Colorado § 12-20-105 - Fee adjustments - division of professions and occupations cash fund created - legal defense account created - definition.

§ 12-20-105. Fee adjustments - division of professions and occupations cash fund created - legal defense account created - definition.

(1) This section applies to all activities of the division and all regulators.

(2) (a) The director shall propose, as part of the division's annual budget request, an adjustment in the amount of each fee that each regulator is authorized by law to collect. The budget request and the adjusted fees for each regulator must reflect direct and indirect costs that are appropriated in the annual general appropriation act.

(b) (I) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2)(b)(II) of this section, based upon the appropriation made and subject to the approval of the executive director, each regulator shall adjust the fees the regulator is authorized by law to collect so that the revenue generated from the fees approximates its direct and indirect costs.

(II) The costs of the state board of psychologist examiners, the state board of marriage and family therapist examiners, the state board of licensed professional counselor examiners, the state board of social work examiners, the state board of unlicensed psychotherapists, and the state board of addiction counselor examiners shall be considered collectively in the renewal fee-setting process. Subsequent revenue generated by the fees set by the boards plus revenues generated pursuant to section 12-245-703 shall be compared to those collective costs to determine recovery of direct and indirect costs.

(III) The fees set pursuant to this subsection (2)(b) remain in effect for the fiscal year for which the budget request applies.

(3) All fees collected by a regulator, not including any fees retained by contractors as established pursuant to section 24-34-101 (10), shall be transmitted to the state treasurer, who shall credit them to the division of professions and occupations cash fund, which fund is hereby created. All money credited to the division of professions and occupations cash fund shall be used as provided in this section and shall not be deposited in or transferred to the general fund of this state or any other fund.

(4) Any fees established pursuant to section 24-34-101 (10) or (11) may be received by a contractor and retained as payment for the costs of examination or other services rendered pursuant to the contract with the executive director. Fees retained by a contractor and not collected by the state or deposited with the state treasurer are not subject to article 36 of title 24.

(5) (a) The fee collected pursuant to section 12-20-104 shall be credited to the legal defense account, which account is created within the division of professions and occupations cash fund. The fee is the sole source of funding for the account, and no other fee or portion of a fee collected by a regulator and credited to the division of professions and occupations cash fund shall be deposited in or transferred to the account. The account shall be used to supplement revenue received by the division but shall only be used for the purpose of paying legal expenses incurred by a regulator. Upon a determination of the need of a regulator for additional revenue for the payment of legal expenses, the director may authorize the allocation of revenue from the legal defense account to a regulator for legal expenses.

(b) For purposes of this subsection (5), "legal expenses" includes costs relating to holding administrative hearings and charges for legal services provided by the department of law, administrative law judge services, investigative services, expert witnesses, and consultants.

(6) Each July 1, whenever money appropriated to the division for the activities of a regulator for the prior fiscal year is unexpended, the money shall be made a part of the appropriation to the division for the next fiscal year, and the amount shall not be raised from fees collected by the regulator. If a supplemental appropriation is made to the division for the activities of a regulator, the fees of the regulator, when adjusted for the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which the supplemental appropriation was made, shall be adjusted by an additional amount that is sufficient to compensate for the supplemental appropriation. Money appropriated to the division in the annual long appropriation bill shall be designated as cash funds and shall not exceed the amount anticipated to be raised from fees collected by the regulators.

(7) to (9) Repealed.

Source: L. 2019: Entire title R&RE with relocations, (HB 19-1172), ch. 136, p. 733, § 1, effective October 1. L. 2020: (2)(b)(II) amended, (HB 20-1206), ch. 304, p. 1543, § 42, effective July 14. L. 2022: (8) added, (HB 22-1299), ch. 174, p. 1162, § 2, effective May 17; (7) added, (HB 22-1298), ch. 176, p. 1169, § 2, effective May 18. L. 2025: (9) added, (SB 25-264), ch. 129, p. 500, § 9, effective April 25. L. 2026: (5)(a) amended, (HB 26-1324), ch. 328, p. 1912, § 24, effective August 12.

Editor's note: (1) This section is similar to former § 24-34-105 as it existed prior to 2019.

(2) Subsection (7)(b) provided for the repeal of subsection (7), effective July 1, 2025. (See L. 2022, p. 1169.)

(3) Subsection (8)(b) provided for the repeal of subsection (8), effective July 1, 2025. (See L. 2022, p. 1162.)

(4) Subsection (9)(b) provided for the repeal of subsection (9), effective July 1, 2026. (See L. 2025, p. 500.)

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 22-1299, see section 1 of chapter 174, Session Laws of Colorado 2022. For the legislative declaration in HB 22-1298, see section 1 of chapter 176, Session Laws of Colorado 2022.

PART 2

GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIVISION, BOARDS, AND COMMISSIONS