(1) (a)
The statutes prepared in accordance with sections 2-5-102 and 2-5-103 and printed
and enacted as the law of the state in accordance with sections 2-5-105, 2-5-113, 2-5-117, and 2-5-126 shall be considered to be the official statutes of the state of
Colorado. Such official statutes shall be the only publication of the statutes
entitled to be considered as evidence in Colorado courts in accordance with section
13-25-101, C.R.S., and with applicable Colorado court rules. The courts of this state
shall take judicial notice of such official statutes.
(b) To ensure public access to the statutes, the committee:
(I) Shall authorize the printing of the official statutes in softbound sets in
accordance with section 2-5-105;
(II) May authorize and work cooperatively with the person printing the official
statutes in accordance with section 2-5-105 to reprint and distribute the statutes in
alternative printed and electronic formats, including, but not limited to the
following:
(A) Compact discs;
(B) Online public access through the world wide web;
(C) Electronic applications for handheld electronic devices;
(D) Electronic books or digital versions of books readable on personal
computers, mobile handheld electronic devices, or special e-reader or tablet-style
devices; and
(E) Other electronic products or formats;
(III) May, pursuant to subsection (2) of this section, provide the statutory
database containing the official text of the statutes, with or without original
ancillary publications prepared by the general assembly or its staff, for the
additional publication, reprinting, and distribution of the statutes in print,
electronic, or other digital format by another person, agency, or political
subdivision, in accordance with subsections (2) to (5) of this section; and
(IV) Recognizes that other persons, agencies, or political subdivisions may,
from time to time, also publish, reprint, or otherwise distribute the statutes in print,
electronic, or other digital format without the use of the statutory database
containing the official text of the statutes as prepared by the general assembly or
its staff.
(c) Publication, reprinting, or distribution of any of the publications ancillary
to the statutes of the state of Colorado, as prepared by the general assembly or its
staff, other than pursuant to sections 2-5-101 to 2-5-116, may be made only as
provided for in this section.
(2) (a) Any person, agency, or political subdivision desiring to publish, reprint,
or distribute, whether by use of printed matter or by use of computer or other
electronic means, the statutes of the state of Colorado using the statutory
database prepared by the general assembly or its staff containing the official text
of the statutes, shall submit to the committee or the committee's designee:
(I) A statement specifying those portions of the statutes the person, agency,
or political subdivision seeks to publish;
(II) A statement specifying whether the person, agency, or political
subdivision is seeking to publish, reprint, or distribute any of the publications
ancillary to the statutes as prepared by the general assembly or its staff pursuant
to subsection (2.5) of this section;
(III) The costs and fees required by the committee as specified in paragraph
(c) of this subsection (2); and
(IV) Such other information as the committee reasonably requires.
(b) Any person, agency, or political subdivision who wishes to publish,
reprint, or distribute an officially sanctioned version of the statutes pursuant to this
subsection (2) shall reproduce the statutes and ancillary publications, if any,
accurately.
(c) (I) In addition to any other requirement, the committee may require that
any person, agency, or political subdivision seeking to publish, reprint, or distribute
the statutes using the statutory database prepared by the general assembly or its
staff containing the official text of the statutes pay a fee to the state and any direct
costs of preparation of any material provided by the state. Such fee and costs shall
be determined by the committee, and any fee shall be in an amount that the
committee determines is necessary to pay for state property interests in the
statutes, to pay for the use of any material copyrighted by the state, and to pay for
expenses incurred by the committee to ensure the accuracy of the statutes.
(II) (Deleted by amendment, L. 92, p. 959, � 1, effective April 29, 1992.)
(2.5) (a) Any person, agency, or political subdivision desiring to publish,
reprint, or distribute, whether by use of printed matter or by use of computer or
other electronic means, any of the publications ancillary to the statutes of the state
of Colorado shall make prior written application to the committee, in which the
applicant:
(I) Specifies what ancillary publications it seeks to publish;
(II) States generally the purpose for the publication, reprinting, or
distribution and the persons or classes of persons to receive copies thereof;
(III) Demonstrates to the satisfaction of the committee that such ancillary
publications will be accurately reproduced; and
(IV) Agrees to pay the costs and fees required by the committee.
(b) If the committee finds from the application that such distribution meets
the requirements of this subsection (2.5) and that it will not be detrimental to the
interests of the citizens of the state, it may authorize distribution of such ancillary
publications specified in the application. Upon satisfactory arrangements for the
payment by such person, agency, or political subdivision of any costs and fees, the
committee may provide copies of such ancillary publications in printed or electronic
format.
(3) (a) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2011, (SB 11-261), ch. 205, p. 875, � 3,
effective May 23, 2011.)
(b) The committee may enter into such contracts as it deems necessary to
implement the provisions of this section. Any contracts entered into prior to May 23,
2011, are hereby validated.
(4) The general assembly hereby finds and declares that this section and the
other provisions of this article are enacted in furtherance of the general assembly's
legislative duty to provide for the publication of the laws as required by section 8 of
article XVIII of the state constitution and that any acts of the committee or its staff
in implementing these provisions are legislative in character. The purpose of this
section is to ensure that the official statutes are made available to the courts, state
and local government agencies, and other users; that copies of the Colorado
Revised Statutes, when published, reprinted, or distributed to interested citizens,
accurately state the law in effect when those copies are prepared; and that
unofficial publications, reprintings, or distributions of the statutes are not mistaken
for the official statutes produced and enacted in accordance with this article. Any
person, agency, or political subdivision that publishes, reprints, or otherwise
distributes the statutes of the state of Colorado, with or without any ancillary
publications to the statutes, shall reproduce them accurately.
(5) (a) Any publication, reprinting, or distribution that is published in
accordance with paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section using the statutory
database containing the official text of the statutes may contain a notice, approved
by the committee, that indicates that it is an officially sanctioned publication using
the official text of the Colorado Revised Statutes. Except for the official statutes
provided for in subsection (1) of this section, publications of the statutes shall not
contain any notice or other indication that they are official statutes of this state.
(b) to (d) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2011, (SB 11-261), ch. 205, p. 875, � 3,
effective May 23, 2011.)
(6) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, a
person, agency, or political subdivision may publish, reprint, or distribute two
hundred or fewer sections of the Colorado Revised Statutes, with or without the
ancillary publications thereto, for educational purposes.