HB 21-1242 Summary

• Creates the Agricultural Drought and Climate Resilience Office within the Department of Agriculture to provide voluntary technical assistance, nonregulatory programs, and incentives to help agricultural producers mitigate drought and climate change impacts.

• The Commissioner of Agriculture appoints the office head and may promulgate rules after convening a stakeholder group representing producers of Colorado's top ten agricultural commodities and the State Conservation Board.

• Programs and grants must benefit "bona fide agricultural producers" (those receiving majority income from agriculture, spending over 1,040 hours annually in production, or Colorado businesses processing agricultural products) and may cover implementation costs, adaptation support, mental health resources, and conflict resolution assistance, with grants capping at five percent of administrative expenses.

• Requires the Department to post grant program information online at least 30 days before opening applications, post all grant applications on its website, and publish grant award details within 15 days including recipient name, amount, project description, and duration.

• Appropriates $101,333 to the Department for fiscal year 2021-22 ($93,783 for personnel at 0.9 FTE and $7,550 for operating expenses) and allocates $500,000 annually from the severance tax operational fund through July 1, 2029 to the agriculture value-added cash fund.