WeVote
Log In

Bill

Bill

HB 25-1154

Communication Services People with Disabilities Enterprise

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Judy Amabile and 47 co-sponsors

Creates the Communication Services for People with Disabilities Enterprise to centralize access programs, move TRS from PUC, and fund via new line and prepaid wireless surcharges.

Governor Signed
0
WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · HB 25-1154

HB 25-1154 — Communication Services for People with Disabilities Enterprise

Status: Governor signed (May 22, 2025). Introduced: Jan 29, 2025.

Main purpose

Creates a new state enterprise — the Communication Services for People with Disabilities Enterprise — to consolidate and administer communication access programs and services for people who are blind, print‑disabled, deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, or speech‑disabled. The law moves existing programs into the enterprise, centralizes funding and fee administration, and transfers management of telecommunications relay services (TRS) from the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to the new enterprise.

Key provisions

  • Establishes the Communication Services for People with Disabilities Enterprise in the Department of Human Services (CDHS) and a Division and Board of Directors. The Governor must appoint the Board (deadline referenced June 2025 in statute history).
  • Transfers to the enterprise:
    • Programs and services formerly managed by the Colorado Commission for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deafblind (CDHS).
    • The Reading Services for the Blind program (previously at the State Librarian/Department of Education).
    • Management of telephone relay/telecommunications relay services (from the PUC/DORA).
  • Funding and fees:
    • Creates an enterprise cash fund (Colorado Division for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Deafblind Cash Fund) to receive fee revenue.
    • Replaces prior TUDF (Telephone Users with Disabilities Fund) fee flows with a Telephone Disability Access Surcharge (monthly surcharge on wireline voice service providers, statutory cap $0.15/line) and a Prepaid Telephone Disability Access Charge (charge on prepaid wireless retail transactions, cap $0.15/transaction). The PUC will collect these fees and remit them to the enterprise cash fund.
    • Fee revenue is treated as enterprise fees (statute treats revenue as fees not taxes). Projected fee receipts are constrained so they do not exceed $100 million over the enterprise’s first five years (avoids needing voter approval).
  • Oversight: role and composition of the enterprise, division, and advisory bodies are defined in statute; the enterprise may approve interpreter certification standards and coordinate CART/auxiliary services.

Who is affected

  • Primary beneficiaries: people who are blind, print‑disabled, deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind, or speech‑disabled (service delivery and access).
  • Fee payers: wireline voice service providers (surcharge) and consumers purchasing prepaid wireless services (point‑of‑sale charge).
  • State agencies: CDHS (new enterprise operations), Department of Education (reading services moved), Department of Regulatory Agencies/PUC (TRS operational role reduced), Department of Revenue, Department of Law, and Department of Personnel (administrative impacts).

Fiscal and administrative impacts (high‑level)

  • FY 2025‑26 appropriations and transfers (as enacted): total appropriations to implement the act include
    • $4,958,625 cash funds to CDHS (from the enterprise cash fund) — includes $4,891,755 for enterprise operations and $66,870 reappropriated to the Department of Law for legal services;
    • $250,000 cash funds (from the Telephone Users with Disabilities Fund) to DORA, reappropriated to CDE for Reading Services for the Blind (FY 2025‑26);
    • $21,467 to the Department of Revenue (Prepaid Wireless Trust Cash Fund) for administrative costs; plus small document management and personnel reappropriations.
  • Revenue reallocation: an estimated shift of about $4,851,625 per year from the Telephone Users with Disabilities Fund to the enterprise cash fund beginning FY 2025‑26. The enterprise cash fund also expects an additional ~$100–125K in FY 2025‑26 (ongoing ~$100K) to cover new administrative expenses.
  • General Fund relief: approximately $353,214 in FY 2025‑26 historically General Fund support is no longer required (roughly $103,214 for the commission and $250,000 for reading services).
  • FTE and administrative net effect: net change of roughly 1.3 FTE in FY 2025‑26 and about 1.1 FTE ongoing (net across affected agencies per fiscal notes). Net state administrative expenditure changes in the revised fiscal analysis show modest net reductions when accounting for refunding and transfers, but the enterprise will have increased cash‑funded program spending.
  • TABOR/Excess Revenue: redirecting cash‑fund revenue reduces non‑exempt revenue, which lowers the TABOR refund liability; revised estimates cite a reduction in the TABOR refund of several million dollars in FY 2025‑26.

Procedural / timeline notes

  • Board appointments and transition tasks are directed in statute; statutes reference June 2025 deadlines for initial appointments.
  • The act includes appropriation/implementing sections to align FY 2025‑26 budget authority with the statutory transfers.
  • Final legislative actions: conference committee actions in late April 2025; sent to Governor May 12, 2025; signed by Governor May 22, 2025.

For implementation details (fee setting, rulemaking, allocation mechanics, and precise appropriation line items) see the enacted statute text and the Legislative Council Staff / JBC fiscal notes (April 2025 revised fiscal note).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

Sign in to ask a question.