CO Code § 33-15-106 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 33 - Parks and Wildlife|Article 15 - Law Enforcement and Penalties - Parks and Outdoor Recreation|§ 33-15-106. Fires

  On any property under the control of the division, it is unlawful for any person to:   Start or maintain a fire if he or she knowingly or recklessly fails to reasonably attend the fire at all times or fails to thoroughly extinguish the fire before leaving the site;    Start, build, tend, or maintain a fire in violation of the provisions of any applicable order lawfully issued by a governmental authority that prohibits, bans, or regulates fires during periods of extreme fire hazard and that is designed to promote the safety of persons and property.         [Editor's note: This version of subsection (2)(a) is effective until March 1, 2022.] Any person who violates subsection (1)(a) of this section is guilty of a class 3 misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a minimum sentence of a fifty-dollar fine up to a maximum sentence of six months imprisonment or a seven-hundred-fifty-dollar fine, or both.    [ ] Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (c) of this subsection (2), any person who violates paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than two hundred fifty dollars and not greater than one thousand dollars. The fine imposed by this paragraph (b) shall be mandatory and not subject to suspension. Nothing in this paragraph (b) shall be construed to limit the court's discretion in exercising other available sentencing alternatives in addition to the mandatory fine.    Any person who knowingly violates paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section and who knows or reasonably should know that he or she violates any order described in such paragraph that prohibits, bans, or regulates fires commits a class 6 felony.       Any person who starts, builds, tends, or maintains a fire in a careless or reckless manner that indicates either a lack of due regard for the fire hazard present or a wanton and willful disregard for the safety of persons and property is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of one thousand dollars.    In addition to the penalties provided by this section, the court may require the defendant to reimburse the division for the costs of fire suppression in the case of wildfires.      (a) [ ] Any person who violates subsection (1)(a) of this section commits a class 2 misdemeanor.  Editor's note: This version of subsection (2)(a) is effective March 1, 2022. Editor's note: This version of subsection (2)(b) is effective until March 1, 2022.  (b) [ ] Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2)(c) of this section, any person who violates subsection (1)(b) of this section is guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor.  Editor's note: This version of subsection (2)(b) is effective March 1, 2022.  History. Source: L. 84: Entire article added, p. 916, § 2, effective January 1, 1985. L. 95: Entire section amended, p. 969, § 10, effective July 1. L. 2002, 3rd Ex. Sess.: (2) amended, p. 39, § 6, effective July 17. L. 2018: (1)(a) and (2)(a) amended,(HB 18-1051), ch. 57, p. 599, § 2, effective July 1. L. 2021: (2)(a) and (2)(b) amended,(SB 21-271), ch. 462, p. 3272, § 598, effective March 1, 2022.    Editor's note:   Section 803(2) of chapter 462 (SB 21-271), Session Laws of Colorado 2021, provides that the act changing this section applies to offenses committed on or after March 1, 2022.