2017 Colorado Revised Statutes
Title 18 - Criminal Code
Article 18.5 - Substance Abuse Prevention, Intervention, and Treatment and the Response of the Criminal Justice System
§ 18-18.5-103. State substance abuse trend and response task force - creation - membership - duties

(1) There is hereby created the state substance abuse trend and response task force.

(2) The task force shall consist of the following members:

(a) (I) The attorney general or his or her designee, who shall serve as the chair;

(II) An expert in the field of substance abuse prevention, who shall be appointed by the president of the senate and serve as a vice-chair;

(III) An expert in the field of substance abuse treatment, who shall be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives and serve as a vice-chair;

(IV) A representative of the criminal justice system, who shall be appointed by the governor and serve as a vice-chair;

(V) The president of the senate or his or her designee;

(VI) The minority leader of the senate or his or her designee;

(VII) The speaker of the house of representatives or his or her designee;

(VIII) The minority leader of the house of representatives or his or her designee;

(a.5) The terms of the members appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate and who are serving on March 22, 2007, shall be extended to and expire on or shall terminate on the convening date of the first regular session of the sixty-seventh general assembly. As soon as practicable after such convening date, the speaker and the president shall each appoint or reappoint one member in the same manner as provided in subparagraphs (II) and (III) of paragraph (a) of this subsection (2). Thereafter, the terms of members appointed or reappointed by the speaker and the president shall expire on the convening date of the first regular session of each general assembly, and all subsequent appointments and reappointments by the speaker and the president shall be made as soon as practicable after such convening date. The person making the original appointment or reappointment shall fill any vacancy by appointment for the remainder of an unexpired term. Members appointed or reappointed by the speaker and the president shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority and shall continue in office until the member's successor is appointed.

(b) Twenty-two members appointed by the task force chair and vice-chairs as follows:

(I) A representative of a local child and family service provider;

(II) A representative of a major health facility that focuses on the treatment of children;

(III) A representative of a human services agency with experience in child welfare issues;

(IV) A representative of the criminal defense bar;

(V) A representative of a behavioral health treatment provider that is an expert in substance abuse treatment procedures;

(VI) A representative of the department of education, who is familiar with the department's drug prevention initiatives;

(VII) A representative of the Colorado district attorneys council;

(VIII) A representative of a Colorado sheriffs' organization;

(IX) A representative of a Colorado police chiefs' organization;

(X) A county commissioner from a rural county;

(XI) A representative of an organization that provides information, advocacy, and support services to municipalities located in rural counties;

(XII) A licensed pharmacist;

(XIII) A representative of the department of public safety;

(XIV) A representative of the office of the child's representative;

(XV) A representative of the division of adult parole of the department of corrections;

(XVI) A representative of the Colorado drug investigators association;

(XVII) A youth representative;

(XVIII) A representative of a substance abuse recovery organization;

(XIX) An expert in environmental protection;

(XX) A representative of a community prevention coalition;

(XXI) A representative of the Colorado department of public health and environment;

(XXII) A representative of the office of behavioral health in the Colorado department of human services.

(c) Two members appointed by the chief justice of the Colorado supreme court who represent the judicial department, one of whom is a district court judge experienced in handling cases involving substance abuse and one of whom represents the division of probation within the judicial department;

(d) A member appointed by the governor who represents the governor's policy staff.

(3) A vacancy occurring in a position shall be filled as soon as possible by the appropriate appointing authority designated in subsection (2) of this section.

(4) The task force, in collaboration with state agencies charged with prevention, intervention, or treatment of substance abuse, shall:

(a) Assist local communities in implementing the most effective models and practices for substance abuse prevention, intervention, and treatment and in developing the responses by the criminal justice system;

(b) Review model programs that have shown the best results in Colorado and across the United States and provide information on the programs to local communities and local drug task forces;

(c) Assist and augment local drug task forces without supplanting them;

(d) Investigate collaborative models on protecting children and other victims of substance abuse and nonfederal- drug-administration-regulated pharmaceutical drug production and distribution;

(e) Measure and evaluate the progress of the state and local jurisdictions in preventing substance abuse and nonfederal-drug-administration-regulated pharmaceutical drug production and distribution and in prosecuting persons engaging in these acts;

(f) Evaluate and promote approaches to increase public awareness of current and emerging substance abuse problems and strategies for addressing those problems;

(g) Assist local communities with implementation of the most effective practices to respond to current and emerging substance abuse problems and nonfederal-drug- administration-regulated pharmaceutical drug production and distribution;

(h) Consider any other issues concerning substance abuse problems and nonfederal-drug-administration- regulated pharmaceutical drug production and distribution that arise during the course of the task force study;

(i) Develop a definition of a "drug-endangered child" to be used in the context of the definition of "child abuse or neglect" as set forth in section 19-1-103 (1), C.R.S., and include the definition in its January 1, 2014, report to the judiciary committees of the senate and the house of representatives, or any successor committees.

(5) All state and local agencies shall cooperate with the task force and provide such data and other information as the task force may require in carrying out its duties under this section. Any state or local agency or organization that is represented on the task force may provide staff assistance to the task force, subject to the discretion of the chair. Any staff assistance provided to the task force pursuant to this subsection (5) shall be without compensation.

(6) In addition, the task force shall:

(a) Meet at least four times each year from the date of the first meeting until January 1, 2018, or more often as directed by the chair of the task force;

(b) Communicate with and obtain input from groups throughout the state affected by the issues identified in subsection (4) of this section;

(c) Create subcommittees as needed to carry out the duties of the task force. The subcommittees may consist, in part, of persons who are not members of the task force. Such persons may vote on issues before the subcommittee but shall not be entitled to a vote at meetings of the task force.

(d) Submit a written report to the judiciary committees, or any successor committees, of the senate and the house of representatives of the general assembly by January 1, 2014, and by each January 1 thereafter through January 1, 2018, at a minimum specifying the following:

(I) Issues to be studied in upcoming task force meetings and a prioritization of those issues;

(II) Findings and recommendations regarding issues of prior consideration by the task force;

(III) Legislative proposals of the task force that identify the policy issues involved, the agencies responsible for the implementation of the changes, and the funding sources required for such implementation.

(7) (a) Except as otherwise provided in section 2-2-326, C.R.S., members of the task force shall serve without compensation.

(b) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2014.)