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SB 25-061

Federally Recognized Tribes & Construction of Laws

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Judy Amabile and 31 co-sponsors

Creates a default presumption that state laws do not apply to the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes, their officials, tribally controlled entities, or tribal lands unless st

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Bill Summary · SB 25-061

SB 25‑061 — Federally Recognized Tribes & Construction of Laws

Status: Governor signed (May 28, 2025) | Introduced: Jan 21, 2025

Purpose / Intent

SB 25‑061 establishes statutory rules for how Colorado laws are to be construed with respect to two federally recognized tribes in Colorado — the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe — and their respective reservations. The stated goal is to reduce jurisdictional ambiguity and unnecessary disputes by creating a default presumption about whether state laws apply to tribes, tribal officials, tribally controlled entities, tribal lands, and tribal members.

Key provisions

  • Creates two new statutory parts (in Title 2, Art. 4):
    • Part 5 — Construction of laws for the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and its reservation.
    • Part 6 — Construction of laws for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and its reservation.
  • Rules of construction:
    • New or materially amended state laws that are silent about tribal application, purport to apply statewide, or grant civil/criminal/regulatory authority are presumed NOT to apply within a reservation to the tribe, the tribe’s officials/employees acting in their official capacities, tribally controlled entities, or tribal lands — unless the statute clearly and expressly states otherwise.
    • This presumption does not modify applicable federal law (including Pub.L. 98‑290) and does not apply outside reservation boundaries.
    • State civil and criminal laws are presumed to apply within a municipality located entirely within a reservation (e.g., the Town of Ignacio) to Indians and non‑Indians as provided by federal law, without limiting the tribe’s concurrent jurisdiction over enrolled members.
  • Tribal consent and participation:
    • The tribe may request inclusion in state legislation or enact its own legislation consenting to the application of particular state laws; the tribe may notify legislative leaders when it adopts such consent.
    • The Governor and state agencies may determine tribal eligibility for participation in state programs and grants (e.g., infrastructure, healthcare, education, environment) even if the creating statute does not explicitly authorize tribal participation.
  • Preservation clauses:
    • The act does not abrogate the sovereign immunity of the State or the tribes.
    • It preserves the rights of the State, tribes, and others to pursue legal remedies to contest application of state laws.

Definitions (selected)

  • “Reservation” — exterior boundaries of each tribe’s reservation as defined by federal law.
  • “Tribal lands” — trust lands, land assignments/allotments, and fee/simple holdings owned by the tribe or tribally controlled entities within reservation boundaries.
  • “Tribally controlled entity” — a tribal division or subsidiary in which the tribe has a controlling interest.
  • “Municipality” — the Town of Ignacio or any municipality located entirely within a reservation.

Who is affected

  • Primary: Southern Ute Indian Tribe and Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, their officials, employees, tribally controlled entities, and tribal lands.
  • Secondary: state agencies (when implementing or documenting tribal consents/notifications), local governments adjacent to or within reservations (e.g., municipalities wholly within reservation boundaries), and non‑tribal persons on certain reservation lands.
  • Legal and judicial actors: potential changes to how courts interpret applicability of state statutes on reservation lands.

Fiscal and operational impact

  • Fiscal Note (Legislative Council Staff, Feb 12, 2025): No net state revenue or appropriation required. Expected minimal ongoing workload increases for state agencies and the General Assembly to record notifications and for legal communications. Local and tribal governments may have some additional administrative/legal workload to coordinate and notify.

Effective date and applicability

  • Effective 90 days after final adjournment of the General Assembly (or per statutory timing: 12:01 a.m. the day after the 90‑day period), unless a valid referendum suspends effect. The act applies to laws enacted on or after its effective date.

Legislative history & sponsors (selected)

  • Introduced in Senate Jan 21, 2025; passed both houses with amendments; Governor signed May 28, 2025.
  • Sponsors include Senators Simpson (prime), and many cosponsors; House sponsors include Representatives Weinberg and Joseph (prime) and others.

Summary: SB 25‑061 creates a default presumption that state laws do not apply to the Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes, their officials, tribally controlled entities, or tribal lands unless the statute expressly states applicability. It preserves federal law primacy, tribal and state sovereign immunity, and avenues for tribes to opt into or consent to state laws or programs.

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

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