the views were related to or occurred during August’s special session. Viewers accessed the live streams for the 10 committees of reference that met during the special session 4,500 times. The live stream was accessed more than 2,500 times for the July 30 Executive Committee, where state economists and departments presented on the impacts of HR. 1. The LCS report says the informal feedback has been “very positive” and that viewers “were especially happy to be able to see slide presentations live.” The pilot program, for which the Speaker strongly advocated, covered five committee rooms, including the Old State Library, the Old Supreme Court Chamber, House Committee Room 0112, Senate Committee Room 357, and Committee Room A in the Legislative Services Building. Colorado is one of two states in the nation that does not have video streaming in legislative committee rooms. Previous Next

Lawmakers on the Joint Budget Committee today approved two budget requests from Governor Jared Polis to fund critical food access programs during Republicans’ federal government shutdown. < Back October 30, 2025 JOINT RELEASE: JBC Members Swiftly Approve Emergency Funding to Boost Food Banks and Pantries During GOP Government Shutdown DENVER, CO – Lawmakers on the Joint Budget Committee today approved two budget requests from Governor Jared Polis to fund critical food access programs during Republicans’ federal government shutdown. The first budget request allocates $10 million to support Colorado food banks and pantries in response to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) directive to suspend the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) starting November 1. The second budget request extends previously approved funding for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nutrition access through November. “The Republican shutdown is hurting Colorado families,” said JBC Chair Jeff Bridges, D-Arapahoe County . “Regardless of what’s happening in Washington, Colorado is stepping up to keep families fed and kids healthy. This is what responsible budgeting looks like. Focusing on results, not rhetoric, and doing what’s right for the people we represent. For the sake of families across our state and nation, I wish DC would act a bit more like Colorado.” “While Congressional Republicans and the Trump Administration play political games with Coloradans’ health care, hundreds of thousands of people in our state are now at risk of losing their SNAP benefits as a result,” said JBC Vice Chair Shannon Bird, D-Westminster. “Today, Colorado Democrats stepped up to fill the gap and ensure that hardworking families in our communities receive the support they need to put food on the table. Half of the 600,000 Coloradans who benefit from SNAP are children; this emergency budget request pushes past the dysfunction in Washington to help families access food pantries and food banks.” “The JBC’s approval of an additional $10 million to food banks and pantries, plus an extension of funding for WIC, was a no-brainer,” said JBC Member Judy Amabile, D-Boulder. “We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of children, pregnant women, the elderly, and people with disabilities who have lost their lifeline to afford groceries this month because of chaos in Washington. Regardless of your circumstance, everyone should have the basic right to feed themselves and their families.” “The federal SNAP program keeps children from going hungry, which is why we’re stepping up to protect hardworking families from the GOP Congress and Trump Administration’s cuts,” said JBC Member Emily Sirota, D-Denver. “We are boosting funding for our food pantries and food banks as well as extending WIC because with SNAP benefits ending, families are depending on us. Unfortunately, kids in our communities are suffering from the fallout of the Congressional Republicans’ government shutdown. In Colorado, we’re acting now to ensure families can put dinner on the table.” SNAP is fully funded by the federal government and administered by the state. On October 10, the USDA informed regional and state SNAP directors that if the federal government shutdown continues, states are to pause funding for November. This means the Colorado Department of Human Services will be unable to issue approximately $120 million of November SNAP benefits. To help families that rely on nutrition assistance, the JBC voted to direct additional funding to food banks and food pantries so they can fill some of the need communities will see when the federal government stops SNAP payments. On Tuesday, Colorado joined 22 other states in a lawsuit to force the Trump Administration to restore SNAP benefits by tapping into an emergency reserve. SNAP provides food assistance to more than 600,000 Coloradans across 330,000 households; more than half of the recipients are children. Additionally, 10-percent of SNAP recipients are older Coloradans and 15-percent are Coloradans living with a disability. WIC supports food access for nearly 100,000 pregnant women, new mothers, and young children in Colorado. Previous Next

< Back May 19, 2020 GOV. POLIS AND LEGISLATIVE LEADERSHIP ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT ON THE DISBURSEMENT OF FEDERAL CARES ACT FUNDS TO IMMEDIATELY RESPOND TO THE COVID-19 HEALTH AND ECONOMIC CRISIS DENVER – Governor Jared Polis, in collaboration with legislative leadership, announced today the allocation of $1.674 billion in federal funds from the CARES Act that will immediately support the State’s robust response to the COVID-19 crisis as well as key investments needed for economic recovery. “COVID-19 has taken the lives of too many Coloradans and disrupted our way of life, and this has been a very challenging time for our entire state. I am grateful for the support we have received from the federal government, but there will still be hardship ahead. This immediate disbursement ensures that no Coloradan has to go without a hospital bed when they need one, that the state can continue to scale up testing and containment, and protect our most vulnerable. It allows parents to return to work by ensuring that our schools have needed resources to adapt to our new reality and helps our frontline local governments in their coronavirus response. My administration is working closely in a bipartisan way with the federal delegation and legislative leadership to do everything in our power to help Coloradans overcome this generational challenge. The steps we are taking now will allow us to increase much needed economic activity in our state,” s aid Gov. Polis. “This agreement quickly channels over $1.6 billion directly to our school districts, universities and local governments to help them retain first responders, support our health care workforce, protect our veterans and seniors and rapidly expand contact tracing so we can safely restart our economy. Schools and universities can use it to help them prepare for the fall so parents can go back to work and we can rebuild our workforce. I look forward to the bipartisan work ahead to allocate the remaining funds and pass legislation that helps Coloradans and small businesses get through this crisis.” Speaker KC Becker, D-Boulder. “The CARES Act funding is an indispensable lifeline for our state––helping us ease the immediate economic and public health pains caused by COVID-19. But it’s nowhere near enough in terms of recovery,” said Senate President Leroy Garcia. “As members of the legislature, we will continue working hard alongside the Governor and the Joint Budget Committee to protect Coloradans during this challenging time. However we need Congress to do much more, especially for those communities like mine in Pueblo that the CARES Act explicitly left behind.” Governor Polis signed an Executive Order today authorizing the following transfers: For Medical expenses and Public health expenses incurred or expected to be incurred in the State’s Disaster Emergency Fund, $48 million transferred for FY 2019-20 and $157 million set-aside for FY 2020-21. This includes amounts expected to be distributed to local public health agencies for COVID-19 response. For Expenditures to comply with public health measures pertaining to maintaining veterans living facilities, State prisons and other State facilities with congregate care , including sanitation and effectively implementing social distancing measures , $2 million transferred for FY 2019-20 and $8 million set-aside for FY 2020-21. These funds will be available to improve the safety of our prisons, veterans living facilities, youth services centers, and mental health facilities. For Expenditures incurred to respond to second-order effects of the emergency, including caseload increases for at-risk pupils and human services programs during the COVID-19-driven recession, $2 million transferred for FY 2019-20 and $57 million set aside for FY 2020-21. For Expenses to respond to second-order effects of the emergency, including payments for emergency rental and mortgage assistance, as well as additional direct assistance where appropriate, for individuals that have been economically impacted by COVID-19, with preference given to individuals that are ineligible for other forms of assistance such as unemployment insurance, food benefits, or direct federal stimulus payments, $10 million transferred for FY 2019-20. For Expenses associated with the provision of economic support in connection with the COVID-19 public health emergency, including payments to stimulate the economy by supporting Colorado’s workforce with school-aged children, $500 million transferred to local school districts and proportionally by student population to the Charter School Institute and the Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind and $25,000 to each Board of Cooperative Education Services (BOCES) in the state for a total of $510 million above the Constitutionally required state share of public school finance to increase free instructional hours for our kindergarten through 12th grade education system while complying with COVID-19 public health orders, including facilitating distance learning and social distancing for in-person contact hours, and mitigating lost learning, and $450 million transferred to public institutions of higher education to increase student retention and completions, given Colorado’s critical shortage of skilled workforce. For Payroll expenses and other necessary State expenditures for public safety, public health, health care, human services, and similar employees whose services are substantially dedicated to mitigating or responding to the COVID-19 public health emergency , $85 million set aside for FY 2019-20 and FY 2020-21, including at the Office of the State Controller for expenses related to accounting for and monitoring the use of federal funds related to the COVID-19 public health emergency. Expenses of local governments that did not receive a direct distribution of funds in the CARES Act to facilitate compliance with COVID-19-related public health measures , $275 million for FY 2019-20 and FY 2020-21. These resources will support local communities both directly, as funds flow from State agencies to local partners, and indirectly. A significant portion of the allocation for the public health response will flow directly to local county public health agencies to ensure we have a robust statewide response through testing and contact tracing. In addition to these funds, our local communities are receiving significant federal resources, including $125 million to Colorado communities from the Department of Health and Human Services, more than $16 million in Community Development Block Grants, $8 million in Community Services Block Grants, and an estimated $30 million to local governments for COVID-19 testing. In addition to these funds, the state of Colorado has already received or is expected to receive, several direct transfers to fulfill critical needs including $2.25 million and as much as $8 million for crisis counseling and mental health support, $15.4 million in LEAP funds to help Coloradans pay their home heating bills, and $9.1 million in Byrne Justice Assistance grants to support local law enforcement adopt to COVID-19. The administration looks forward to engaging with the legislature on how to best serve Coloradans with these funds. The Governor sent a letter to the legislature today. The remaining $70 million in unallocated funds will be transferred to the General Fund for appropriations for when the legislative session resumes. Previous Next

< Back April 26, 2019 REP. COLEMAN’S BILL TO PREPARE WORKERS FOR GOOD PAYING JOBS PASSES HOUSE Bill would help Colorado’s low-income population obtain and retain jobs (Apr. 26) – The House gave preliminary approval to Rep. James Coleman’s bill to create an employment support and job retention services program within the Division of Employment and Training in the Department of Labor and Employment. “We need to help the people in our community who are living at or under the federal poverty line keep and be prepared for their jobs,” said Rep. Coleman, D-Denver. “Job security can pull many people out of the poverty cycle, keep a roof over the heads of families, and keep people safe. We need to do everything we can to increase and strengthen our workforce. ” HB19-1107 requires the director of the division to contract with an entity to administer the program. The program provides reimbursements for employment support, job training, job searching and job retention services to eligible individuals statewide. Eligible expenses include funds for emergency child care, transportation, work clothes or tools, and other supports explicitly related to an individual’s employment goals. Benefits are capped at $400 per individual, per year. The bill passed on a voice-vote. It will be given a final vote at a later date. Previous Next

Representative Eliza Hamrick today visited Pickens Technical College and The Excel Center to learn more about post-secondary education and workforce opportunities for Coloradans. < Back September 17, 2024 Rep. Hamrick Visits Technical College AURORA, CO – Representative Eliza Hamrick today visited Pickens Technical College and The Excel Center to learn more about post-secondary education and workforce opportunities for Coloradans. “I’d like to thank the folks hosting me at Pickens Technical College and The Excel Center – it was great to hear about their emerging programs to not only meet our workforce needs but make it easier for students to succeed in any career,” said Rep. Eliza Hamrick, D-Centennial . “Under the gold dome, we’ve worked hard to make it easier for Coloradans to find and take advantage of workforce opportunities, including the Care Forward program which has successfully boosted our health care workforce through zero-cost credentials.” Rep. Hamrick toured both Pickens Technical College and The Excel Center. Pickens offers 25 certificate programs , in everything from the skilled trades to healthcare, to adults and high school students as part of the Aurora Public Schools and the Colorado Community College System. The Excel Center makes it possible for adults to earn their high school diploma at no-cost . Both education centers are designed to improve access to skills training and make it possible for Coloradans to begin a career they love. During the 2024 legislative session, Rep. Hamrick championed a number of bills designed to uplift education opportunities and local communities. This includes legislation to boost apprenticeship programs and expanding community-based behavioral health care grants . Rep. Hamrick also supported multiple workforce bills, including new laws to expand concurrent enrollment , uplift careers in high-demand sectors such as construction and health care and a tax credit to make the first two-years of college free for low and middle-income students. Previous Next

< Back March 27, 2019 REP. FROELICH’S BIPARTISAN BILLS TO LOWER COST OF HEALTH CARE & HELP STUDENTS MOVING THROUGH LEGISLATURE (Mar. 26) – Rep. Meg Froelich’s bills to help students and lower the cost of health care are moving through the legislature. Earlier today, the full House approved a bipartisan bill, sponsored by Rep. Froelich, D-Englewood, that would increase the accountability of online schools. This afternoon, a House committee gave approval to her bipartisan bill with Rep. Yadira Caraveo, D-Thornton, to lower health care costs and improve the quality of care that Coloradans receive. “Lowering the cost of health care is a top priority for us at the legislature,” said Rep. Froelich. “Colorado only invests roughly seven to ten percent of its health care dollars on primary care. If we invest more money in primary care on the frontend, that will reduce the cost of health care for both the patients and the medical system on the backend.” HB19-1233 establishes a primary care payment reform collaborative in the Division of Insurance in the Department of Regulatory Agencies. It also requires the Commissioner of Insurance to establish affordability standards for premiums, including adding targets for carrier investments in primary care. Finally, requires the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and carriers who offer health benefit plans to state employees to set targets for investment in primary care. The goal of primary care is to achieve better health outcomes by improving the quality and consistency of care so that both patients and the health care system can see a reduction in costs. Primary care visits comprise 53 percent of all health care appointments. HB19-1233 passed by a bipartisan vote of 9-2. It now heads to the House Appropriations committee. Another bipartisan bill led by Rep. Froelich is headed to the Governor’s desk. “This bipartisan bill is about leveling the playing field for students who attend an online school, but may depart those schools for various reasons,” said Rep. Froelich said of SB19-129. “It seeks to address whether students who leave online schools are having their educational needs met. Additionally, we are putting in place a key protection in this bill to ensure that poorly performing online schools have to improve before they can once again be accredited by the state.” SB19-129 enables more effective tracking of students, especially those who enter an online program and subsequently leave before the end of the school year. The bill requires the Online Division in the Department of Education to report information about students who disenroll from an online school after the annual pupil enrollment count date and if known, where they go next. Online schools in Colorado increased 40 percent from 2010 to 2018, to more than 21,000 students. Many of the online schools fare poorly in state evaluations. Little more than half of the 42 online schools received one of the top two ratings, and 31 percent didn’t have enough data to be rated, according to Colorado Department of Education. In 2014, the Colorado General Assembly approved a task force made up of education stakeholders to study issues related to Colorado Online Schools. The report submitted to the General Assembly called for more than a dozen items that might be fixed to improve the online education experience. SB19-129 passed the House with a bipartisan vote of 44-19. It now heads to the Governor’s desk. Previous Next

The House today advanced commonsense gun violence prevention legislation on a preliminary vote to create new avenues to pursue justice for victims of gun violence. < Back March 26, 2023 Houses Advances Bill to Allow Victims of Gun Violence to Seek Justice DENVER, CO - The House today advanced commonsense gun violence prevention legislation on a preliminary vote to create new avenues to pursue justice for victims of gun violence. “Colorado is one of the only states in America that has extreme anti-victim laws that punish gun violence victims and their families for attempting to pursue accountability from the gun industry in civil court,” said Rep. Javier Mabrey, D-Denver . “Civil lawsuits encourage sellers and manufacturers to behave responsibly and have repeatedly resulted in the enhanced safety of consumer products. We’re removing Colorado’s extreme gun industry immunity law to give victims the opportunity to pursue justice from bad actors.” “All industries should be held to a similar standard for ethical and responsible business practices, but especially when those actions cause severe damage, injury or death,” said Rep. Jennifer Parenti, D-Erie . “This legislation restores Coloradans right to pursue justice through our courts and is an important step in encouraging the firearms industry to take more precautions to keep our communities safe.” Right now, gun sellers and manufacturers enjoy broad protections under the federal PLCAA law from most types of civil lawsuits - and Colorado law goes even further by including a punitive provision that makes victims of gun violence who sue the gun industry pay the company’s legal fees in dismissed cases. SB23-168 would remove Colorado’s overly-broad immunity protections for gun sellers and manufacturers and allow legitimate lawsuits against the gun industry to move forward. After their daughter was killed in the Aurora theater shooting, Sandy and Lonnie Phillips sued four online retailers that irresponsibly sold magazines, thousands of rounds of ammunition, and body armor to the murderer. Under Colorado’s immunity law, they were forced to pay around $200,000 in legal fees to bulk ammunition sellers. They ended up selling their house and declared bankruptcy. Civil liability plays an important role in promoting consumer safety, and lawsuits can help incentivize industries to take reasonable steps to prevent their products or business practices from causing foreseeable risks to human life and wellbeing. Removing Colorado’s gun industry shielded liability will allow survivors like the Phillips and countless others to seek appropriate justice and fair remedies via civil actions, and will give survivors the legal opportunity to hold gun sellers and manufacturers accountable for their actions. Previous Next

< Back April 28, 2021 READY FOR PICKUP: HOUSE EXTENDS ALCOHOL TAKEOUT AND DELIVERY DENVER, CO– The House today passed Representative Dylan Roberts’ bipartisan bill to extend the period of time during which restaurants and bars can offer takeout and delivery of alcoholic beverages on second reading. The bill passed by a unanimous vote of 61-0. “Restaurants, bars and other retail businesses are the heart of our local communities and major employers across the state,” said Rep. Dylan Roberts, D-Avon. “They have been dealt a particularly harsh blow by the pandemic, and many have turned to alcohol takeout and delivery as a critical source of income during tough times. As we work to build back a stronger Colorado, we have to ensure that our state’s small businesses have the support they need to bounce back and thrive. Extending takeout and delivery alcohol and allowing for towns to utilize common consumption areas for a few more years is a common sense way to lend bars and restaurants a hand.” Under a current law also sponsored by Rep. Dylan Roberts, certain liquor licensees like bars, restaurants, and gastropubs may sell alcohol as part of takeout and delivery orders through July 1, 2021. HB21-1027 , which is also sponsored by Representative Colin Larson, allows these establishments to continue using this critical tool for an additional five years and also allows them to apply for a license to establish a common consumption area, extending a tool many restaurants, bars, and communities have embraced to remain afloat throughout the pandemic. Previous Next

< Back March 8, 2019 REP. ROBERTS’ BILL ON WINTER DRIVING CLEARS PASS(AGE) (Mar. 8) – The House floor gave preliminary approval today to a bipartisan bill sponsored by Rep. Dylan Roberts to increase safety and efficiency on our roads by updating and revising language in statutes for motor vehicles driving the I-70 mountain corridor. “Given the recent record snowfall, this is a very appropriate day and week for this bill. Many drivers are not prepared for the winter driving conditions on I-70 and that leads to crashes, spin-outs, and closures along the I-70 mountain corridor – especially during winter months,” said Rep. Dylan Roberts, D-Avon. “Closures due to unprepared drivers on I-70 cause traffic and can hurt our economy on the Western Slope and across Colorado.” This bill gives state patrol more leeway to control the traffic during winter months. “We want to make sure drivers are prepared to drive on I-70 during winter conditions for the safety of themselves and the safety of others, ” said Rep. Roberts added. HB19-1207 updates current statutes to reflect modern traction technology and traction options. It sets minimum standards for tires being used in the winter in the mountain corridor. It also defines the I-70 mountain corridor by mileposts and sets out clear standards for the timeframe for traction equipments requirements. The heightened traction standards would be in effect from September 1 through May 31 of each year and apply to travel between milepost 133 (Dotsero) and milepost 259 (Morrison). HB19-1207 received preliminary passage on the House floor by a voice vote. It still requires a final vote before clearing the final pass in the House and moving to the Senate. Previous Next

< Back January 30, 2020 REP. SIROTA: LIMIT CONTRIBUTIONS IN SCHOOL BOARD RACES DENVER, CO– The House Committee on State, Veterans, and Military Affairs today advanced Rep. Emily Sirota’s bill to set a maximum contribution limit of $2,500 in school board elections by a vote of 7-2. “Money is corrupting our political system, and we need to address it at every level, especially when it’s taking direct aim at our children’s education,” said Rep. Sirota (D-Denver). “Spending in school board races is out of control and getting larger each year. It’s time to put limits on contributions in school board races to curb the influence of high-dollar donors in our democracy.” Unlike federal elections, Colorado House and Senate elections and county elections, there are currently no limits on campaign contributions in school board races. Spending in school board races in Colorado is growing rapidly, and donors, sometimes from out of state, are contributing tens of thousands of dollars to individual candidates, amounts substantially above federal and state contribution limits in other races. HB20-1066 would set contribution limits in school director elections at $2,500 per individual donor. These limits would be adjusted for inflation. Additionally, the bill subjects school board candidates to existing disclosure laws, including requiring school board candidates to file contribution reports in a similar manner to state House and Senate candidates. Previous Next

HB25-1221 would allow Emily Griffith Technical College to offer associate’s degrees < Back February 26, 2025 Hamrick’s Bill to Meet Workforce Needs Passes Committee DENVER, CO – The House Education Committee today passed bipartisan legislation to expand postsecondary education opportunities to strengthen Colorado’s workforce. HB25-1221 sponsored by Representative Eliza Hamrick, would allow the Emily Griffith Technical College to offer an associate’s degree to students participating in registered apprenticeship programs. “We’re working hard to address Colorado’s ever-evolving workforce needs, and this bill helps ensure students involved in apprenticeship programs can pursue associate degrees that will lead to good-paying jobs,” said Rep. Eliza Hamrick, D-Centennial. “Our bipartisan bill supports students by breaking down barriers, expanding access to higher education and fostering strong pathways to jobs in high-demand fields after graduation. The new associate’s degree program at Emily Griffith Technical College will create new low-cost opportunities for students to pursue higher education and help meet Colorado's workforce needs.” HB25-1221 , also sponsored by Representative Lori Garcia Sander, R-Eaton, passed committee by a vote of 13-0. To meet workforce needs, this bill would allow the Emily Griffith Technical College to offer an associate’s degree of applied science for students participating in qualified apprenticeship programs. This bill aims to break down barriers for students wanting to pursue an associate’s degree while participating in an apprenticeship program. Registered apprenticeship programs at the Emily Griffith Technical College are work-based learning experiences that are overseen by both the college and an employer. Approximately 5,300 students at Emily Griffith Technical College participate in an apprenticeship program. HB25-1221 would strengthen Colorado’s workforce by ensuring students are enrolled in programs that align with in-demand industries and good-paying jobs. Previous Next