House Bill 26-1055 Introduced

A Bill for an Act

• Page 1, Line 101Concerning the creation of the my Colorado card pilot

• Page 1, Line 102program, and, in connection therewith, providing

• Page 1, Line 103youth in grades six through twelve with access to

• Page 1, Line 104cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular

• Page 1, Line 105facilities throughout Colorado.

Bill Summary

(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://leg.colorado.gov.)

The bill creates the my Colorado card pilot program (pilot program) in the department of public health and environment (department) to provide individuals in grades 6 through 12 (youth) access to cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular activities throughout the state (activities). The department must develop a physical or digital my Colorado card for the youth participating in the pilot program to access the activities covered by the pilot program.

No later than December 30, 2026, the department, after obtaining feedback and recommendations from community-led organizations no later than December 1, 2026, must select a limited number of pilot communities to participate in the pilot program (selected pilot communities). A selected pilot community must appoint a coordination team to support youth participation in the pilot program.

The department must also coordinate with the selected pilot communities and community-led organizations to:

• Identify youth in the selected pilot communities to participate in the pilot program;
• Facilitate access to activities for youth participating in the pilot program; and
• Collect nonidentifying participation data for evaluation and reporting purposes.

The department shall evaluate the pilot program on an annual basis to assess certain components of the pilot program. On or before December 1, 2027, and on or before each December 1 thereafter, the department shall submit a report to certain committees of the general assembly summarizing the results of the department's evaluation, observed outcomes and challenges of the pilot program, and recommendations regarding the continuation or modification of the pilot program.

The pilot program repeals on September 1, 2031, subject to the sunset review process.

• Page 2, Line 1Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:

• Page 2, Line 2SECTION 1.  Legislative declaration. (1)  The general assembly

• Page 2, Line 3finds and declares that:

• Page 2, Line 4(a)  Youth across Colorado face very different levels of

• Page 2, Line 5opportunities within the communities where they live and learn;

• Page 2, Line 6(b)  Many youth live and learn in areas that would be considered

• Page 2, Line 7opportunity deserts, which are places where there is limited or no

• Page 2, Line 8equitable access to cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular facilities;

• Page 3, Line 1(c)  This lack of opportunity contributes to mental health

• Page 3, Line 2challenges, social isolation, neighborhood detachment, academic

• Page 3, Line 3struggles, and strain on the overall well-being of youth;

• Page 3, Line 4(d)  Colorado is full of opportunities that should be available to all

• Page 3, Line 5youth, no matter their zip code, affirming that all of Colorado belongs to

• Page 3, Line 6our youth; and

• Page 3, Line 7(e)  Given the ongoing mental health crisis among youth, it is

• Page 3, Line 8imperative that Colorado is committed to leveraging all partnerships and

• Page 3, Line 9places to ensure protective factors and to eliminate the risk factors that

• Page 3, Line 10keep youth from realizing their full potential.

• Page 3, Line 11(2)  Therefore, the general assembly declares that Colorado should

• Page 3, Line 12create a pilot program that allows youth to have equitable access to

• Page 3, Line 13cultural, arts, recreational, and extracurricular facilities, within and

• Page 3, Line 14beyond the zip codes that they live and learn in.

• Page 3, Line 15SECTION 2.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 25-1-139 as

• Page 3, Line 16follows:

• Page 3, Line 1725-1-139.  My Colorado card pilot program - creation of pilot

• Page 3, Line 18program - selection of pilot communities - participating facilities -

• Page 3, Line 19report - definitions - sunset review - repeal.

• Page 3, Line 20(1)  Definitions.As used in this section, unless the context

• Page 3, Line 21otherwise requires:

• Page 3, Line 22(a)  "Community-led organization" means an organization

• Page 3, Line 23that is run by individuals from the community that the

• Page 3, Line 24organization helps or that is authorized by individuals of the

• Page 3, Line 25community to help the community.

• Page 3, Line 26(b)  "Coordination team" means a group of no less than

• Page 3, Line 27seven persons comprised of:

• Page 4, Line 1(I)  Educators and school officials;

• Page 4, Line 2(II)  Community-led organizations;

• Page 4, Line 3(III)  Elected officials;

• Page 4, Line 4(IV)  Businesses and service providers;

• Page 4, Line 5(V)  Parents and guardians; and

• Page 4, Line 6(VI)  Students.

• Page 4, Line 7(c)  "Cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular

• Page 4, Line 8facility" or "facility" means a museum, cultural institution,

• Page 4, Line 9library, arts organization, recreation center, park, sports

• Page 4, Line 10facility, after-school program site, or other community-based

• Page 4, Line 11facility that provides youth enrichment opportunities.

• Page 4, Line 12(d)  "My Colorado card" means a physical or digital card

• Page 4, Line 13that enables youth participating in the pilot program to access

• Page 4, Line 14cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular facilities that

• Page 4, Line 15participate in the pilot program.

• Page 4, Line 16(e)  "Opportunity desert" means a geographic area in the

• Page 4, Line 17state where youth lack reasonable access to cultural, arts,

• Page 4, Line 18recreational, or extracurricular facilities due to economic,

• Page 4, Line 19geographic, transportation, or systemic barriers.

• Page 4, Line 20(f)  "Pilot program" means the my Colorado card pilot

• Page 4, Line 21program created in subsection (2)(a) of this section.

• Page 4, Line 22(g)  "Rural reservation community" means a community

• Page 4, Line 23that is located on or primarily serving a federally recognized

• Page 4, Line 24tribal reservation in the state.

• Page 4, Line 25(h)  "Selected pilot community" means a pilot community

• Page 4, Line 26that is selected for participation in the pilot program by the

• Page 4, Line 27department in accordance with subsection (3)(a) of this section.

• Page 5, Line 1(i)  "Youth" means an individual in grades six through

• Page 5, Line 2twelve.

• Page 5, Line 3(2)  Creation of pilot program - administration by the

• Page 5, Line 4department.

• Page 5, Line 5(a)  The my Colorado card pilot program is created in the

• Page 5, Line 6department to improve youth mental health outcomes by

• Page 5, Line 7providing youth with access to cultural, arts, recreational, or

• Page 5, Line 8extracurricular facilities throughout the state. The

• Page 5, Line 9department shall administer the pilot program in accordance

• Page 5, Line 10with this section.

• Page 5, Line 11(b)  In the department's administration of the pilot

• Page 5, Line 12program, the department shall, at a minimum:

• Page 5, Line 13(I)  Develop a my Colorado card for use by the youth

• Page 5, Line 14participating in the pilot program;

• Page 5, Line 15(II)  Select pilot communities to participate in the pilot

• Page 5, Line 16program in accordance with subsection (3) of this section;

• Page 5, Line 17(III)  Coordinate with the selected pilot communities and

• Page 5, Line 18community-led organizations to:

• Page 5, Line 19(A)  Identify youth in the selected pilot communities to

• Page 5, Line 20participate in the pilot program;

• Page 5, Line 21(B)  Facilitate access to cultural, arts, recreational, or

• Page 5, Line 22extracurricular facilities in areas throughout the state for

• Page 5, Line 23youth participating in the pilot program; and

• Page 5, Line 24(C)  Collect nonidentifying participation data for the

• Page 5, Line 25purposes of the evaluation and reporting requirements

• Page 5, Line 26described in subsection (4) of this section;

• Page 5, Line 27(IV)  Coordinate with community-led organizations to

• Page 6, Line 1provide technical assistance to selected pilot communities

• Page 6, Line 2related to:

• Page 6, Line 3(A)  Mental-health-informed and trauma-informed

• Page 6, Line 4programming practices;

• Page 6, Line 5(B)  Shared-use agreements for cultural, arts,

• Page 6, Line 6recreational, or extracurricular facilities;

• Page 6, Line 7(C)  Partnerships with community-led organizations, local

• Page 6, Line 8governments, and tribal authorities; and

• Page 6, Line 9(D)  Identification of transportation strategies using

• Page 6, Line 10existing resources; and

• Page 6, Line 11(V)  Coordinate with other state agencies and local

• Page 6, Line 12governments in the department's administration of the pilot

• Page 6, Line 13program, as appropriate, to utilize existing youth-serving

• Page 6, Line 14resources in furtherance of the pilot program.

• Page 6, Line 15(c) (I)  The department shall ensure that data collected

• Page 6, Line 16through the pilot program:

• Page 6, Line 17(A)  Is limited to nonidentifying participation data;

• Page 6, Line 18(B)  Does not include sensitive personal, academic, or

• Page 6, Line 19health information; and

• Page 6, Line 20(C)  Complies with all applicable state and federal privacy

• Page 6, Line 21laws.

• Page 6, Line 22(II)  Data collected through the pilot program shall not

• Page 6, Line 23be used for law enforcement, immigration enforcement, or

• Page 6, Line 24disciplinary purposes.

• Page 6, Line 25(3)  Pilot communities - participating facilities.

• Page 6, Line 26(a)  No later than December 30, 2026, the department,

• Page 6, Line 27after obtaining feedback and recommendations from

• Page 7, Line 1community-led organizations no later than December 1, 2026,

• Page 7, Line 2shall select a limited number of pilot communities in the state

• Page 7, Line 3to participate in the pilot program, which communities must

• Page 7, Line 4collectively represent:

• Page 7, Line 5(I)  Urban communities;

• Page 7, Line 6(II)  Rural communities; and

• Page 7, Line 7(III)  Rural reservation communities.

• Page 7, Line 8(b)  In selecting pilot communities, the department shall

• Page 7, Line 9consider:

• Page 7, Line 10(I)  Geographic diversity across the state;

• Page 7, Line 11(II)  Communities identified as opportunity deserts; and

• Page 7, Line 12(III)  Barriers to youth access to cultural, arts,

• Page 7, Line 13recreational, or extracurricular facilities, including

• Page 7, Line 14transportation barriers.

• Page 7, Line 15(c) (I)  A selected pilot community shall appoint a

• Page 7, Line 16coordination team to support youth participation in the pilot

• Page 7, Line 17program.

• Page 7, Line 18(II)  The selection of a community as a pilot community

• Page 7, Line 19does not limit youth in that selected pilot community from

• Page 7, Line 20accessing cultural, arts, recreational, or extracurricular

• Page 7, Line 21facilities through the pilot program in other parts of the state.

• Page 7, Line 22(III)  A selected pilot community may:

• Page 7, Line 23(A)  Coordinate transportation schedules;

• Page 7, Line 24(B)  Support shared-use or intergovernmental

• Page 7, Line 25transportation agreements; or

• Page 7, Line 26(C)  Promote walkable or locally accessible cultural,

• Page 7, Line 27arts, recreational, or extracurricular facilities.

• Page 8, Line 1(d)  The department and a selected pilot community may

• Page 8, Line 2encourage facilities participating in the pilot program to:

• Page 8, Line 3(I)  Offer free or reduced-price access to youth

• Page 8, Line 4participating in the pilot program during designated times;

• Page 8, Line 5(II)  Reserve capacity for youth participating in the pilot

• Page 8, Line 6program when feasible; and

• Page 8, Line 7(III)  Align hours of operation with after-school hours or

• Page 8, Line 8nonschool hours.

• Page 8, Line 9(e)  Nothing in this section requires:

• Page 8, Line 10(I)  A community or cultural, arts, recreational, or

• Page 8, Line 11extracurricular facility in the state to participate in the pilot

• Page 8, Line 12program;

• Page 8, Line 13(II)  A facility participating in the pilot program to:

• Page 8, Line 14(A)  Waive fees;

• Page 8, Line 15(B)  Provide transportation;

• Page 8, Line 16(C)  Alter capacity limits or hours of operation; or

• Page 8, Line 17(D)  Displace existing programming; or

• Page 8, Line 18(III)  A selected pilot community to provide transportation

• Page 8, Line 19or create a new service to participate in the pilot program.

• Page 8, Line 20(4)  Evaluation and reporting.

• Page 8, Line 21(a)  The department shall evaluate the pilot program on

• Page 8, Line 22an annual basis to assess:

• Page 8, Line 23(I)  Youth participation in the pilot program;

• Page 8, Line 24(II)  Geographic diversity of facilities participating in the

• Page 8, Line 25pilot program;

• Page 8, Line 26(III)  Observed indicators of engagement and well-being of

• Page 8, Line 27the youth participating in the pilot program; and

• Page 9, Line 1(IV)  Barriers to access to facilities participating in the

• Page 9, Line 2pilot program, including transportation barriers.

• Page 9, Line 3(b)  On or before December 1, 2027, and on or before each

• Page 9, Line 4December 1 thereafter, the department shall submit a report to

• Page 9, Line 5the health and human services committee of the senate and the

• Page 9, Line 6health and human services committee of the house of

• Page 9, Line 7representatives, or any successor committees, summarizing:

• Page 9, Line 8(I)  The results of the evaluation conducted pursuant to

• Page 9, Line 9subsection (4)(a) of this section and strategies implemented by

• Page 9, Line 10the department based on the results of the evaluation;

• Page 9, Line 11(II)  Observed outcomes and challenges of the pilot

• Page 9, Line 12program; and

• Page 9, Line 13(III)  Recommendations regarding the continuation or

• Page 9, Line 14modification of the pilot program.

• Page 9, Line 15(5)  Gifts, grants, or donations.The department may seek,

• Page 9, Line 16accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations from private or

• Page 9, Line 17public sources for the purposes of this section.

• Page 9, Line 18(6)  Sunset review - repeal.This section is repealed, effective

• Page 9, Line 19September 1, 2031. Before the repeal, this section is scheduled

• Page 9, Line 20for review in accordance with section 24-34-104.

• Page 9, Line 21SECTION 3.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-34-104, add

• Page 9, Line 22(32)(a)(XVI) as follows:

• Page 9, Line 2324-34-104.  General assembly review of regulatory agencies

• Page 9, Line 24and functions for repeal, continuation, or reestablishment - legislative

• Page 9, Line 25declaration - repeal.

• Page 9, Line 26(32) (a)  The following agencies, functions, or both, are scheduled

• Page 9, Line 27for repeal on September 1, 2031:

• Page 10, Line 1(XVI)  The my Colorado card pilot program created in

• Page 10, Line 2section 25-1-139.

• Page 10, Line 3SECTION 4.  Safety clause. The general assembly finds,

• Page 10, Line 4determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate

• Page 10, Line 5preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for

• Page 10, Line 6the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state

• Page 10, Line 7institutions.