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DENVER — With the new year comes a new set of laws for Coloradans. Starting Jan. 1, 2025, 19 laws passed by the Colorado General Assembly and signed by Gov. Jared Polis take effect.
1. You may have seen traffic signs warning about this or heard your friends talking about it, and it’s true — you can now get a $75 fine and two points against your driver’s license for having your cell phone in your hand while you’re driving. However, Senate Bill 24-065 makes it a secondary offense.
“They have to see some other behavior and see the phone in your hand to pull you over,” Scott O’Sullivan, a personal injury lawyer in Denver and advocate for the Hands Free Law, explained.
Adult drivers must use a hands-free device to make phone calls or use GPS, the Colorado Department of Transportation said. That includes dashboard phone mounts, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto or built-in car speaker systems.
The penalty will rise each time you’re cited for this offense. Fines increase to $250 and 4 license points by the third offense.
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2. House Bill 24-1348makes it illegal to knowingly leave a handgun in an unattended vehicle, unless the handgun is stored in a locked hard-sided container that is placed out of plain view and the container is locked in the car or trunk.
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3. House Bill 24-1258 mandates health insurance companies to credit anyone’s out-of-pocket expenses
4. House Bill 24-1055makes changes to the state’s laws regarding child passengers and car seats. It updates the age of passengers required to be in a “child restraint system” from under 8 years old to under 9 years old. It also changes the age of children who must ride in a rear-facing car seat to under 2 years old instead of under 1 year old, among other amendments.
5. House Bill 24-1342Makes changes to test accommodations for people with disabilities.
6. There are now stronger protection orders for victims of domestic abuse under House Bill 24-1122. It authorizes a judge to continue a temporary protection order for a year after the scheduled hearing for a permanent protection order.
7. House Bill 24-1095 increases protections for minor workers by ratcheting up penalties for violations of the “Colorado Youth Employment Opportunity Act of 1971.” Employers who violate the act are asked to pay damages to the minors working for them.
8. House Bill 24-1129 requires a delivery company to disclose payments that consumers must make to the company and the distance a delivery driver must travel to drop off a package of any sorts. It prohibits companies from decreasing delivery driver pay based on how much the consumer tips, and requires the company pay a driver the entire tip. The law asks companies to prompt consumers to give delivery drivers a clear, well-lit, safe delivery path.
9. The Department of Public Health and Environment can now require assisted living facility operators and its employees who work directly with residents to take a tuberculosis test and get fitted for a respiratory mask. Senate Bill 24-167 also asks healthcare workers in these facilities to undergo training to provide specific services to residents.
10. In the death of a minor, that person’s autopsy report is confidential and may only be disclosed by the county coroner or local leader under certain circumstances. House Bill 24-1244 outlines the district court can provide access to the minor’s autopsy report if public disclosure outweighs the harm to privacy interests of the deceased or their family members.
11. Senate Bill 24-093 allows for someone enrolled in the state Medicaid program or another private health insurance plan to receive continued care if coverage is terminated or not renewed, during the transition to a new healthcare benefit plan.
12. The Parks and Wildlife Commission in the Department of Natural Resources are once again asked to hold at least two public meetings per year. It was done away with in 2011 when the Division of Wildlife and the Division of Parks and Recreation were consolidated. The state’s Agricultural Commission and Water Conservation Board must now do the same under Senate Bill 24-026.
13. Senate Bill 24-024 standardizes local lodging taxes in alignment with other local taxes.
14. There is a new clarification to the “Uniform Non-Testamentary Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act.” House Bill 24-1248 specifies when and how electronic documents may be used in estate planning documents, other than wills.
15. House Bill 24-1321 aligns Colorado statutes with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ model. This adds new filing requirements for insurers, changes the wording on how confidential documents are treated and changes the regulatory tools for insurance holding companies.
16. Current law specifies who may sue for wrongful death. House Bill 24-1472 now allows a sibling of someone who died to bring a wrongful death lawsuit and increases the cap on noneconomic damages increases to $1.5 million.
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17. In 2020, state lawmakers phased in requirements for all eggs sold in Colorado to come from a cage-free facility. House Bill 20-1343 mandates hens be confined in a cage-free housing system with at least 1.5 square feet of usable floor space per hen if the hens have unfettered access to vertical space.
It also authorizes the commissioner of agriculture to impose a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation.
18. House Bill 22-1289 requires the state to provide Medicaid coverage to children and pregnant women, regardless of their immigration status, our partners at The Denver Post report.
19. State lawmakers implemented the first stage of House Bill 22-1345 in 2023, banning the use of PFAS or “forever chemicals” in rugs, food packaging and products meant for children. The next phase that goes into effect in 2025 will prohibit using harmful perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals in cosmetics, furniture, towels and bedding.
The third phase will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027, restricting anyone from selling or distributing any outdoor furniture which includes PFAS in Colorado.
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