Colorado 2025 Regular Session

Colorado House Bill HB1234 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		First Regular Session
2	2		Seventy-fifth General Assembly
3	3		STATE OF COLORADO
4		-	~~REREVISED~~
5		-	This Version Includes All Amendments
6		-	~~Adopted~~ in the Second House
	4	+	REVISED
	5	+	This Version Includes All Amendments Adopted
	6	+	on Second Reading in the Second House
7	7		LLS NO. 25-0337.02 Christopher McMichael x4775
8	8		HOUSE BILL 25-1234
9	9		House Committees Senate Committees
10	10		Energy & Environment Transportation & Energy
11	11		A BILL FOR AN ACT
12	12		C
13	13		ONCERNING CONSUMER PROTEC TION FOR UTILITY CUSTOMERS .101
14	14		Bill Summary
15	15		(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does
16	16		not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill
17	17		passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that
18	18		applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at
19	19		http://leg.colorado.gov
20	20		.)
21	21		The bill enacts various consumer protection measures to protect
22	22		electric and gas utility customers in Colorado.
23	23		Section 1 of the bill requires an electric or gas public utility
24	24		(utility) to protect the personal data of its customers. The utility is
25	25		prohibited from disclosing, selling, or reselling a customer's personal data
26	26		to:
27	27		! A state or federal government entity, unless the disclosure
28	28		is necessary for participation in a state or federal assistance
29	29		SENATE
30		-	3rd Reading Unamended
31		-	April 4, 2025
32		-	SENATE
33	30		Amended 2nd Reading
34	31		March 31, 2025
35	32		HOUSE
36	33		3rd Reading Unamended
37	34		March 17, 2025
38	35		HOUSE
39	36		Amended 2nd Reading
40	37		March 14, 2025
41	38		HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
42	39		Ricks and Joseph, Bacon, Bird, Boesenecker, English, Jackson, Lindsay, Rutinel, Story
43	40		SENATE SPONSORSHIP
44		-	Winter F. and Wallace, Cutter, Danielson, Jodeh, Kipp, Kolker, Michaelson Jenet,
45		-	Weissman
	41	+	Winter F.,
46	42		Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.
47	43		Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing law.
48	44		Dashes through the words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law. program; or
49	45		! A third party.
50	46		Under current law, utilities regulated by the public utilities
51	47		commission (commission) are prohibited from disconnecting a customer's
52	48		utility service for nonpayment under certain circumstances. Sections 2
53	49		through 4 add the following circumstances in which disconnection of
54	50		utility service for nonpayment is prohibited:
55	51		! During periods of extreme heat or cold, including during
56	52		the months of October through May;
57	53		! If the air quality index measures over 100; and
58	54		! During a period in which a residential customer has a
59	55		medical emergency, as evidenced by a medical certificate
60	56		from a licensed physician or health-care provider, and
61	57		requiring the utility to postpone the disconnection of
62	58		service for up to 180 days.
63	59		The bill also applies the prohibitions regarding disconnection of a utility
64	60		customer's service due to nonpayment to electric and gas municipal
65	61		utilities and cooperative electric associations that have not exempted
66	62		themselves from regulation by the commission.
67	63		Section 5 requires a utility to use money collected from the energy
68	64		assistance system benefit charge for direct bill payment assistance
69	65		year-round, including for customers participating in the low-income
70	66		energy assistance program when assistance through that program is
71	67		unavailable.
72	68		Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:1
73	69		SECTION 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The general assembly2
74	70		finds and declares that:3
75	71
76	72		4
77	73		(a) Ensuring access to affordable energy assistance is vital for the5
78	74		well-being of Colorado households with low-income. Many residents,6
79	75		especially those facing financial hardship, rely on assistance programs7
80	76		like the Low-income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) to help cover8
81	77		essential utility costs. It is crucial that these programs are accessible to all9
82	78		eligible individuals to promote fairness and equity.10
83	79		(b) Protecting the privacy of individuals applying for or receiving11
84	80		1234-2- energy assistance is essential. The disclosure of personal information,1
85	81		including citizenship or immigration status, to federal law enforcement2
86	82		agencies can deter vulnerable populations from seeking assistance.3
87	83		Safeguarding personal information is necessary to ensure that individuals4
88	84		feel secure in applying for energy assistance without fear of5
89	85		discrimination or unintended consequences.6
90	86		(c) In order to ensure that applicants are not unduly harmed by7
91	87		delays or denials of assistance, it is important to provide sufficient time8
92	88		for individuals to address any application deficiencies. Setting clear9
93	89		deadlines for submitting required documentation and fixing any10
94	90		application deficiencies will help applicants navigate the process of11
95	91		applying for assistance without unnecessary barriers.12
96	92		(d) Furthermore, utility service disconnections should be paused13
97	93		during the application process for energy assistance while an individual's14
98	94		application is pending or in review. This measure is crucial to prevent15
99	95		utility shutoffs for applicants who may be eligible for assistance but are16
100	96		awaiting a final determination on their application.17
101	97		(2) Therefore, the general assembly finds and declares that18
102	98		protecting the rights and privacy of applicants for low-income energy19
103	99		assistance, promoting equitable access to that assistance, and ensuring20
104	100		protections against utility disconnections during the application process21
105	101		are fundamental to the well-being of all Coloradans.22
106	102		23
107	103		SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 26-1-109, add (10)24
108	104		as follows:25
109	105		26-1-109. Cooperation with federal government - grants-in-aid26
110	106		- low income home energy assistance program - applications.27
111	107		1234
112	108		-3- (10) Low-income home energy assistance program. (a) THE STATE1
113	109		DEPARTMENT SHALL NOT REQUIRE AN APPLICANT TO PROVIDE THEIR2
114	110		CITIZENSHIP OR IMMIGRATION STATUS ON ANY APPLICATION FOR3
115	111		ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS, UNLESS THE INFORMATION IS REQUIRED AS A4
116	112		CONDITION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR THE ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS .5
117	113		(b) THE STATE DEPARTMENT SHALL NOT SHARE INFORMATION6
118	114		RELATED TO THE CITIZENSHIP OR IMMIGRATION STATUS OF AN APPLICANT7
119	115		FOR OR RECIPIENT OF ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS WITH ANY FEDERAL LAW8
120	116		ENFORCEMENT AGENCY, UNLESS DISCLOSURE OF THE INFORMATION IS9
121	117		REQUIRED BY LAW OR COURT ORDER .10
122	118		(c) IF THE STATE DEPARTMENT DENIES AN INDIVIDUAL 'S11
123	119		APPLICATION FOR ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS DUE TO INSUFFICIENT OR12
124	120		INCOMPLETE DOCUMENTATION , THE STATE DEPARTMENT SHALL :13
125	121		(I) PROVIDE NOTICE TO THE APPLICANT WITHIN SEVEN CALENDAR14
126	122		DAYS THAT THEIR APPLICATION HAS BEEN DENIED DUE TO INSUFFICIENT OR15
127	123		INCOMPLETE DOCUMENTATION ; AND16
128	124		(II) INCLUDE, AS PART OF THE NOTICE PROVIDED PURSUANT TO17
129	125		SUBSECTION (10)(c)(I) OF THIS SECTION, A DEADLINE BY WHICH THE18
130	126		APPLICANT MAY CORRECT OR COMPLETE THEIR APPLICATION, WHICH19
131	127		DEADLINE MUST BE NO LESS THAN SIXTY DAYS AFTER THE DATE THE20
132	128		APPLICANT WAS SENT THE NOTICE, BUT NO LATER THAN JUNE 15 OF THE21
133	129		CALENDAR YEAR IN WHICH THE INDIVIDUAL SUBMITTED THEIR22
134	130		APPLICATION TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT .23
135	131		(d) (I) WHEN THE STATE DEPARTMENT DENIES AN INDIVIDUAL'S24
136	132		APPLICATION FOR ASSISTANCE PAYMENTS DUE TO INSUFFICIENT OR25
137	133		INCOMPLETE DOCUMENTATION, THE STATE DEPARTMENT SHALL NOTIFY26
138	134		THE INVESTOR-OWNED PUBLIC UTILITY OF WHICH THE INDIVIDUAL IS A27
139	135		1234
140	136		-4- CUSTOMER THAT THE INDIVIDUAL 'S APPLICATION IS PENDING REVIEW.1
141	137		(II) WHEN AN INVESTOR-OWNED PUBLIC UTILITY RECEIVES THE2
142	138		NOTICE FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT PURSUANT TO SUBSECTION3
143	139		(10)(d)(I) OF THIS SECTION, THE INVESTOR-OWNED PUBLIC UTILITY SHALL4
144	140		PLACE A DISCONNECTION HOLD ON THE UTILITY SERVICE PROVIDED TO THE5
145	141		CUSTOMER, WHICH DISCONNECTION HOLD MUST BE IN EFFECT FOR NO6
146	142		MORE THAN SIXTY DAYS OR FOR LESS THAN SIXTY DAYS IF THE7
147	143		INVESTOR-OWNED PUBLIC UTILITY RECEIVES NOTICE DURING THE8
148	144		SIXTY-DAY HOLD THAT THE CUSTOMER 'S APPLICATION FOR ASSISTANCE9
149	145		HAS BEEN APPROVED OR DENIED .10
150	146		(e) AS USED IN THIS SECTION, UNLESS CONTEXT OTHERWISE11
151	147		REQUIRES, "INVESTOR-OWNED PUBLIC UTILITY" MEANS A RETAIL ELECTRIC12
152	148		UTILITY OR RETAIL GAS UTILITY OPERATING IN THE STATE AND REGULATED13
153	149		BY THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION, CREATED IN SECTION 40-2-101,14
154	150		AND DOES NOT INCLUDE A COOPERATIVE ELECTRIC ASSOCIATION OR15
155	151		MUNICIPALLY OWNED UTILITY. 16
156	152		SECTION 3. Safety clause. The general assembly finds,17
157	153		determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate18
158	154		preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for19
159	155		the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state20
160	156		institutions.21
161	157		1234
162	158		-5-