CO Code § 29-1-304.5 (2021)
2021 Colorado Code|Title 29 - Government - Local|Article 1 - Budget and Services|Part 3 - Annual Levy - Increase or Reduction - Limitation|§ 29-1-304.5. State Mandates - Prohibition - Exception

  No new state mandate or an increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate beyond the existing level of service required by law shall be mandated by the general assembly or any state agency on any local government unless the state provides additional moneys to reimburse such local government for the costs of such new state mandate or such increased level of service. In the event that such additional moneys for reimbursement are not provided, such mandate or increased level of service for an existing state mandate shall be optional on the part of the local government.    The provisions of subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to:   Any new state mandate or any increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate beyond the existing level of service which is the result of any requirement of federal law;    Any new state mandate or any increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate beyond the existing level of service which is the result of any requirement of a final state or federal court order;    Any modification in the share of school districts for financing the state public school system;    Any new state mandate or any increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate beyond the existing level or service which is the result of any state law enacted prior to the second regular session of the fifty-eighth general assembly or any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder;    Any new state mandate or any increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate beyond the existing level of service which is undertaken at the option of a local government which results in additional requirements or standards; and    Any order from the state board of education pertaining to the establishment, operation, or funding of a charter school or any modification of the statutory or regulatory responsibilities of school districts pertaining to charter schools.       For purposes of this section:   “Increase in the level of service for an existing state mandate” does not include any increase in expenditures necessary to offset an increase in costs to provide such service due to inflation or any increase in the number of recipients of such service unless such increase results from any requirement of law which either enlarges an existing class of recipients or adds a new class of recipients.    “Local government” means any county, city and county, city, or town, whether home rule or statutory, or any school district, special district, authority, or other political subdivision of the state.    “Requirement of federal law” means any federal law, rule, regulation, executive order, guideline, standard, or other federal action which has the force and effect of law and which either requires the state to take action or does not directly require the state to take action but will, according to federal law, result in the loss of federal funds if state action is not taken to comply with such federal action.    “State mandate” means any legal requirement established by statutory provision or administrative rule or regulation which requires any local government to undertake a specific activity or to provide a specific service which satisfies minimum state standards, including, but not limited to:   Program mandates which result from orders or conditions specified by the state as to what activity shall be performed, the quality of the program, or the quantity of services to be provided; and    Procedural mandates which regulate and direct the behavior of any local government in providing programs or services, including, but not limited to, reporting, fiscal, personnel, planning and evaluation, record-keeping, and performance requirements.           History. Source: L. 91: Entire section added, p. 912, § 3, effective June 7. L. 2004: (2)(f) added, p. 1591, § 23, effective June 3.    ANNOTATION   Requirement in subsection (1) of this section that state reimburse counties for costs associated with an increased level of service inapplicable to requirement in § 1-8-113 (1)(a) that counties must provide drop-off boxes for mail-in ballots at every polling place on election day, notwithstanding that this increase in service may create additional costs to the county. Statute requiring that the costs of conducting an election be a county charge, § 1-5-505 (1) , is in irreconcilable conflict with subsection (1). However, § 1-5-505 (1) , which pertains only to election funding, is more specific than subsection (1), which broadly applies its reimbursement requirement to most existing state programs. Although subsection (1) was adopted after § 1-5-505 (1), there is no manifest intent that it should prevail in a conflict with the other statute. Rather, the intent of the legislature was to prioritize citizens' access to free and fair elections over convenience or cost savings to counties. Thus, § 1-5-505 (1) should prevail over subsection (1), making the unfunded mandate requirement of subsection (1) inapplicable to the requirement of § 1-8-113 (1)(a) that counties provide drop-off boxes for mail-in ballots at every polling place on election day. Gessler v. Doty, 2012 COA 4 , 272 P.3d 1131.