CO Code § 24-51-201 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 24 - Government - State|Article 51 - Public Employees' Retirement Association|Part 2 - Administration|§ 24-51-201. Public Employees' Retirement Association - Creation

  There is hereby created the public employees' retirement association, for the purpose of providing the benefits and programs specified in this article, which shall be a body corporate with the right to sue and be sued and the right to hold property for its use and purposes. Notwithstanding the applicability of article 54.8 of this title and sections 2-3-103, 24-4-103, 24-6-202, and 24-6-402, C.R.S., as provided for in this article, the association shall not be subject to administrative direction by any department, commission, board, bureau, or agency of the state. The association is an instrumentality of the state.    The public employees' retirement association, created pursuant to the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, shall consist of the following divisions:   The state division;  (a.5) The school division;     (Deleted by amendment,L. 97, p. 771, § 5, effective July 1, 1997.)    The local government division;    The judicial division; and    The Denver public schools division.        Source: L. 87: Entire article R&RE, p. 1046, § 1, effective July 1. L. 97: (2) amended, p. 771, § 5, effective July 1. L. 2004: (2) amended, p. 1939, § 3, effective January 1, 2006. L. 2007: (1) amended, p. 577, § 2, effective April 19. L. 2009: (2)(c) and (2)(d) amended and (2)(e) added, (SB 09-282), ch. 288, p. 1333, § 2, effective January 1, 2010.   Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 24-51-102 as it existed prior to 1987.   Cross references: For the provisions that designate the public employees' retirement association as a "special purpose authority" for purposes of section 20 of article X of the Colorado constitution, see § 24-77-102 (15).   ANNOTATION   <b> General statute of limitations provision governs cases involving claims for disability retirement benefits. </b> The three-year statute of limitations in <cite class="occo"><a href="gov.co.crs.title.13.html#t13-limitationofactions-ar80-s13-80-108" target="_blank">§ 13-80-108</a></cite> (now <cite class="occo"><a href="gov.co.crs.title.13.html#t13-limitationofactions-ar80-s13-80-101" target="_blank">§ 13-80-101</a></cite>) governs cases involving claims for disability retirement benefits from the public employees' retirement association in the absence of a special statute of limitations which provides for such claims. Flanigan v. Pub. Employees' Retirement Ass'n, 191Colo. 198, 551 P.2d 702 (1976), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 1068, 97 S. Ct. 799, 50 L. Ed. 2d 786 (1977) (decided under former <cite class="occo"><a href="gov.co.crs.title.24.html#t24-publicemployees'retirementsystems-ar51-s24-51-102" target="_self">§ 24-51-102</a></cite> as it existed prior to the 1987 repeal and reenactment of this article).   As an instrumentality of the state, PERA is not a "person" under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and thus a claim for damages under that statute will not lie against it or its board. A claim for injunctive relief, however, is not so barred. Tepley v. Pub. Emp. Retirement Ass'n, 955 P.2d 573 (Colo. App. 1997).