C.R.S. § 26-1-805: Third-party contractor.

(1) On or before July 1, 2026, the state departments, in consultation with the county departments, shall contract with at least one third-party contractor to assist the implementation work group in developing and implementing the transition plan and corresponding report and developing recommendations for the public benefits delivery model.

(2) At a minimum, the selected third-party contractor is responsible for:

(a) Presenting multiple cohort-based model options to the state departments for the administration of public assistance programs. The cohort-based model options must:

(I) Vary in size and structure;

(II) Improve the quality of services rendered to public assistance program recipients; and

(III) Include fiscal, operational, and shared services considerations, the centralized member integrity service established in section 25.5-1-210, shared services, and strategies that support compliance, cost containment, maximization of existing capacity and strengths, and increased efficacy. The considerations and strategies must draw upon available data, research, existing structures, and examples from other states.

(b) Convening and facilitating discussions among the state departments, county departments, front line workers, and other relevant stakeholders through the implementation work group to support the development of the transition plan and corresponding report for the public benefits delivery model;

(c) Facilitating the development of the transition plan and corresponding report in alignment with the requirements for the transition plan;

(d) Ensuring intentional outreach to and engagement with counties of varying sizes and geographies, including small and rural counties; advocates; frontline workers employed by the county departments; community partners; and public assistance program recipient representatives, to support the development of the transition plan and corresponding report;

(e) Researching and presenting options for public assistance program recipient case management models and for tracking public assistance program recipients' experiences and engagement throughout the application process, enrollment process, and utilization of public assistance programs, to improve the quality of customer service and outcomes; and

(f) Facilitating discussions and strategy development related to the impact of changes in the availability of state and federal funding on public benefit programs, taking into consideration the impacts of H.R. 1, 119th Congress (2025-2026), Pub.L. 119-21, and the financial impacts on error rates, reductions in resources, and increased workload.

(3) The third-party contractor shall be selected through a process that includes community advocates, front line workers, and representatives from counties, including counties with rural, urban, suburban, and resort communities and counties with varying public assistance program caseloads. The third-party contractor must have a demonstrated record of expertise in public assistance program administration, fiscal modeling, and facilitation of multiple working and advisory group structures and in structured stakeholder engagement and a demonstrated ability to effectively operate and engage stakeholders across the state to arrive at recommendations that reflect a consensus, when possible.

(4) Upon approval by the state departments, the third-party contractor may subcontract with other independent entities with relevant experience to carry out one or more of the requirements listed in subsection (2) of this section.

(5) County departments and state departments shall cooperate with reasonable requests for information received from the third-party contractor or a third-party contractor's subcontractor.

(6) The selection of the third-party contractor is exempt from the requirements of the "Procurement Code", articles 101 to 112 of title 24.