CO Code § 24-33.5-704 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 24 - Government - State|Article 33.5 - Public Safety|Part 7 - Emergency Management|§ 24-33.5-704. The Governor and Disaster Emergencies - Response - Duties and Limitations

  The governor is responsible for meeting the dangers to the state and people presented by disasters.    Under this part 7, the governor may issue executive orders, proclamations, and regulations and amend or rescind them. Executive orders, proclamations, and regulations have the force and effect of law.    Repealed.    A disaster emergency shall be declared by executive order or proclamation of the governor if the governor finds a disaster has occurred or that this occurrence or the threat thereof is imminent. The state of disaster emergency shall continue until the governor finds that the threat of danger has passed or that the disaster has been dealt with to the extent that emergency conditions no longer exist and the governor terminates the state of disaster emergency by executive order or proclamation, but no state of disaster emergency may continue for longer than thirty days unless renewed by the governor. The general assembly, by joint resolution, may terminate a state of disaster emergency at any time. Thereupon, the governor shall issue an executive order or proclamation ending the state of disaster emergency. All executive orders or proclamations issued under this subsection    An executive order or proclamation of a state of disaster emergency shall activate the disaster response and recovery aspects of the state, local, and interjurisdictional disaster emergency plans applicable to the political subdivision or area in question and shall be authority for the deployment and use of any forces to which the plans apply and for use or distribution of any supplies, equipment, and materials and facilities assembled, stockpiled, or arranged to be made available pursuant to this part 7 or any other provision of law relating to disaster emergencies.    During the continuance of any state of disaster emergency, the governor is commander-in-chief of the organized and unorganized militia and of all other forces available for emergency duty. To the greatest extent practicable, the governor shall delegate or assign command authority by prior arrangement embodied in appropriate executive orders or regulations, but nothing in this section restricts the governor's authority to do so by orders issued at the time of the disaster emergency.   (6.5) (a) During the response to or recovery from any state of disaster emergency, the governor may convene a disaster policy group if needed to effectively and efficiently coordinate policy-level decision-making and to advise the governor on the response to and recovery from the event. The policy group must include a representative from the department of local affairs and appropriate state agencies involved in the response and recovery effort.    If the governor convenes a disaster policy group pursuant to subsection (6.5)(a) of this section, the governor shall appoint a chair and shall delegate to the chair the authority to manage cross-departmental and interjurisdictional coordination for recovery efforts.       In addition to any other powers conferred upon the governor by law, the governor may:   Suspend the provisions of any regulatory statute prescribing the procedures for conduct of state business or the orders, rules, or regulations of any state agency, if strict compliance with the provisions of any statute, order, rule, or regulation would in any way prevent, hinder, or delay necessary action in coping with the emergency;    Utilize all available resources of the state government and of each political subdivision of the state as reasonably necessary to cope with the disaster emergency;    Transfer the direction, personnel, or functions of state departments and agencies or units thereof for the purpose of performing or facilitating emergency services;    Subject to any applicable requirements for compensation under section 24-33.5-711, commandeer or utilize any private property if the governor finds this necessary to cope with the disaster emergency;    Direct and compel the evacuation of all or part of the population from any stricken or threatened area within the state if the governor deems this action necessary for the preservation of life or other disaster mitigation, response, or recovery;    Prescribe routes, modes of transportation, and destinations in connection with evacuation;    Control ingress to and egress from a disaster area, the movement of persons within the area, and the occupancy of premises therein;    Suspend or limit the sale, dispensing, or transportation of alcoholic beverages, firearms, explosives, or combustibles;    Make provision for the availability and use of temporary emergency housing; and    Determine the percentage at which the state and a local government will contribute moneys to cover the nonfederal cost share required by the federal "Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act", as amended, 42 U.S.C. sec. 5121 et seq., required by the federal highway administration pursuant to 23 U.S.C. sec. 125, or required by any other federal law in order to receive federal disaster relief funds. After making such a determination, the governor may amend the percentage at which the state and local government will contribute moneys to the nonfederal cost share based on the needs of the individual local governments. As soon as practicable after making or amending such a determination, the governor shall notify the joint budget committee of the source and amount of state moneys that will be contributed to cover a nonfederal cost share pursuant to this paragraph (j).       and (9) Repealed.     (4) shall indicate the nature of the disaster, the area threatened, and the conditions that brought it about or that make possible termination of the state of disaster emergency. An executive order or proclamation shall be disseminated promptly by means calculated to bring its contents to the attention of the general public and, unless the circumstances attendant upon the disaster prevent or impede, shall be promptly filed with the office of emergency management in the division of homeland security and emergency management, the secretary of state, the county clerk and recorder, and emergency management agencies in the area to which it applies.   Source: L. 2012: Entire part RC&RE with relocations, (HB 12-1283), ch. 240, p. 1072, § 10, effective July 1. L. 2014: (3) and (8)(a)(III) repealed and (8)(a)(I), (8)(a)(II), and (8)(b)(IV) amended, (HB 14-1004), ch. 11, p. 102, § 2, effective February 27; (7)(j) added, (SB 14-121), ch. 54, p. 250, § 1, effective March 21. L. 2018: (4) amended, (6.5) added, and (8) and (9) repealed, (HB 18-1394), ch. 234, pp. 1459, 1473, §§ 4, 21, effective August 8.   Editor's note: (1) This section is similar to former § 24-32-2104 as it existed prior to 2012.   (2) Subsections (8) and (9) were relocated to § 24-33.5-704.5 in 2018.   RECENT ANNOTATIONS   Neither subsection (7)(a) nor any other provision of this act authorizes the governor to suspend a constitutional requirement. The governor therefore cannot, by executive order, create an exception to the requirement of article V, section 1(6) of the state constitution that signatures on initiative petitions be collected in person. Ritchie v. Polis, 2020 CO 69, 467 P.3d 339.