HB 25-1332
Fiscal Note
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
HB 25-1332: STATE TRUST LANDS CONSERV & REC WORK GROUP
Prime Sponsors:
Rep. McCormick
Sen. Roberts; Wallace
Published for: House Appropriations
Drafting number: LLS 25-1047
Fiscal Analyst:
Josh Abram, 303-866-3561
josh.abram@coleg.gov
Version: First Revised Note
Date: April 22, 2025
Fiscal note status: The fiscal note reflects the introduced bill, as amended by the House Agriculture,
Water, and Natural Resources Committee.
Summary Information
Overview. The bill creates the State Trust Lands Conservation and Recreation Work Group in the
Department of Natural Resources to study opportunities to advance conservation, climate resilience,
biodiversity, and recreation on state trust lands.
Types of impacts. The bill is projected to affect the following areas in FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27 only:
State Expenditures
Appropriations. For FY 2025-26, the bill requires an appropriation of $393,506 to the Department of
Natural Resources.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts
Type of Impact
1
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
State Revenue $0 $0
State Expenditures $428,446 $124,347
Transferred Funds $0 $0
Change in TABOR Refunds $0 $0
Change in State FTE 1.6 FTE 1.0 FTE
1
Fund sources for these impacts are shown in the table below.
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April 22, 2025 HB 25-1332
Table 1A
State Expenditures
Fund Source
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
General Fund $0 $0
Cash Funds $393,506 $102,509
Federal Funds $0 $0
Centrally Appropriated $34,940 $21,838
Total Expenditures $428,446 $124,347
Total FTE 1.6 FTE 1.0 FTE
Summary of Legislation
The bill requires that the executive director of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
convene a State Trust Lands Conservation and Recreation Work Group to study opportunities to
advance conservation, climate resilience, biodiversity, and recreation on state trust lands.
The workgroup consists of voting members with subject matter expertise and members
representing stakeholder groups appointed by the Governor and legislative leadership.
The workgroup must be appointed by September 2025, meet at least four times, issue an
interim report by March 2026, and make final recommendations by September 2026 to the
Governor, the General Assembly, the State Land Board (SLB), and the executive director of the
DNR. The workgroup must be assisted by a professional facilitator, solicit public input, and
engage subject matter specialists as needed including experts on the economy, landscape
ecology, and climate resilience.
By February 2026, the SLB must review all existing parcels to determine if the lands are managed
primarily to preserve long-term returns, review and update all existing stewardship trust
management plans to achieve conservation purposes and required corrective actions, and report
this and other pertinent information to the work group.
By February 2027, the SLB must consider the work group’s recommendations and adopt an
administrative policy or rules governing the implementation of conservation leases and related
instruments on state trust lands, and a process to substantiate how the board balances revenue
generation with conserving the long-term value of state trust lands.
State Expenditures
The bill increases state expenditures in the DNR by about $430,000 in FY 2025-26, and $125,000
in FY 2026-27 only. These costs, paid from the State Land Board Trust Administration Fund, are
summarized in Table 2 and discussed below. Page 3
April 22, 2025 HB 25-1332
Table 2
State Expenditures
Department of Natural Resources
Cost Component
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
Personal Services $161,966 $101,229
Operating Expenses $2,048 $1,280
Capital Outlay Costs $13,340 $0
Professional Facilitator $200,000 $0
Travel Reimbursements $16,152 $0
Centrally Appropriated Costs $34,940 $21,838
Total Costs $428,446 $124,347
Total FTE 1.6 FTE 1.0 FTE
Staff
The DNR will have an absorbable workload impact in the current FY 2024-25 to begin the
procurement process for a professional facilitator.
In FY 2025-26, the department requires 2.0 FTE Program Managers to conduct an analysis of all
existing leases on Long-term Stewardship Trust parcels to determine primary purposes of those
leases and review and update all existing management plans, and to conduct additional
required research in support of the workgroup’s statutory charge. Staff reduces to 1.0 FTE in
FY 2026-27 to provide final assistance with policy development and workgroup
recommendations, and to assist the commissioners in adopting rules.
Personal services include standard operating and capital outlay and have been prorated in
FY 2025-26 for the bill’s effective date.
Professional Facilitator
The DNR will contract with a professional facilitator to assist the workgroup with all statutory
requirements, analyses, and the production of interim and final reports. Based on recent projects
of similar complexity completed by the department, this cost is estimated at 800 hours of
contracted service at $250 per hour.
Travel Reimbursements
The workgroup consists of roughly 20 members attending a minimum of four meetings. It is
assumed that on average, six members of the workgroup will attend meetings in person and the
remaining members will attend virtually. Costs for in person attendance include lodging,
per-diem, and mileage.
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April 22, 2025 HB 25-1332
Centrally Appropriated Costs
Pursuant to a Joint Budget Committee policy, certain costs associated with this bill are
addressed through the annual budget process and centrally appropriated in the Long Bill or
supplemental appropriations bills, rather than in this bill. These costs, which may include
employee insurance, supplemental employee retirement payments, leased space, and indirect
cost assessments, are shown in the expenditure table above.
Effective Date
The bill takes effect 90 days following adjournment of the General Assembly sine die, assuming
no referendum petition is filed.
State Appropriations
For FY 2025-26, the bill requires an appropriation of $393,506 from the State Land Board Trust
Administration Cash Fund to the Department of Natural Resources, and 1.6 FTE.
State and Local Government Contacts
Agriculture
Education
Natural Resources
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.