A Bill for an Act
Page 1, Line 101Concerning a vegetative fuel mitigation program for a
Page 1, Line 102district providing fire protection services.
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 allows a fire protection district or a metropolitan district providing fire protection services (district) to create a program to mitigate the presence of dead or dry plant material that can burn and contribute to a fire on privately owned property within a district (vegetative fuel program). A district that creates a vegetative fuel program is required to adopt policies consistent with the 2024 International Wildland-urban Interface Code or the standards and codes adopted or issued by the Colorado wildfire resiliency code board. A district that creates a vegetative fuel program may require an owner or occupier with an interest in private real property that contains vegetative fuel within the district to remove the vegetative fuel and assess a fine per incident of noncompliance. In order to assess a fine, for each incident, the district must provide written notice of the requirement to remove vegetative fuel and allow at least 10 days for the owner or occupier to comply. An owner or occupier that does not remove the vegetative fuel as provided in the first notice may be subject to a second notice requiring the removal of vegetative fuel. An owner or occupier has at least 10 days to comply with the second notice. An owner or occupier that does not comply within at least 10 days after the second notice may receive a third notice providing for a fine approximately equal to the cost of removing the vegetative fuel. The fine may not exceed $300 per property per incident. An owner or occupier receiving a third notice may avoid a fine by removing the vegetative fuel within 10 days of the date of the third notice.
The money a district collects from a fine must be used by the district to remove vegetative fuel on private real property within the district's jurisdiction. An owner or occupier that is subject to a fine imposed by the district has standing to file an objection to the fine with the district's board. A district's board may waive the fine in all or in part, in its discretion, if it determines that the fine was not assessed pursuant to law, an owner or occupier is financially unable to pay the fine, or the vegetative fuel has been removed, and must prioritize use of the money to assist a low-income owner or occupier, a senior owner or occupier, or an owner or occupier with a disability in removing vegetative fuel from the owner or occupier's property.
A district shall adopt rules and policies after public notice and comment to implement the bill and shall post the adopted rules and policies to the district's website.
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) Colorado's wildfire season has grown in length and severity,
Page 2, Line 5in some cases posing a year-round threat to communities throughout
Page 2, Line 6Colorado;
Page 2, Line 7(b) Wildfires present a grave risk to Colorado's residents,
Page 3, Line 1property, and natural environment, whether in the mountains, on the
Page 3, Line 2prairie, or in suburban areas;
Page 3, Line 3(c) Wildfires can cause devastating property destruction and loss
Page 3, Line 4of life;
Page 3, Line 5(d) The creation and maintenance of defensible space around
Page 3, Line 6homes is a proven strategy to reduce wildfire risks and provide critical
Page 3, Line 7time for responding firefighters, while overgrown, dead, or dying
Page 3, Line 8vegetation, including logs, branches, slash, and mulch, increases the risk
Page 3, Line 9of fire spread, threatening homes and neighboring properties;
Page 3, Line 10(e) The state forest service's publication "The Home Ignition
Page 3, Line 11Zone" describes defensible space as the area around a structure that has
Page 3, Line 12been modified to reduce fire hazard by creating space between potential
Page 3, Line 13fuel sources. Successful programs are rooted in a comprehensive
Page 3, Line 14education and outreach approach to obtain voluntary compliance; and
Page 3, Line 15(f) Creating defensible space and maintaining water-efficient
Page 3, Line 16landscaping are compatible goals because vegetation within defensible
Page 3, Line 17space can be properly spaced and can include water-wise landscapes with
Page 3, Line 18functional and efficient irrigation systems.
Page 3, Line 19(2) Therefore, the general assembly further finds and declares that
Page 3, Line 20while the state of Colorado and local governments have invested
Page 3, Line 21substantial resources in wildfire mitigation and suppression, there is a
Page 3, Line 22need to further empower fire protection districts and metropolitan districts
Page 3, Line 23providing fire protection services to implement localized vegetative fuel
Page 3, Line 24management programs, which are essential to enhance community safety
Page 3, Line 25and resilience in the face of an increasing wildfire threat.
Page 3, Line 26SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 32-1-103, add (13.5),
Page 3, Line 27(14.3), and (23.7) as follows:
Page 4, Line 132-1-103. Definitions. As used in this article 1, unless the context
Page 4, Line 2otherwise requires:
Page 4, Line 3(13.5) "Nonprofit entity" meansa person that is registered
Page 4, Line 4as an exempt charitable organization pursuant to 26 U.S.C. sec.
Page 4, Line 5501 (c)(3) and that is exempt from taxation pursuant to 26 U.S.C.
Page 4, Line 6sec. 501 (a) of the federal "Internal Revenue Code of 1986".
Page 4, Line 7(14.3) "Privately owned real property" or "property"
Page 4, Line 8means privately owned real property that is not classified as
Page 4, Line 9agricultural land by the tax assessor. "Privately owned real
Page 4, Line 10property" or "property" does not mean privately owned real
Page 4, Line 11property owned by a nonprofit entity that is leased for
Page 4, Line 12agricultural purposes."Privately owned real property" or
Page 4, Line 13"property" does not mean real property owned or occupied by a
Page 4, Line 14public utility that has a vegetation management or wildfire
Page 4, Line 15mitigation plan to address vegetative fuel sourcesor real
Page 4, Line 16property adjacent to a ditch that conveys decreed water rights
Page 4, Line 17or within the appurtenant easement within which the ditch is
Page 4, Line 18located.
Page 4, Line 19(23.7) "Vegetative fuel" means any dead plant material
Page 4, Line 20that can burn and contribute to a fire, including leaves, grass,
Page 4, Line 21shrubs, ground litter, dead leaves, and fallen pine needles.
Page 4, Line 22SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 32-1-1002, add (1)(i)
Page 4, Line 23as follows:
Page 4, Line 2432-1-1002. Fire protection districts - additional powers and
Page 4, Line 25duties - definitions - vegetative fuel removal. (1) In addition to the
Page 4, Line 26powers specified in section 32-1-1001, the board of any fire protection
Page 4, Line 27district has the following powers for and on behalf of the district:
Page 5, Line 1(i) (I) A fire protection district may establish, in its
Page 5, Line 2discretion, a program to require the removal of vegetative fuel
Page 5, Line 3from privately owned real property within the boundaries of the
Page 5, Line 4district, and a fire protection district that establishes a
Page 5, Line 5program shall adopt policies consistent with the 2024
Page 5, Line 6International Wildland-urban Interface Code, a subsequent
Page 5, Line 7code established by the International Code Council, or the
Page 5, Line 8standards and codes adopted or issued by the Colorado wildfire
Page 5, Line 9resiliency code board. A fire protection district shall
Page 5, Line 10coordinate with all applicable local entities as defined in
Page 5, Line 11section 37-99-102 (9) when developing a vegetative fuel
Page 5, Line 12mitigation program and shall comply with the requirements of
Page 5, Line 13section 37-99-103.
Page 5, Line 14(II) A fire protection district that establishes a program
Page 5, Line 15pursuant to section (1)(i)(I) of this section may assess a fine
Page 5, Line 16against an owner or occupier of privately owned real property
Page 5, Line 17containing vegetative fuel only in accordance with this
Page 5, Line 18subsection (1)(i)(II). An incident covers all vegetative fuel on a
Page 5, Line 19property. For each incident of vegetative fuel on a property, a
Page 5, Line 20fire protection district must provide to an owner and occupier
Page 5, Line 21of the privately owned real property written notice of the
Page 5, Line 22requirement to remove vegetative fuel from a property and the
Page 5, Line 23amount of a potential fine, and information on possible funding
Page 5, Line 24or grant programs to assist owners or occupiers about effective
Page 5, Line 25vegetative fuel mitigation, including the Colorado wildfire
Page 5, Line 26resilient homes grant, the forest restoration and wildfire risk
Page 5, Line 27mitigation grant program, or any other local or state program
Page 6, Line 1about effective vegetative fuel mitigation. At least fourteen
Page 6, Line 2days after providing a first notice, if the vegetative fuel has not
Page 6, Line 3been removed, a district may provide a second written notice to
Page 6, Line 4the owner and occupier containing the same information. At
Page 6, Line 5least fourteen days after providing a second notice, if the
Page 6, Line 6vegetative fuel has not been removed, a district may assess a
Page 6, Line 7fine against the owner or occupier by providing written notice
Page 6, Line 8of the fine to the owner andoccupier by certified mail. The
Page 6, Line 9amount of a fine must be approximately equal to the cost of
Page 6, Line 10removal of the vegetative fuel on the property and must not
Page 6, Line 11exceed two hundred dollars per property per incident. An owner
Page 6, Line 12or occupier is not subject to more than one fine for the same
Page 6, Line 13incident.The sum of all fines assessed against a single property
Page 6, Line 14must not exceed one thousand two hundred dollars. A fine is
Page 6, Line 15waived if the owner or occupier removes or causes the removal
Page 6, Line 16of the vegetative fuel within fourteen days of receiving notice
Page 6, Line 17of an assessment of a fine.A fire protection district may not
Page 6, Line 18access any privately owned real property pursuant to this
Page 6, Line 19subsection (1)(i)(II) without the written permission of the owner
Page 6, Line 20or occupier of the property. An owner or occupier is not liable
Page 6, Line 21to a fire protection district for damages to fire protection
Page 6, Line 22district personnel or equipment occurring on the privately
Page 6, Line 23owned real property while fire protection district personnel or
Page 6, Line 24equipment are present on the property to carry out the purposes
Page 6, Line 25of this section.A fire protection district may not use a drone to
Page 6, Line 26discover vegetative fuel on a property or to administer or
Page 6, Line 27enforce this subsection (1)(i).
Page 7, Line 1(III) A fire protection district that establishes a program
Page 7, Line 2pursuant to subsection (1)(i)(I) of this section must use the
Page 7, Line 3money collected from a fine assessed pursuant to this section
Page 7, Line 4only to remove vegetative fuel on private real property within
Page 7, Line 5the district's jurisdiction. A fire protection district must
Page 7, Line 6prioritize use of the money to assist a low-income owner or
Page 7, Line 7occupier, a senior owner or occupier, or an owner or occupier
Page 7, Line 8with a disability to remove vegetative fuel from the owner or
Page 7, Line 9occupier's property.
Page 7, Line 10(IV) A fire protection district that establishes a program
Page 7, Line 11pursuant to subsection (1)(i)(I) of this section shall establish a
Page 7, Line 12process for a person that owns or occupies property that is
Page 7, Line 13subject to a fine imposed by the fire protection district pursuant
Page 7, Line 14to subsection (1)(i)(II) of this section to file an objection to the
Page 7, Line 15fine with the district's board. A district's board may waive the
Page 7, Line 16fine in all or in part, in its discretion, if it determines that:
Page 7, Line 17(A) The fine was not assessed in compliance with
Page 7, Line 18subsection (1)(i)(II) of this section;
Page 7, Line 19(B) The owner or occupier filing an objection is
Page 7, Line 20financially unable to pay all or a portion of the fine;
Page 7, Line 21(C) An owner or occupier against which a fine was
Page 7, Line 22assessed has removed or caused the removal of the vegetative
Page 7, Line 23fuel after the assessment of the fine; or
Page 7, Line 24(D) A waiver is appropriate under the circumstances.
Page 7, Line 25(V) A fire protection district that establishes a program
Page 7, Line 26pursuant to subsection (1)(i)(I) of this sectionmay cause a
Page 7, Line 27delinquent charge made or levied to be certified to the
Page 8, Line 1treasurer of the county and be collected and paid over by the
Page 8, Line 2treasurer of the county in the same manner as taxes are
Page 8, Line 3authorized to be by title 31.
Page 8, Line 4(VI) A fire protection district that establishes a program
Page 8, Line 5pursuant to subsection (1)(i)(I) of this section shall adopt rules
Page 8, Line 6and policies after a public hearing, public notice, and the
Page 8, Line 7allowance of public comment to implement this subsection (1)(i)
Page 8, Line 8and shall post the adopted rules and policies on the district's
Page 8, Line 9website, on social media operated by the district, and in a local
Page 8, Line 10newspaper of general circulation. A program established
Page 8, Line 11pursuant to subsection (1)(i)(I) of this section may only be
Page 8, Line 12effective thirty days or more after posting of the adopted rules
Page 8, Line 13and policies on the district's website.As part of the adopted
Page 8, Line 14rules and policies a fire protection district shall designate an
Page 8, Line 15individual to oversee and manage the program.
Page 8, Line 16(VII) A fire protection district may waive a fine for delays
Page 8, Line 17due to weather or upon a petition for a time extension from an
Page 8, Line 18owner or occupier if an owner or occupier has undertaken good
Page 8, Line 19faith efforts to remove the vegetative fuel, at the discretion of
Page 8, Line 20the fire protection district.Good faith efforts include
Page 8, Line 21documentation from an arborist or licensed professional
Page 8, Line 22landscape architect that states when the arborist or licensed
Page 8, Line 23professional landscape architect will be able to mitigate the
Page 8, Line 24vegetative fuel on a property and the cost of the mitigation. A
Page 8, Line 25fire protection district shall grant a time extension to mitigate
Page 8, Line 26or pay a fine assessed against the owner or occupier of the
Page 8, Line 27property for:
Page 9, Line 1(A) No longer than three months if the cost to mitigate
Page 9, Line 2exceeds one thousand dollars and is less than two thousand five
Page 9, Line 3hundred dollars;
Page 9, Line 4(B) No longer than six months if the cost to mitigate
Page 9, Line 5equals or exceeds two thousand five hundred dollars and is less
Page 9, Line 6than five thousand dollars;
Page 9, Line 7(C) No longer than nine months if the cost to mitigate
Page 9, Line 8equals or exceeds five thousand dollars and is less than ten
Page 9, Line 9thousand dollars; or
Page 9, Line 10(D) No longer than one year if the cost to mitigate equals
Page 9, Line 11or exceeds ten thousand dollars.
Page 9, Line 12SECTION 4. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 32-1-1004, add
Page 9, Line 13(1)(e) as follows:
Page 9, Line 1432-1-1004. Metropolitan districts - additional powers and
Page 9, Line 15duties. (1) In addition to the powers specified in section 32-1-1001, the
Page 9, Line 16board of any metropolitan district has the following powers for and on
Page 9, Line 17behalf of such district:
Page 9, Line 18(e) A metropolitan district that provides fire protection
Page 9, Line 19services may establish, in its discretion, a program to require
Page 9, Line 20the removal of vegetative fuel from privately owned real
Page 9, Line 21property within the boundaries of the district, as specified in
Page 9, Line 22section 32-1-1001 (1)(i) for fire protection districts, and a
Page 9, Line 23metropolitan district that provides fire protection services and
Page 9, Line 24that establishes a program pursuant to section 32-1-1001 (1)(i)
Page 9, Line 25shall adopt policies consistent with the 2024 International
Page 9, Line 26Wildland-urban Interface Code, a subsequent code established
Page 9, Line 27by the International Code Council, or the standards and codes
Page 10, Line 1adopted or issued by the Colorado wildfire resiliency code
Page 10, Line 2board.A metropolitan district providing fire protection services
Page 10, Line 3shall coordinate with all applicable local entities as defined in
Page 10, Line 4section 37-99-102 (9) when developing a vegetative fuel
Page 10, Line 5mitigation program and shall comply with the requirements of
Page 10, Line 6section 37-99-103.
Page 10, Line 7SECTION 5. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act
Page 10, Line 8takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the
Page 10, Line 9ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly; except
Page 10, Line 10that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V
Page 10, Line 11of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this
Page 10, Line 12act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take
Page 10, Line 13effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in
Page 10, Line 14November 2026 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the
Page 10, Line 15official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.