CO SB050

Consolidates Colorado's forest restoration and wildfire risk mitigation grant programs into a single program administered by the Colorado State Forest Service, effective July 1, 2017.

Increases grant funding flexibility by allowing up to 50% state cost-share per project (down from 60%) with a $1 million per-project cap, and expands eligible recipients to include local government entities, utilities, nonprofits, and community groups within the wildland-urban interface.

Establishes a 10-member technical advisory panel including representatives from state agencies, federal land management, independent scientists, local government, traditional forest products and biomass energy industries, nonprofits, and water/watershed expertise to evaluate grant proposals.

Requires grant applicants to demonstrate matching funds (dollar-for-dollar or in-kind), plans for utilizing generated forest products, and preference for labor from Colorado Youth Corps organizations or veteran corps programs.

Creates the Forest Restoration and Wildfire Risk Mitigation Grant Program Cash Fund administered by the Colorado State University System, funded by severance tax revenues and transferred balances from the repealed Wildfire Risk Reduction Fund, with up to 25% dedicated to capacity-building and 5% to monitoring and program evaluation.