HB 25-1168
Fiscal Note
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
HB 25-1168: HOUSING PROTECTIONS FOR VICTIM-SURVIVORS
Prime Sponsors:
Rep. Lindsay; Espenoza
Sen. Weissman
Published for: Senate Judiciary
Drafting number: LLS 25-0412
Fiscal Analyst:
Shukria Maktabi, 303-866-4720
shukria.maktabi@coleg.gov
Version: First Revised Note
Date: March 13, 2025
Fiscal note status: The fiscal note reflects the reengrossed bill.
Summary Information
Overview. The bill expands housing protections for victims of domestic violence, domestic abuse,
unlawful sexual behavior, and stalking.
Types of impacts. The bill is projected to affect the following areas on an ongoing basis:
State Revenue
State Expenditures
Local Government
Appropriations. No appropriation is required.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts
Type of Impact
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
State Revenue $0 $0
State Expenditures $0 $0
Transferred Funds $0 $0
Change in TABOR Refunds $0 $0
Change in State FTE 0.0 FTE 0.0 FTE
Page 2
March 13, 2025 HB 25-1168
Summary of Legislation
The bill expands housing protections for victims of domestic violence, domestic abuse, unlawful
sexual behavior, and stalking (victim-survivors), as described below.
Protection from Unlawful Detention of Real Property
Currently, a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence or domestic abuse cannot be found
guilty of unlawful detention of real property if the lease violation is caused by domestic violence
or abuse, provided the tenant has a police report or a civil or emergency protection order. The
bill expands these protections to include victims of unlawful sexual behavior and stalking, and
also expands eligible documentation to include self-attestation or a letter signed by a qualified
third party.
The bill also requires landlords to offer a repayment plan to victim-survivors alleged of unlawful
detention due to unpaid rent. The landlord may issue a notice of default or file for possession if
payments are not made on time. No fees or penalties can be charged by the landlord in the
repayment plans, and victim-survivors may move out while repaying without facing additional
penalties, unless they violate the repayment plan.
The bill also requires landlords to deliver notices to vacate to victim-survivors only through
personal service.
Court Proceedings for Victim-Survivors
The bill allows victim-survivors to file a motion or petition to suppress court records related to
unlawful detention of property in certain circumstances.
The bill also allows the court to grant additional time to respond or extend trial dates to victim-
survivors who are unable to receive or review court summons and complaints, or are unable to
appear.
Tenant Rights for Victim-Survivors
The bill allows victim-survivors who terminate a lease to not be liable for property damage
caused by the perpetrator during incidents of unlawful sexual behavior, stalking, domestic
violence, or domestic abuse. Victim-survivors may owe one month’s rent if the landlord
documents economic losses from an early lease termination and notifies the tenant within
30 days.
The bill prohibits landlords from transferring debts to third-party collectors unless they provide
90-day notice. Tenants who notify landlords of their victim-survivor status cannot be prevented
from changing locks or penalized for safety measures. Landlords face civil liability for violating
this provision. Page 3
March 13, 2025 HB 25-1168
State Revenue
The bill may impact revenue to the Judicial Department in two ways. First, the courts may see an
increase in filing fees from civil case filings against landlords in violation of the new
requirements for victim-survivors. However, to the extent the bill leads to fewer eviction or other
landlord-tenant related cases, revenue from filing fees will decrease. This impact is expected to
be minimal, as it is anticipated that landlords will largely comply with the new requirements.
Revenue from filing fees is subject to TABOR.
State Expenditures
Trial courts in the Judicial Department may experience an impact in workload to the extent
additional civil cases are filed under the bill and more information is reviewed in existing cases,
such as repayment plans. The fiscal note assumes that landlords will generally comply with the
law and any increase will be minimal.
Local Government
Similar to the state, the Denver County Court may experience a minimal revenue and workload
impact to the extent additional civil cases are filed under the bill.
Effective Date
The bill takes effect upon signature of the Governor, or upon becoming law without his
signature, except that Sections 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 11 take effect August 6, 2025.
State and Local Government Contacts
Counties
Judicial
Local Affairs
Municipalities
The revenue and expenditure impacts in this fiscal note represent changes from current law under the bill for each
fiscal year. For additional information about fiscal notes, please visit the General Assembly website.