§ 26-11-203 — Duties of the state office

(1) In addition to such other duties and
functions as the executive director may allocate to the state office, the state office
shall have the following duties and functions:

(a) To be the leader concerning aging issues on behalf of all older
Coloradans while acting in coordination with other state departments and agencies,
as appropriate;

(b) To carry out a wide range of functions related to advocacy, planning,
coordination, interagency collaboration, information sharing, and monitoring and
evaluating to develop and enhance a comprehensive and coordinated state- and
community-based system to assist older Coloradans to lead independent,
meaningful, and dignified lives in the residential settings of their own choice;

(c) To develop and administer a state plan on aging, which includes input
from area agencies on aging developed in accordance with federal guidelines, with
additional content to the plan to be determined collaboratively between the state
office, the commission, and the technical advisory committee convened in the state
office pursuant to subsection (1)(k) of this section. The additional content to the
plan reflects the comprehensive impacts and planning associated with Colorado's
demographics.

(d) To establish a process that encourages local, regional, and statewide
participation in the development stages of the state plan on aging, which shall be
coordinated with the area agencies on aging, the commission established pursuant
to part 1 of this article 11, and other persons or entities involved in programs for
older persons;

(e) To assist public and nonprofit private agencies and the for-profit sector in
planning and developing programs to facilitate a statewide network of
comprehensive, coordinated services and opportunities for older Coloradans, giving
priority to those agencies, programs, services, and activities that support
independent living, prepare Coloradans for their later years, and empower older
Coloradans to be self-reliant and independent, which includes fostering public-private partnerships when appropriate;

(f) To study those aspects of the problems of aging necessary to accomplish
the purpose of state policy through such activities as conducting research,
computing statistics, evaluating emerging technologies and innovations, holding
hearings, and drafting policy recommendations;

(g) To maintain a clearinghouse of information related to the interests and
needs of older Coloradans and act as a referral service for the dissemination of the
information;

(h) To assess the need for services to be provided to the older population
within the state and determine the extent to which the state's service delivery
system serves that population, with particular emphasis on older Coloradans with
the greatest economic and social needs, as well as empowering older Coloradans to
plan for the needs of increased life expectancy;

(i) To encourage and support the involvement of volunteers and seek ways to
utilize the private sector to capitalize on the opportunities to support older
Coloradans and their families;

(j) To designate area agencies on aging to assist the state office in carrying
out its functions in specified geographic areas within the state;

(k) To convene and coordinate a technical advisory committee comprised of
key state department representatives, including but not limited to the department
of human services, department of labor and employment, department of higher
education, department of health care policy and financing, department of
transportation, department of public health and environment, and department of
local affairs, to direct the implementation of recommendations and strategies
provided in the strategic action plan on aging developed pursuant to section 24-32-3406, as that section existed prior to June 30, 2022, and recommendations the
commission makes as set forth in section 26-11-105; and

(l) To coordinate with the technical advisory committee and commission to
develop, maintain, and make publicly available on the state department's website a
collection of available data sets; metrics specific to the implementation of
strategies in alignment with the strategic action plan on aging developed pursuant
to section 24-32-3406, as that section existed prior to June 30, 2022, and the
lifelong Colorado initiative created pursuant to section 26-11-302; and other
recommendations that the commission makes as set forth in section 26-11-105.

Legislative History

Source: L. 85: Entire part added, p. 976, � 3, effective May 29. L. 2022: Entire section amended, (HB 22-1035), ch. 38, p. 202, � 7, effective March 24; (1)(k) and (1)(l) amended, (HB 22-1209), ch. 95, p. 455, � 6, effective April 12.