(1) There is hereby created in the office the health equity commission. The purpose of the commission is to serve as an advisor to the office on health equity issues, specifically focusing on alignment, education, and capacity-building for state and local health programs and community-based organizations. The commission shall be dedicated to promoting health equity and eliminating health disparities.
(2) (a) The commission consists of the following twenty-three members, who are as follows:
(I) The speaker of the house of representatives shall appoint one member of the house of representatives;
(II) The president of the senate shall appoint one member of the senate;
(III) The executive director of the department shall appoint ten members who represent, to the extent practical, Colorado's diverse ethnic, racial, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, aging population, socioeconomic, and geographic backgrounds. Each individual appointed to the commission must have demonstrated expertise in at least one, and preferably two, of the following areas:
(A) African American, Black, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Native American, Hispanic, Latino, aging population, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, disabled, low socioeconomic status, and geographic community health issues;
(B) Data collection, aggregation, or dissemination;
(C) Education;
(D) Housing;
(E) Healthy community design;
(F) Community engagement;
(G) Local public health;
(H) Nonprofits, foundation, or grant-making;
(I) Environmental health;
(J) Behavioral health;
(J.5) Midwifery; or
(K) The provision of health-care services;
(IV) The executive director of the department, or the executive director's designee, shall serve as an ex officio member of the commission;
(V) The executive director of the department of human services, or the executive director's designee;
(VI) The executive director of the department of health care policy and financing, or the executive director's designee;
(VII) The executive director of the department of labor and employment, or the executive director's designee;
(VIII) The executive director of the department of local affairs, or the executive director's designee;
(IX) The executive director of the department of transportation, or the executive director's designee;
(X) The executive director of the department of public safety, or the executive director's designee;
(XI) The commissioner of education of the department of education, or the commissioner's designee;
(XII) The executive director of the department of corrections, or the executive director's designee;
(XIII) The executive director of the department of higher education, or the executive director's designee;
(XIV) The executive director of the department of early childhood, or the executive director's designee; and
(XV) The commissioner of the behavioral health administration in the department of human services, or the commissioner's designee.
(b) The members of the commission shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. Except as otherwise provided in section 2-2-326, C.R.S., the members of the commission shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed by the department for their actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties pursuant to this part 22.
(c) The members of the commission shall elect a chair and vice-chair from among its membership.
(3) The commission has the following powers and duties:
(a) Providing a formal mechanism for the public to give input to the office;
(b) Advising the department through the office on:
(I) Determining innovative data collection and dissemination strategies;
(II) Aligning the department's health equity efforts and the health disparities and community grant program created in section 25-4-2203;
(III) Strengthening collaborative partnerships with communities impacted by health disparities to identify and promote health equity strategies; and
(IV) Promoting workforce diversity;
(c) Repealed.
(d) Making recommendations to the office and the department on the health disparities and community grant program created in section 25-4-2203, regarding financial support for local and statewide initiatives that address prevention, early detection, needs assessment, and treatment of cancer, cardiovascular disease, including diabetes, and pulmonary disease in minority populations.
(4) (a) The office shall provide staff to the commission.
(b) In addition to any other duties, under the direction of the commission, commission staff shall determine, in accordance with applicable federal and state data privacy laws, rules, and regulations and federal contracts, the scope of data and the manner of data sharing for purposes of required reporting concerning health disparities and inequities pursuant to section 25-4-2205 (2.5), in order to minimize duplication and to protect sensitive or personally identifying information.
(5) This section is repealed, effective September 1, 2029. Prior to the repeal of this section, the commission is subject to review as provided in section 2-3-1203.
Source: L. 2007: Entire section added, p. 906, � 3, effective May 15. L. 2013: (1), (2)(a), IP(3), (3)(a), (3)(b), and (5) amended and (3)(c) repealed, (HB 13-1088), ch. 25, p. 62, � 6, effective August 7. L. 2014: (2)(b) amended, (SB 14-153), ch. 390, p. 1964, � 22, effective June 6. L. 2016: (5) amended, (HB 16-1192), ch. 83, p. 235, � 20, effective April 14. L. 2017: (5) amended, (SB 17-294), ch. 264, p. 1408, � 87, effective May 25. L. 2021: IP(2)(a), (2)(a)(IV), (2)(a)(V), (2)(a)(VI), (3)(b)(II), and (3)(d) amended and (2)(a)(VII), (2)(a)(VIII), (2)(a)(IX), (2)(a)(X), (2)(a)(XI), (2)(a)(XII), and (2)(a)(XIII) added, (SB 21-181), ch. 429, p. 2842, � 6, effective July 6; IP(2)(a)(III) amended, (HB 21-1108), ch. 156, p. 896, � 38, effective September 7. L. 2022: (4) amended, (HB 22-1157), ch. 321, p. 2274, � 3, effective June 2. L. 2023: IP(2)(a), (2)(a)(XII), and (2)(a)(XIII) amended and (2)(a)(XV) added, (HB 23-1236), ch. 206, p. 1053, � 9, effective May 16; IP(2)(a), (2)(a)(XII), and (2)(a)(XIII) amended and (2)(a)(XIV) added, (HB 23-1235), ch. 434, p. 2554, � 21, effective June 7; (5) amended, (SB 23-151), ch. 204, p. 1041, � 2, effective August 7. L. 2024: IP(2)(a)(III) and (2)(a)(III)(J) amended and (2)(a)(III)(J.5) added, (HB 24-1262), ch. 393, p. 2712, � 6, effective June 4.
Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 21-1108, see section 1 of chapter 156, Session Laws of Colorado 2021. For the legislative declaration in HB 24-1262, see section 1 of chapter 393, Session Laws of Colorado 2024.
25-4-2207. Interagency health disparities leadership council - creation. (Repealed)
Source: L. 2007: Entire section added, p. 907, � 3, effective May 15. L. 2013: Entire section repealed, (HB 13-1088), ch. 25, p. 64, � 7, effective August 7.
25-4-2208. Necessary document program - report - appropriation - gifts, grants, or donations - definition. (1) As used in this section, necessary document means:
(a) A social security card issued pursuant to 42 U.S.C. sec. 405 (c)(2)(G);
(b) One of the following documents issued in Colorado or analogous documents issued in another jurisdiction:
(I) A driver's license issued pursuant to part 1 of article 2 of title 42, C.R.S.;
(II) An identification card issued pursuant to part 3 of article 2 of title 42, C.R.S.; and
(III) A vital statistics certificate or vital statistics report issued pursuant to article 2 of this title; or
(c) Any document required as a condition of issuance of a document specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection (1).
(2) (a) The office shall administer a necessary document program to assist Colorado residents who are victims of domestic violence, are impacted by a natural disaster, earn low incomes, have disabilities, are experiencing homelessness, or are elderly and who are seeking documentation of their identity, status, or citizenship by paying the fees to acquire a necessary document.
(b) (I) On and after July 1, 2027, and to the extent that money appropriated to the office pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section is available, an individual specified in subsection (2)(a) of this section who needs to obtain any necessary documents may obtain the necessary documents without cost to the individual and without a physical voucher at:
(A) Participating division of motor vehicles locations;
(B) Participating mobile units or from authorized representatives that offer driver's licenses, identification card services, vital statistics certificates, vital statistics reports, or related documents as described in subsection (1)(c) of this section; or
(C) Participating vital statistics offices.
(II) An individual may self-attest to the individual's eligibility to receive assistance from the necessary document program.
(c) Nothing in this subsection (2) changes the identity verification requirements that may be required to obtain a necessary document.
(3) (a) The general assembly shall annually appropriate to the office up to three hundred thousand dollars from the general fund. The office shall expend the money for the purposes specified in this section.
(b) The office shall use the money appropriated pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section for the following:
(I) Up to fifteen thousand dollars for the office's direct and indirect costs of administering the necessary document program;
(II) To reimburse the department for fees for the issuance of vital statistics certificates, vital statistics reports, or related documents as described in subsections (1)(b)(III) and (1)(c) of this section; and
(III) To reimburse the department of revenue for the issuance of driver's licenses, identification cards, or related documents as described in subsections (1)(b)(I), (1)(b)(II), and (1)(c) of this section.
(c) (I) The department and the department of revenue shall each submit requests to the office for reimbursement based on the actual number of necessary documents issued by the department or the department of revenue and in the manner determined by the office.
(II) The office shall provide reimbursements to the department and the department of revenue in a manner determined appropriate by the department until the money appropriated to the office pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section is no longer available.
(4) Beginning January 1, 2032, and each five years thereafter, the department shall include, as part of its annual presentation to the general assembly pursuant to the State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act, part 2 of article 7 of title 2, a report on the total number of necessary documents acquired on an annual basis and any significant technological changes or other developments that affect the need for, or operations of, the necessary document program.
(5) In addition to the money appropriated to the office pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section, the office may seek, accept, and expend gifts, grants, or donations from private or public sources for the purposes of this section.
Source: L. 2016: Entire section added, (HB 16-1386), ch. 302, p. 1219, � 1, effective June 10. L. 2021: (4) amended, (SB 21-018), ch. 418, p. 2778, � 1, effective July 2. L. 2025: (2) and (3) amended and (5) added, (SB 25-008), ch. 207, p. 935, � 2, effective August 6.
Cross references: For the legislative declaration in SB 25-008, see section 1 of chapter 207, Session Laws of Colorado 2025.