Latest news with #ColoradoLaw
Forbes
27-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Colorado's Biometric Privacy Law Takes Effect July 1: Are You Ready?
Colorado's biometric privacy law reflects a broader movement to treat biometric information as a ... More distinct and highly sensitive category of personal data. Biometric compliance isn't hypothetical anymore in Colorado; it's here. Colorado's new biometric privacy law, House Bill 24-1130, takes effect on July 1, 2025. Enacted more than a year ago, the law now moves from policy to practice. Employers and businesses that collect biometric information, such as fingerprints, facial scans, iris images, or voiceprints, must ensure their systems and policies comply with the statute's requirements. The law expands the Colorado Privacy Act (CPA) by creating specific protections for biometric identifiers and biometric data. These protections reflect a growing concern: once compromised, biometric information cannot be replaced. A person's voice, face, or fingerprint is uniquely their own. The risks of misuse are real and lasting. As biometric technologies become more common in authentication, timekeeping, and access control, Colorado's law introduces a structured framework that protects individuals while guiding businesses toward responsible use. Who Is Covered? Colorado's biometric privacy requirements apply to any business that collects, uses, or stores biometric identifiers or biometric data from Colorado residents. Importantly, these requirements apply even if a business does not meet the CPA's general thresholds for covered entities. That means a company may be exempt from other CPA provisions, but still obligated to follow biometric-specific rules. This distinction is especially relevant for employers. While the CPA generally exempts personal data collected in the employment context, the biometric provisions specifically cover data collected from employees, job applicants, contractors, interns, and fellows. Understanding the Terminology Colorado distinguishes between 'biometric identifiers' and 'biometric data.' A biometric identifier is a unique biological, physical, or behavioral characteristic that can be used to identify someone. This includes fingerprints, voiceprints, facial geometry, iris scans, and similar measurements. The term biometric data includes one or more biometric identifiers that are used or intended to be used to identify an individual. In other words, the data becomes regulated once it is used for identification. Digital photographs, audio recordings, and video files are excluded from the law unless they are used to extract biometric identifiers for identification purposes. That distinction matters for companies that rely on technologies like computer vision or speech analytics, which can convert images or recordings into data points such as facial geometry or voiceprints. If those tools extract biometric information and use it to identify a person, the data becomes subject to Colorado's law. What Must Businesses Do? Colorado's law imposes strict requirements on how biometric information is collected, stored, used, and shared. Businesses must: Businesses must adopt a publicly available policy that explains how they handle biometric information. The policy must include: Biometric identifiers must be deleted when the original purpose for collection has been fulfilled, within 24 months of the last interaction with the individual, or as soon as they are no longer necessary for the purpose identified by the business, whichever comes first. A 45-day extension is permitted if needed to finalize deletion. Policies do not need to be made public if they only apply to internal employee operations, but they still must be documented and followed. Before collecting biometric identifiers, businesses must provide individuals with a clear and understandable notice. The notice must include: Consent must be obtained before collection. The law requires that consent be freely given, specific, informed, and unambiguous. Consent must be separate from other agreements and may not be bundled with terms of service or other privacy acknowledgments. In the employment context, employers are permitted to use biometric data in limited, clearly defined situations. These include securing access to physical spaces or software systems, recording work hours, and monitoring workplace or public safety during emergencies. Employers may not collect biometric data to track an employee's location or monitor productivity without separate, voluntary consent. Any other purpose requires a separate and voluntary consent. Employers may not retaliate against employees or job applicants who decline to provide additional consent. The law prohibits the sale, lease, or trade of biometric identifiers. Disclosure to third parties is permitted only if: Additionally, businesses may not refuse goods or services to someone who declines to provide biometric data, unless the data is necessary to provide that service. Individuals have the right to request information about the biometric data collected about them, but only if the business is subject to the general thresholds of the Colorado Privacy Act. If a business is a controller subject to the CPA's general thresholds, it must disclose the types of biometric data collected, the purpose for collection, the source of the data, the third parties with whom it has been shared, and the categories of information disclosed. This information must be provided free of charge upon request by the individual or their authorized representative. Businesses that are not subject to the CPA's general thresholds, such as some small employers, are not required to respond to access requests, but must still comply with all other biometric data requirements under the law. Both controllers and processors must protect biometric information using industry-standard safeguards. Security measures should support timely deletion in accordance with the business's documented retention schedule. If a data breach affects biometric identifiers or biometric data, the controller or processor must follow its response protocol and notify affected individuals if required by law. Enforcement and Penalties Failure to comply with Colorado's biometric privacy requirements may trigger enforcement by the Colorado Attorney General. Businesses may face civil penalties, injunctive relief, or other remedies available under the Colorado Privacy Act. How Should Employers Prepare? With the law taking effect on July 1, 2025, employers should evaluate their timekeeping systems, access control technologies, and any software or hardware that collects biometric data. These tools must align with the employee's role and the reasonable expectations associated with that position. Internal policies should be updated to reflect lawful use, clear notice, and proper consent. It is essential that staff are trained on proper data handling and deletion timelines. Employers should coordinate with vendors to ensure that they follow applicable obligations. Parting Thoughts Colorado's biometric privacy law reflects a broader movement to treat biometric information as a distinct and highly sensitive category of personal data. While Illinois set the precedent for biometric privacy laws, Colorado's statute reflects a growing national trend. Other states are now following suit. For businesses operating in Colorado, the time for compliance planning has passed. Now is the time for implementation. House Bill 24-1130 sends a clear message. Colorado residents have a right to control how their biometric data is collected and used. And businesses, starting July 1, are required to honor that right.
Car and Driver
09-05-2025
- Automotive
- Car and Driver
Colorado Becomes the 30th State to Officially Allow Kei Cars
Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed HB25-1281 into law today, officially allowing the state's residents to register and drive kei vehicles. Kei cars, a class of small four-wheel vehicles from Japan, can be brought into the U.S. under the 25-year import rule. Until now, Colorado lacked kei-specific regulations, creating a bit of a gray area for owners. Score another one for the little guys. Today, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed into law HB25-1281, which officially recognizes kei vehicles as road-legal in the state and puts in place the necessary framework for their titling, registration, and use. For the uninitiated, kei is short for kei-jidōsha, a Japanese term that translates to "light vehicle." Japanese regulators limit kei cars, trucks, and vans in engine size and output as well as exterior dimensions—length, width, and height—although the maximum values for each have changed over the years. Because these tiny vehicles weren't sold new in the United States, they can only be brought into the country under the 25-year import rule, which allows vehicles with non-compliant safety and emissions equipment to be given a pass if they're over a quarter-century old. Popular examples include the Honda Acty pickup and van, the Suzuki Cappuccino, and the Autozam AZ-1. Bring a Trailer The new law comes with some stipulations. Kei vehicles cannot be driven on roads with speed limits above 55 mph. This is sensible, since these low-powered vehicles have trouble maintaining high speeds on flat ground, let alone at altitude going up a grade on I-70. The law also clarifies how emissions testing will work for kei vehicles; instead of being subjected to a dynamometer test, the state's emissions agency will use a static two-speed idle test, which is otherwise used on vehicles from model year 1981 and prior. The law also explicitly recognizes keis as motor vehicles for the purposes of the Uniform Motor Vehicle Law and the Certificate of Title Act. The bill had bipartisan co-sponsorship in both state houses. There are still some issues that can bridge the widening aisles of our legislatures. From Quasi-Legal to Officially Official Colorado has had an on-again, off-again relationship with kei legality recently. Until now, there have been no kei-specific regulations on the books. A rule proposed by the state's Division of Motor Vehicles in 2024 would have put an outright ban on them and could have prevented registration of other "non-traditional" vehicle types; it was rescinded, with the DMV arguing that it was unnecessary, as kei vehicles were already illegal in its view. This rule was backed by lobbyists from a group called the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators and would have deferred to AAMVA guidance when deciding which vehicles the state would allow to be registered. The AAMVA is also behind proposed kei bans in other states, including Georgia, Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Carter Fry | Car and Driver AAMVA's argument is that kei vehicles are intended for off-road use only. It also appears to conflate kei vehicles with mini-trucks, some of which are intended only for off-road use. But not all keis are trucks, and even the little JDM pickups are legal for on-road use in their homeland. For those who have tried to register keis in the state, the main sticking point was emissions testing, which is required in certain counties, most of them in the Front Range, where much of the state's residents (and their emitting vehicles) are located. Unfortunately, some would-be kei drivers learned of this too late; it was possible to get a temporary plate for a kei vehicle, but without passing the emissions exam, these owners couldn't get their mini automobile registered. Tales of palm-greasing and dubious registration tactics abound on Reddit. In counties that don't require emissions testing as part of the vehicle registration process, this was a non-issue. Where Keis are Okay Colorado joins 29 other states that have laws allowing kei vehicles on public roads. They are: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Elana Scherr | Car and Driver Like Colorado, some locales restrict which roads kei vehicles can use based on speed limit, with a handful kept to roads with 25-mph-or-lower maxes. Even where keis are deemed legal, there may be additional hurdles to clear for registration or restrictions placed on their road use, which can vary by jurisdiction, so be sure to do your homework before pressing "Buy It Now" on that auction. In New Hampshire, for example, a kei vehicle can only travel within a 25-mile radius of its owner's residence and only on roads with a speed limit of 35 mph or less. Several states—Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and West Virginia—have restrictions in place, many of them specific to kei trucks, which may be limited to farm or agricultural use. New York requires compliance with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and emissions requirements, which requires expensive retrofit work and is therefore prohibitive, especially since many keis can be bought and imported for several thousand dollars. Rhode Island is already starting to clamp down on kei registrations while legislation is pending. The states of Alaska, Delaware, and Hawaii, as well as Washington, D.C., have no laws concerning kei vehicles. And then there are the states where kei registration is explicitly prohibited: Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, and Vermont. David Gluckman Contributing Editor Ever since David was a wee Car and Driver intern, he has kept a spreadsheet listing all the vehicles he's driven and tested. David really likes spreadsheets. He can parallel-park a school bus and once drove a Lincoln Town Car 63 mph in reverse. After taking a break from journalism to work on autonomous vehicles, he's back writing for this and other automotive publications. When David's not searching for the perfect used car, you can find him sampling the latest in gimmicky, limited-edition foodstuffs.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mesa County Assessor's Office mailed Notices of Value to residents
MESA COUNTY, Colo. (KREX) — On May 1, the Mesa County Assessor's Office mailed Notices of Value (NOV) to all taxpayers while concluding the 2025 reappraisal. The NOV reflects the sales and analyses of a property from Jan. 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024. Tax bills will be based on the Actual Value this next January. The Assessor's office encourages taxpayers to study their NOV carefully and determine whether a property could have sold for the Actual Value listed as of June 30, 2024. Taxpayers can file a protest if they believe that an error was made. In compliance with Colorado Law, the Assessor started hearing objections to the valuation of real property on Thursday. On June 9, all protests must be delivered or postmarked by the end of the business day. On June 15, appeals for taxable business personal property will be accepted by the Assessor's office. Mesa County taxpayers can file protests in person at the Assessor's office in the Mesa County Old Courthouse Annex, located on 544 Rood Avenue between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Protests can also be filed online, by fax at 970-244-1790, or mailed to Department 5003, P.O. Box 20,000, Grand Junction, CO 81502-5001. If taxpayers cannot appeal in the ways listed, they are encouraged to call the Assessor's office at 970-244-1720. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
