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The U.S. federal government holds exclusive authority to regulate immigration, including who may enter the country and under what conditions. Nevertheless, states can enact laws that impact immigrants and influence the enforcement of federal immigration laws, provided that these state laws do not conflict with federal law. This issue brief outlines current state and federal laws affecting immigration in Colorado, including immigration enforcement, the Office of New Americans, access to public services, health insurance coverage, and identification.

This is the Joint Budget Committee's schedule. Please check this document regularly for schedule updates.

Colorado receives annual payments from tobacco manufacturers as part of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). The Tobacco MSA was reached in 1998 between certain tobacco manufacturers (known as “participating manufacturers”) and the governments of 52 states and territories. Under the MSA, participating tobacco manufacturers are released from health‑related claims associated with their products in exchange for making perpetual annual payments to states. Payments made to Colorado under this agreement are exempt from TABOR as a damage award.

Expanding on Legislative Council Staff’s Overview of Artificial Intelligence (AI) memo, this memo focuses on the application of AI for health uses. It details model training, algorithmic equity, and data privacy and security from a health lens. Furthermore, the memo discusses challenges in data privacy and security, highlighting risks such as unauthorized monetization of patient records.

This memo analyzes the rapid growth of state legislation regarding artificial intelligence (AI) and health, which surged from 15 bills introduced in 2023 to 168 bills introduced in 2025. Based on data from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), at least 41 states have introduced 247 health and AI bills addressing topics ranging from private sector use to government use. This overview presents annual trends to illustrate the complexities of regulating AI for health.

This memorandum provides information on the regulation of short-term rentals (STRs) in Colorado. State law defines any rental of a lodging unit for less than 30 days as an STR, and allows for their regulation at the county level. STRs may also be regulated privately through contracts and homeowners’ association covenants. A lodging unit includes any property or portion of a property that is available for lodging, except for hotels. STRs are usually privately owned residential units that are booked through third-party vacation rental services, such as Airbnb and VRBO.

In Colorado, all children between the ages of six and twenty-one years old have the right to a free education through public schools. State law also permits non-public education, such as private or homeschooling. This issue brief provides information on the laws that govern public and non-public education.  

This memorandum provides an overview of issues considered by fiscal analysts for bills that impact the criminal justice system. Specifically, it provides an overview of Colorado's crime classifications and sentencing ranges, and of criminal justice impacts by state or local government agency.

This document lists the LCS Fiscal Analyst assigned to work on the fiscal note for each bill and concurrent resolution introduced at the 2026 session. This list will be updated periodically throughout the session. If you need assistance, contact Bill Zepernick, Fiscal Notes Manager, at bill.zepernick@coleg.gov / 303-866-4777.

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During the 2025 legislative session, the Colorado General Assembly considered several measures related to taxes, finance, and the state budget. Also, the General Assembly considered several bills during the 2025 extraordinary session related to matters of taxes and the state budget. 

This memo details the hierarchy of evidence framework, a tool used in health research to rank studies based on their ability to minimize bias and establish trustworthy conclusions. It reviews the strengths and weaknesses of different types of health research studies. Finally, it offers strategic guidance for applying the hierarchy to evidence-based health policymaking, emphasizing the need to balance study design with real-world feasibility and approaches for assessing recommendation strength.

As no federal legislation regulating artificial intelligence (AI) has passed yet, the national regulatory landscape is primarily defined via Executive Orders (EO). On January 23, 2025, the second Trump Administration released its first AI EO. EO 14179, “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence,” ordered the development of an AI action plan to achieve the Administration’s policy goals.

Pursuant to Section 2-3-1901, C.R.S, the Legislative Oversight Committee for Colorado Jail Standards (committee) is responsible for adopting and revising standards for Colorado jails. The committee adopted a set of jail standards in 2023. Pursuant to Section 2-3-1901.5, C.R.S, jails must comply with the standards by July 1, 2026.

Term Limit Information for Members of the Colorado State Senate.

Legislative committees are a very important part of Colorado's legislative process. At a legislative committee hearing, citizens have an opportunity to express their views and have them incorporated into the official legislative record. In Colorado, every bill receives a public hearing by one of the legislature's committees. This memorandum provides guidance to the public in participating in the legislative process.

This memorandum provides an overview of the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act; the State Office of Risk Management’s role in the risk management process; and recent trends in state spending on property, liability, and workers’ compensation coverage and claims.

During the 2026 legislative session, House committees of reference will consider 16 functions of Colorado state government and 6 advisory committees subject to sunset review. Sunset laws allow the General Assembly to periodically review the need for state regulations, advisory committees, or state agencies, and to update the law creating the agency or function.

This guide is a compilation of crimes and traffic infractions in Colorado.

2026 Senate Committee Schedule

Legislative Council Staff (LCS) fiscal notes estimate a bill’s fiscal impact relative to current law. There are four tax credits in current law, known as triggered tax credits, whose availability or amounts are dependent on state revenue conditions. Bills that affect state revenue subject to TABOR may affect the availability or level of these triggered tax credits. If a bill impacts state revenue subject to TABOR such that it is expected to change the availability or level of a triggered tax credit, the bill’s fiscal note will show revenue impacts that result from that change. 

This memo synthesizes evidence regarding the economic impacts of employer-funded health programs and insurance coverage on a company’s financial bottom line. Findings suggest that while interventions in chronic disease management, mental health, and occupational safety can generate positive returns on investment, the magnitude of these impacts remains highly sensitive to company size, program design, and methodological limitations like selection bias.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), also commonly known as bird flu, is present in Colorado and nationwide. Recently, it has caused outbreaks in poultry and dairy herds, resulting in the largest animal disease outbreak in the state’s history. 

This memorandum describes the common policies for submitting a fiscal note response to the Legislative Council Staff, and the standard costs to be used in estimating the fiscal impact of legislation considered during the 2026 legislative session. 

This summary document provides an overview of the fiscal note common policies for the 2026 legislative session. It highlights key dates, policies, and commonly used cost assumptions.