Senate Bill 25-031

BY SENATOR(S) Roberts, Cutter, Jodeh, Marchman, Michaelson Jenet, Weissman;

also REPRESENTATIVE(S) Soper and Velasco, Bacon.

Concerning government agency assistance in services related to wireless communication.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:

SECTION 1.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-37.5-903, amend (2)(b) as follows:

24-37.5-903.  Colorado broadband office - creation - responsibilities - gifts, grants, or donations. (2) (b)  The broadband office shall provide technical assistance to applicants seeking grant awards from the grant program or other state or federal grant opportunities offered for deploying broadband and wireless service.

SECTION 2.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 24-33.5-719 as follows:

24-33.5-719.   Emergency alerts - definitions. (1) (a)  Beginning July 1, 2027, an alerting authority shall disseminate emergency alerts in English and in a predominant minority language if the alerting authority covers a county or city in which at least two thousand or two and one-half percent of residents who are eighteen years of age or older speak the predominant minority language and speak English less than very well, as reported by the United States census bureau's American community survey or comparable available and validated census data.

(b)  An emergency alert must be sent in the timeliest manner possible when using emergency messaging systems and emergency notification systems. An alerting authority may disseminate emergency alerts by using preloaded resident data and voluntary registrations. An alerting authority shall comply with 42 U.S.C. sec. 12101 et seq., when disseminating emergency alerts.

(c)  Emergency alerts must be in plain language.

(d)  Emergency alerts sent in English via an emergency messaging system must also be sent by alerting authorities in predominate minority languages that the system supports.

(2)  In addition to compliance with the requirements in subsection (1) of this section, the state, counties, municipalities, and alerting authorities are encouraged to use available technology to issue emergency alerts in as many languages as possible in the same method as an English alert.

(3) (a)  The state may provide assistance to counties, municipalities, and alerting authorities in implementing this section.

(b)  Each alerting authority that is required to send emergency alerts in a predominant minority language pursuant to subsection (1) of this section is encouraged to conduct community outreach to inform people with limited English proficiency of the availability of language interpretation and translation options for emergency alerts. Existing emergency notification systems installed or subscribed to by an alerting authority must adhere to this section as the alerting application allows and in the timeliest manner. Alerting authorities that are required to send emergency alerts in a predominant minority language pursuant to subsection (1) of this section may meet the requirements by any available method, including technology, employees, or vendors.

(4)  The 911 services enterprise created in section 29-11-108 may distribute grants to municipal or county alerting authorities to implement language and accessibility services for emergency alerts. The enterprise board of directors shall determine the total amount of the grants and the manner of distribution of the grants. The 911 services enterprise shall use enterprise funds to support distribution of the grants.

(5)  For purposes of this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a)  "Alerting authority" means a jurisdiction with the designated authority to alert and warn the public when there is an impending natural or human-made disaster, threat, or dangerous or missing person.

(b)  "Emergency alert" means critical life safety information disseminated by an alerting authority that advises the public to prepare to take action or take action immediately due to an imminent life threat.

(c)  "Emergency messaging system" means emergency messages from authorized federal, state, local, and territorial public alerting authorities that may be sent in multiple delivery formats, via federal alerting gateways to commercial mobile service providers or broadcasters or via state or local alerting platforms to pre-enabled devices in a locally targeted area. The system utilizing federal alerting gateways is a partnership among the federal emergency management agency, the federal communications commission, and wireless providers to enhance public safety.

(d) "Emergency notification system" means a communications system or network of systems, as defined by the alerting authority, that does not utilize federal alerting gateways and is designed to quickly alert the public to critical life safety information through multiple communications channels including, but not limited to, text messages, phone calls, emails, or desktop alerts.

(e)  "Predominant minority language" means a language spoken by at least two thousand or two and one-half percent of residents who are eighteen years of age or older who also speak English less than very well in a city or county within an alerting authority's jurisdiction, as reported by the American community survey data or comparable available and validated census data.

SECTION 3.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 29-11-108, add (5)(b)(V.5) as follows:

29-11-108.  911 services enterprise - creation - powers and duties - cash fund - legislative declaration. (5)  The enterprise's primary powers and duties are to:

(b)  Distribute funding to governing bodies, PSAPs, statewide 911 organizations, or third parties for the benefit of governing bodies or PSAPs for purposes that are pre-approved by the board of directors of the enterprise and are consistent with applicable statutes, regulations, ordinances, policies, and procedures. The purposes may include:

(V.5)  Awarding grants to local alerting authorities, as defined in section 24-33.5-719 (5), to implement language and accessibility services for emergency alerts;

SECTION 4.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 29-11-102.5, add (1.5) as follows:

29-11-102.5.  Imposition of charge on prepaid wireless - prepaid wireless trust cash fund - rules - applicability - definitions - repeal. (1.5)  This section applies to prepaid wireless telecommunications service. All other telecommunication services are subject to sections 29-11-102 and 29-11-102.3.

SECTION 5.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, 40-17.5-101, add (9.5) as follows:

40-17.5-101.  Definitions. As used in this article 17.5, unless the context otherwise requires:

(9.5)  "Prepaid wireless telecommunications service", for the purposes of this section, has the same meaning as in section 29-11-101.

SECTION 6.  Act subject to petition - effective date. This act takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly; except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2026 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.