Senate Bill 25-067 Rerevised

A Bill for an Act

• Page 1, Line 101Concerning changes to the prosecution fellowship program.

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.)

A prosecution fellowship program in the department of higher education provides money to the Colorado district attorneys' council (CDAC) to fund fellowships for persons who have recently graduated from a law school in Colorado to allow them to pursue careers as prosecutors in rural Colorado. The program, through a prosecution fellowship committee, places up to 6 fellows in rural district attorneys' offices throughout the state each year.

The bill changes the prosecutor fellowship program to provide fellowship funding to rural district attorneys' offices to recruit and hire new deputy district attorneys rather than selecting and placing fellows in rural district attorneys' offices. The selected offices then use the money to recruit and hire new district attorneys. The bill requires the prosecution fellowship committee to determine which rural district attorneys' offices receive funding. On or before January 1, 2028, CDAC shall provide a report to the judiciary committees regarding the prosecutor fellowship program.

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

• Page 2, Line 2SECTION 1.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 23-19.3-101, amend the introductory portion; and add (4) as follows:

• Page 2, Line 323-19.3-101.  Definitions. As used in this article article 19.3, unless the context otherwise requires:

• Page 2, Line 4(4)  "Rural district attorney's office" means a district

• Page 2, Line 5attorney's office within the third, fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth,

• Page 2, Line 6eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, or twenty-second judicial district of Colorado.

• Page 2, Line 7SECTION 2.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 23-19.3-102, amend

• Page 2, Line 8(1)(a), (1)(b), (2)(a), (2)(b), (2)(d), (2)(e), (3), (4) introductory portion, and (4)(a) as follows:

• Page 2, Line 923-19.3-102.  Prosecution fellowship program - creation -

• Page 2, Line 10committee - administration - conditions. (1) (a)  There is created The

• Page 2, Line 11prosecution fellowship program is created in the department to provide

• Page 2, Line 12moneys money to the Colorado district attorneys' council to fund rural

• Page 2, Line 13district attorney's office fellowships for persons who have recently

• Page 2, Line 14graduated from a regionally accredited law school in Colorado and

• Page 2, Line 15allow them to pursue careers as prosecutors in rural Colorado. The

• Page 2, Line 16general assembly may appropriate moneys money to the department for

• Page 2, Line 17distribution to the Colorado district attorneys' council to implement the

• Page 3, Line 1provisions of this article article 19.3 and to provide fellowship

• Page 3, Line 2funding to a rural district attorney's office selected for the funding.

• Page 3, Line 3(b)  The program will match law school graduates for one-year

• Page 3, Line 4fellowships with rural district attorneys' offices throughout Colorado. The

• Page 3, Line 5initial fellowships will be awarded in fiscal year 2015-16. The program

• Page 3, Line 6may fund the salary and benefits for up to six fellows each year. The

• Page 3, Line 7fellows are independent contractors and not employees of the Colorado

• Page 3, Line 8district attorneys' council. The program is limited to law school graduates

• Page 3, Line 9from the university of Colorado school of law and the university of

• Page 3, Line 10Denver Sturm college of law. Each law school shall contribute an equal

• Page 3, Line 11amount toward twenty percent of the cost of the fellowship salaries if the

• Page 3, Line 12school wants its students to be considered for the fellowship program The

• Page 3, Line 13program provides fellowship funding to a rural district

• Page 3, Line 14attorney's office in an amount determined appropriate by the

• Page 3, Line 15fellowship committee that the office shall use to recruit, hire, and retain new deputy district attorneys.

• Page 3, Line 16(2) (a)  There is created The prosecution fellowship committee is

• Page 3, Line 17created, which shall select selects the recipients of the fellowships.

• Page 3, Line 18and the fellowship locations. The committee is comprised of seven five members, which include including:

• Page 3, Line 19(I)  The executive director of the Colorado district attorneys' council, who shall serve serves as the chair of the committee; and

• Page 3, Line 20(II)  The dean of the university of Colorado school of law;

• Page 3, Line 21(III)  The dean of the university of Denver Sturm college of law; and

• Page 3, Line 22(IV)  (II)  Four elected rural district attorneys or their designees

• Page 4, Line 1appointed by the executive director of the Colorado district attorneys' council.

• Page 4, Line 2(b)  The committee shall develop a fellow and a district attorneys'

• Page 4, Line 3offices attorney's office application process and determine the

• Page 4, Line 4selection criteria for fellows and district attorneys' office locations fellowships.

• Page 4, Line 5(d)  The members Each elected district attorney member of

• Page 4, Line 6the committee shall serve without compensation for a term of two years as determined by the fiscal year calendar.

• Page 4, Line 7(e)  The committee shall review applications received by the

• Page 4, Line 8program, select up to six fellows for the particular fiscal year plus any

• Page 4, Line 9back-up candidates as determined necessary by the committee, and select

• Page 4, Line 10up to six the district attorneys' office locations for placement of fellows

• Page 4, Line 11each year offices that will receive program funding for the

• Page 4, Line 12eligible time period, and determine the applicable award amount

• Page 4, Line 13for each selected office. After selecting the fellows and the

• Page 4, Line 14committee selects the district attorneys' office locations, the committee

• Page 4, Line 15shall match the fellows with a particular district attorney's office offices

• Page 4, Line 16that will receive program funding, the Colorado district

• Page 4, Line 17attorneys' council shall provide the funds to the selected offices.

• Page 4, Line 18(3)  In the event that the If a fellow who is receiving a fellowship

• Page 4, Line 19funding leaves the position the Colorado district attorneys' council shall

• Page 4, Line 20allocate any remaining awarded program moneys to funding a new

• Page 4, Line 21fellow, if the position is filled immediately, or to fund another fellowship.

• Page 4, Line 22If the position is not filled immediately or another vacant position does

• Page 4, Line 23not exist within the award period, the recipient office shall

• Page 5, Line 1return any remaining fellowship funding to the Colorado

• Page 5, Line 2district attorneys' council. Upon receipt of any unspent funds,

• Page 5, Line 3the committee may meet and award the funding to the same or

• Page 5, Line 4another district attorney's office. Each office that receives

• Page 5, Line 5funding shall return any unexpended program funding to the

• Page 5, Line 6Colorado district attorneys' council. The Colorado district

• Page 5, Line 7attorneys' council shall return any unexpended program moneys money to the department at the end of each fiscal year.

• Page 5, Line 8(4)  By January 1, 2019 On or before January 1, 2028, the

• Page 5, Line 9Colorado district attorneys' council shall provide a report to the house of

• Page 5, Line 10representatives and senate judiciary committees, or their successor

• Page 5, Line 11committees, regarding the prosecution fellowship program. The report

• Page 5, Line 12must include the following information regarding the placement of the fellows:

• Page 5, Line 13(a)  For each fellow placed, whether the fellow obtained deputy

• Page 5, Line 14district employment with fellowship awarded, the district

• Page 5, Line 15attorney's office where he or she was placed, with a different rural

• Page 5, Line 16district attorney's office, or an urban district attorney's office receiving

• Page 5, Line 17the award; the amount of the fellowship funding awarded; and

• Page 5, Line 18the status of any fellow's employment with the office, with any

• Page 5, Line 19other district attorney's office within Colorado, or other employment, if known, after the fellowship ends;

• Page 5, Line 20SECTION 3.  Act subject to petition - effective date. This act

• Page 5, Line 21takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the

• Page 5, Line 22ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly; except

• Page 5, Line 23that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V

• Page 5, Line 24of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this

• Page 6, Line 1act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take

• Page 6, Line 2effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in

• Page 6, Line 3November 2026 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.