Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-109 – Cooperation with federal government - grants-in-aid - low-income home energy assistance program - applications - definition.

(1) The state department of human services shall be the sole state agency for administering the state plans for public assistance and welfare, including but not limited to assistance payments; food stamps; social services; child welfare services; rehabilitation; and programs for the aging in cooperation with the federal government; the Colorado works program; and any other state plan relating to such public assistance and welfare that requires state action that is not specifically the responsibility of some other state department, division, section, board, commission, or committee under the provisions of federal or state law.
(2)
1. (a) The state department of human services may accept on behalf of the state of Colorado the provisions and benefits of acts of congress designed to provide funds or other property for particular public assistance and welfare activities within the state, including but not limited to assistance payments; food stamps; social services; child welfare services; rehabilitation; and programs for the aging; which funds or other property are designated for such purposes within the function of the state department, and may accept on behalf of the state any offers which have been or may from time to time be made of funds or other property by any persons, agencies, or entities for particular public assistance and welfare activities within the state, which funds or other property are designated for such purposes within the function of the state department; but, unless otherwise expressly provided by law, such acceptance shall not be manifested unless and until the state department has recommended such acceptance to and received the written approval of the governor and the attorney general. Such approval shall authorize the acceptance of the funds or property in accordance with the restrictions and conditions and for the purpose for which funds or property are intended.
2. (b) The state treasurer is designated as ex officio custodian of all public assistance and welfare funds received by the state from the federal government and from any other source, if the approval provided for in paragraph (a) of this subsection (2) has been obtained.
3. (c) The state treasurer shall hold each such fund separate and distinct from state funds and is authorized to make disbursements from such funds for the designated purpose or for administrative costs, which may be provided in such grants, upon warrants issued by the state controller upon the voucher of the state department.
(3) The state department shall cooperate with the federal department of health, education, and welfare and other federal agencies in any reasonable manner, in conformity with the laws of this state, which may be necessary to qualify for federal aid, including the preparation of state plans, the making of reports in such form and containing such information as any federal agency may from time to time require, and the compliance with such provisions as the federal government may from time to time find necessary to assure the correctness and verification of the reports.
(4) In administering any funds appropriated or made available to the state department for public assistance and welfare activities, the state department has the power to:
1. (a) Require as a condition for receiving grants-in-aid that each county in this state shall bear the proportion of the total expense of furnishing public assistance and food stamps as is fixed by law relating to such assistance;
2. (b) Terminate any grants-in-aid to any county of this state if the laws and regulations providing such grants-in-aid and the minimum standards prescribed by rules of the state department thereunder are not complied with;
3. (c) Undertake forthwith the administration of any or all public assistance and food stamp activities within any county of this state which has had any or all of its grants-in-aid terminated pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsection (4); but the county shall continue to meet the requirements of paragraph (a) of this subsection (4);
4. (d) Recover any moneys owed by a county to the state by reducing the amount of any payments due from the state in connection with any program or activity;
5. (e) Take any other action which may be necessary or desirable for carrying out the provisions of this title.
6. (4.5) In addition to the powers granted the state department in subsection (4) of this section, the state department shall take necessary measures to obtain increased federal reimbursement money available under the Title IV-E program created under the federal Social Security Act, as amended, based on the out-of-home placements, foster care prevention services, as defined in section 26-5.4-102 (1), and alternative care treatment by county departments of children eligible for Title IV-E federal assistance, which money shall be allocated to county departments in proportion to each county's eligible placements, to help defray program costs. Nothing in this subsection (4.5) shall be construed to allow counties to continue to receive an amount equal to the increased funding in the event the said funding is no longer available from the federal government.
(5) The rules of the state department may include provisions to accommodate requirements of contracts entered into between the state department and the federal department of health, education, and welfare for studies of guaranteed annual income or other forms of income maintenance research projects; and for such purpose the requirements of this title as to eligibility for public assistance shall not apply for the term of and in accordance with the contract for such purpose. No program shall be initiated or carried out under the authorization contained in this subsection (5) in a manner that will increase the welfare burden upon any county or city and county, and, if such a program is conducted in the Denver area, it shall be conducted within an area no smaller than the Denver S.M.S.A. (standard metropolitan statistical area) as defined by the United States bureau of the census.
(6) to (9) Repealed.
(10) Low-income home energy assistance program. (a) The state department shall not require an applicant to provide their citizenship or immigration status on any application for assistance payments, unless the information is required as a condition of eligibility for the assistance payments.
(b) The state department shall not share information related to the citizenship or immigration status of an applicant for or recipient of assistance payments with any federal law enforcement agency, unless disclosure of the information is required by law or court order.
(c) If the state department denies an individual's application for assistance payments due to insufficient or incomplete documentation, the state department shall:
1. (I) Provide notice to the applicant within seven calendar days that their application has been denied due to insufficient or incomplete documentation; and
2. (II) Include, as part of the notice provided pursuant to subsection (10)(c)(I) of this section, a deadline by which the applicant may correct or complete their application, which deadline must be no less than sixty days after the date the applicant was sent the notice, but no later than June 15 of the calendar year in which the individual submitted their application to the state department.
(d)
1. (I) When the state department denies an individual's application for assistance payments due to insufficient or incomplete documentation, the state department shall notify the investor-owned public utility of which the individual is a customer that the individual's application is pending review.
2. (II) When an investor-owned public utility receives the notice from the state department pursuant to subsection (10)(d)(I) of this section, the investor-owned public utility shall place a disconnection hold on the utility service provided to the customer, which disconnection hold must be in effect for no more than sixty days or for less than sixty days if the investor-owned public utility receives notice during the sixty-day hold that the customer's application for assistance has been approved or denied.
(e) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires, investor-owned public utility means a retail electric utility or retail gas utility operating in the state and regulated by the public utilities commission, created in section 40-2-101, and does not include a cooperative electric association or municipally owned utility.

Source: L. 73: R&RE, p. 1163, § 1. C.R.S. 1963: § 119-1-8. L. 75: (4)(a) and (4)(c) amended and (4)(d) and (4)(e) added, p. 885, § 1, effective July 1; (6) to (9) repealed, p. 893, § 14, effective July 28. L. 79: (1) and (2)(a) amended, p. 1080, § 2, effective July 1. L. 91: (4.5) added, p. 1769, § 1, effective April 20. L. 93: (1) and (2)(a) amended, p. 1141, § 80, effective July 1, 1994. L. 97: (1) and (5) amended, p. 1220, § 3, effective July 1. L. 2006: (1) and (2)(a) amended, p. 1987, § 11, effective July 1. L. 2019: (4.5) amended, (HB 19-1308), ch. 256, p. 2460, § 7, effective August 2. L. 2025: (10) added, (HB 25-1234), ch. 441, p. 2541, § 2, effective June 4.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration contained in the 1993 act amending this section, see section 1 of chapter 230, Session Laws of Colorado 1993. For the legislative declaration in HB 25-1234, see section 1 of chapter 441, Session Laws of Colorado 2025.