C.R.S. § 8-88-301: Colorado disability funding authority - creation - board.

(1) There is created the Colorado disability funding authority. The Colorado disability funding authority is a special purpose authority, as defined in section 24-77-102 (15), which is a body corporate and a political subdivision of the state. The authority is not an agency of state government and is not subject to administrative direction by any department, commission, board, bureau, or agency of the state.

(2) (a) (I) The authority is governed by the Colorado disability funding authority board, which consists of thirteen members appointed by the governor. The majority of authority board members are individuals with disabilities, individuals with immediate family members with disabilities, or individuals who are caregivers to a family member with a disability.

(II) In making the appointments, the governor shall ensure that the authority board has members with experience in or knowledge of:

(A) Business and business management;

(B) Nonprofit entities and managing nonprofit entities;

(C) Advocacy for individuals with disabilities;

(D) The practice of medicine, with experience working with individuals with disabilities; and

(E) The practice of law, with experience working with individuals with disabilities.

(III) In addition to the requirements set forth in subsection (2)(a)(II) of this section, when making appointments to the authority board, the governor shall make reasonable efforts to appoint authority board members who reflect the geographic and demographic diversity of the state, including authority board members from rural and urban areas of the state and from diverse socioeconomic statuses and political, racial, ability, and cultural groups.

(IV) Members of the authority board serve three-year terms; except that the terms must be staggered so that no more than five members' terms expire in the same year. The governor shall not appoint a member for more than two consecutive terms.

(b) (I) The governor shall appoint the initial authority board members on or before September 15, 2026. In making the initial appointments, the governor shall indicate the initial term length of each initial authority board member to ensure that the terms of the authority board members are staggered as required by subsection (2)(a)(IV) of this section.

(II) The governor shall designate one of the initial authority board members to serve as the initial chair of the authority board. The initial chair of the authority board may establish and administer matters related to the initial start up of the authority, including staffing, legal services, and coordination with the CDOO. Any contracts entered into by the initial chair of the authority board must have an initial term ending on or before September 1, 2027, and must be reviewed by the authority board at its first meeting.

(c) A member may be removed from the authority board by:

(I) Majority vote of the authority board for misfeasance, malfeasance, willful neglect of duty, or other cause after notice and a public hearing, unless notice and a public hearing are expressly waived in writing by the member at risk of being removed; or

(II) The governor for cause.

(d) (I) Within thirty days of the governor's initial appointments to the authority board pursuant to subsection (2)(b) of this section, the initial chair of the authority board as designated by the governor shall set dates for the first and second meetings of the authority board. The authority board shall hold the first and second meetings on or before December 31, 2026. The authority board may elect a new chair at either its first or second meeting. If the authority board does not elect a new chair, the initial chair as designated by the governor shall serve in that role until the first meeting of the authority board in calendar year 2028.

(II) The authority board shall elect a chair and a vice-chair at its first meeting of each calendar year, beginning in calendar year 2028. The chair shall schedule the meetings of the authority board.

(III) The authority board may elect one or more members as secretary and treasurer and elect or appoint other officers as the authority board may determine and provide for their duties and terms of office.

(e) Members of the authority board serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for actual and reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, upon approval of the authority board after providing documentation supporting the reimbursement.

(f) Members of the authority board may participate in any authority board meeting and may vote using a telecommunications device, including a conference telephone, video conference, or similar communications equipment. A member of the authority board who participates in an authority board meeting using a telecommunications device is considered present at the meeting.

(g) (I) The authority board shall adopt its own rules of procedure and keep a record of all proceedings and acts.

(II) (A) All authority board meetings are open to the public and the authority board shall comply with the open meetings requirements of a state public body as set forth in section 24-6-402.

(B) All public records of the authority board are subject to the "Colorado Open Records Act", part 2 of article 72 of title 24.

(III) Every legislative act of the authority board of a general or permanent nature must be by resolution. All resolutions of the authority board must be recorded and authenticated by the signature of the chair, vice-chair, or secretary of the authority board.

(h) Any authority board member, or employee, agent, or advisor of the authority who has a direct or indirect interest in any contract, grant, transaction, or proposal before the authority or any direct or indirect interest in an entity that submits a proposal to the authority shall disclose their interest to the authority. The authority board member, or employee, agent, or advisor of the authority who has the direct or indirect interest shall not participate in the decision to approve, authorize, or fund the relevant contract, grant, transaction, or proposal.

(i) An act of the authority is void unless a majority of the appointed members of the authority board has voted in favor of the act.

(3) The attorney general is the legal advisor of and counsel to the authority.

(4) Employees of the authority are exempt from the state personnel system but are, by acceptance of employment, subject to the provisions of article 51 of title 24. The authority shall provide for the deduction of employer and employee contributions from salary and for payment to the public employees' retirement association, created pursuant to section 24-51-201, of deductions and any other payments that would be due from a state employer.

(5) The authority shall not discriminate based on race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, familial status, military status, or disability.

(6) (a) The income, revenue, and interest thereon of the authority and all property at any time owned by the authority are exempt from income taxation, real and personal property taxation, and all other taxation and assessments in the state. The purchase and use of property by or for the benefit of the authority is exempt from sales and use taxes imposed by the state, a county, a city and county, a city, any other political subdivision of the state, or local governmental entity. The authority may agree to make payments in lieu of property or sales and use taxes to the state, a county, a city and county, a city, any political subdivision of the state, or local governmental entity.

(b) A gift, donation, or contribution to or for the use of the authority for use in connection with the activities of the authority is treated as a gift to a political subdivision of the state made exclusively for public purposes.

(7) The authority and its corporate existence continues until terminated by law; except that no such law may take effect so long as the authority has obligations outstanding, unless adequate provision has been made for the payment of the obligations. Upon termination of the existence of the authority, all its rights and properties in excess of its obligations pass to and are vested in the state.