Colorado § 26-5-103.5 - Child welfare allocations committee - organization - duties - funding model - definition.

§ 26-5-103.5. Child welfare allocations committee - organization - duties - funding model - definition.

(1) The state department shall convene a child welfare allocations committee as necessary in order to perform the duties described in this section and make advisory recommendations as described in this article 5.

(2) (a) The child welfare allocations committee consists of thirteen members, ten of whom must be appointed by county commissioners and three of whom must be appointed by the state department, and the child welfare allocations committee consists of two nonvoting members who must be appointed by the state department.

(b) The two nonvoting members appointed by the state department must have knowledge and experience in the following areas, including but not limited to:

(I) Federal funding related to child welfare;

(II) The federal "Family First Prevention Services Act of 2018", as defined in section 26-5-101 (4.5);

(III) Interests of individuals with a disability; or

(IV) Interests of individuals experiencing poverty.

(c) Of the members appointed by county commissioners, only one representative per county may serve on the child welfare allocations committee at the same time, and:

(I) One member must be appointed by the county commissioners of each of the following regions, as those regions are defined in subsection (2)(d) of this section:

(A) The eastern region;

(B) The front range region;

(C) The mountain region;

(D) The southern region; and

(E) The western region;

(II) Three members must be at-large appointments. Of the three at-large appointments, two members must be appointed by the county commissioners of the counties described in section 26-5-104 (4)(b)(I), and one must be appointed by the county commissioners who represent the counties described in section 26-5-104 (4)(b)(II); and

(III) Two members must be representatives from the two counties in the state with the greatest percentage of the state's child welfare caseload. County commissioners in the two counties with the greatest percentage of the state's child welfare caseload shall each appoint one member from their counties to serve on the child welfare allocations committee.

(d) For the purposes of this subsection (2):

(I) The eastern region is comprised of Cheyenne, Elbert, Kit Carson, Lincoln, Logan, Morgan, Phillips, Sedgwick, Washington, and Yuma counties;

(II) The front range region is comprised of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Weld counties, and the city and county of Broomfield and the city and county of Denver;

(III) The mountain region is comprised of Chaffee, Clear Creek, Custer, Eagle, Fremont, Gilpin, Grand, Jackson, Lake, Park, Pitkin, Summit, and Teller counties;

(IV) The southern region is comprised of Alamosa, Baca, Bent, Conejos, Costilla, Crowley, Huerfano, Kiowa, Las Animas, Mineral, Otero, Prowers, Pueblo, Rio Grande, and Saguache counties; and

(V) The western region is comprised of Archuleta, Delta, Dolores, Garfield, Gunnison, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mesa, Moffat, Montezuma, Montrose, Ouray, Rio Blanco, Routt, San Juan, and San Miguel counties.

(e) As used in this subsection (2), "county commissioners" means:

(I) The board of county commissioners in each county;

(II) In the city and county of Denver, the department or agency with the responsibility for public assistance and welfare activities; and

(III) In the city and county of Broomfield, the city council or a board or commission appointed by the city and county of Broomfield.

(3) The child welfare allocations committee shall develop its own operating procedures.

(4) Repealed.

(4.5) (a) On or before August 1, 2021, and on or before August 1 of each year thereafter, the child welfare allocations committee shall identify components of the funding model that should be evaluated by the funding model evaluation group pursuant to section 26-5-103.7.

(b) In order to ensure the integrity of the funding model described in section 26-5-103.7, on or before September 1, 2021, and on or before September 1 of each year thereafter, the child welfare allocations committee shall:

(I) Establish expectations for gathering and using data in the funding model to ensure consistency within the funding model;

(II) Identify county training and capacity needs to ensure integrity of the data collected and used in the Colorado TRAILS case management system and county financial management systems; and

(III) Develop strategies and recommend changes to data systems that support the funding model and to financial policies and practices to ensure that appropriate, consistent, and accurate data can be used to inform the funding model.

(c) Repealed.

(d) The child welfare allocations committee shall also perform any duties required in section 26-5-103.7 related to the child welfare allocations funding model.

(5) and (6) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2018.)

(7) Repealed.

Source: L. 98: Entire section added, p. 781, § 4, effective May 22. L. 2013: (2) amended, (HB 13-1087), ch. 37, p. 106, § 1, effective March 15. L. 2015: (5) added, (SB 15-242), ch. 141, p. 430, § 1, effective May 1. L. 2016: (6) added, (SB 16-201), ch. 171, p. 542, § 2, effective May 18. L. 2018: Entire section amended, (SB 18-254), ch. 216, p. 1376, § 5, effective May 18. L. 2019: (2)(a), (2)(b), and (2)(c) amended and (2)(e) added, (SB 19-031), ch. 84, p. 298, § 1, effective April 8. L. 2021: (1), (2)(a), IP(2)(c), (2)(c)(III), and (3) amended, (4) and (7) repealed, and (4.5) added, (SB 21-277), ch. 343, p. 2237, § 3, effective June 25. L. 2025: (4.5)(c) repealed, (SB 25-300), ch. 428, p. 2452, § 43, effective August 6.