§ 26-2-725 — Outreach and engagement plan - family voice participation

(1)
No later than September 30, 2022, the state department shall develop an outreach
and engagement plan to promote access to the Colorado works program for
eligible persons.

(2) The state department shall partner with counties and nonprofit
organizations when developing and implementing the outreach and engagement
plan and shall incorporate feedback from current and former participants to ensure
participants are influential stakeholders in the process.

(3) At a minimum, the outreach and engagement plan must include specific
strategies for:

(a) Outreach to monolingual, non-English-speaking communities and
families, including a linguistically diverse website and translation of other materials
that include information about the works program in the seven most common
languages spoken in each county of the state;

(b) Developing culturally appropriate messaging;

(c) Sharing information about the services and supports available and
participants' rights and responsibilities under the works program;

(d) How to appeal if redetermination is denied;

(e) Confidentiality protections for applicants and participants; and

(f) Outreach through a variety of settings, including but not limited to social
media, schools, child care centers, food banks, libraries, federally qualified health
centers, home visiting programs, mobile home parks, head start and early head
start centers, and mobile sites.

(4) The state department shall:

(a) Require that county staff working with applicants and participants
receive comprehensive training regarding the works program. The training must
include trauma-informed approaches to interacting with participants, consistency
in communicating information about child care access and assistance, the
alignment of a participant's work requirements with child care access and family
medical needs, the full scope of options for the participant to meet work and
education requirements in alignment with the participant's goals, and the
availability of support services for families.

(b) Develop toolkits, manuals, and other materials for county staff,
applicants, and participants that include information about child care access and
assistance, the alignment of a participant's work requirements with child care
access, the full scope of options for the participant to meet work and education
requirements in alignment with the participant's goals, and the availability of
support services for families;

(c) Partner with counties, nonprofit organizations, and participants to
develop culturally and linguistically appropriate messaging and ensure that
applicants and participants have access to sufficient supports and communication
in the seven most common languages spoken in each county of the state, or, in the
instance of a monolingual speaker of a language other than the seven most
common languages, use best efforts to provide supports and communication in the
language spoken by the individual;

(d) Ensure adequate and meaningful representation by, feedback from, or
engagement with current and former participants when making decisions and
recommendations regarding the works program, including during any rule-making
or regulatory process and other policy changes that impact recipients. To the
extent possible, the state department shall ensure that participants involved
pursuant to this subsection (4)(d) are diverse with regard to race, ethnicity, age,
ability, sexual orientation, gender identity, and geography and that participant
feedback has a genuine opportunity to influence substantial changes to the works
program. The state department may utilize any established councils at the state
and local level that have current and former participants represented or appointed
to comply with the requirements of this subsection (4)(d). To the extent possible,
the state department shall consider reimbursing participants involved pursuant to
this subsection (4)(d) for travel expenses and attendant and dependent care.

(5) Beginning January 2023, and each January thereafter, the state
department shall include information on the implementation of the requirements in
this section in its report to the house of representatives public and behavioral
health and human services committee and the senate health and human services
committee, or their successor committees, as part of its State Measurement for
Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act presentation
required by section 2-7-203.

(6) The state department may review and consider information technology
solutions for the implementation of this section.

Legislative History

Source: L. 2022: Entire section added, (HB 22-1259), ch. 348, p. 2489, � 12, effective June 3.