HB 24-1205 Summary

• Transfers administration of the Colorado Imagination Library Program from the Department of Education to the Department of Early Childhood, effective June 30, 2024.

• Expands the program's scope to allow county-based affiliate programs to operate across multiple cities and counties, and permits contractors to partner with book vendors or publishers in addition to national nonprofit foundations.

• Requires the contractor to establish county-based affiliate programs in all Colorado counties, manage daily operations, promote public awareness, provide independent evaluations, and maintain a distressed affiliate fund for programs with financial difficulties.

• Directs the state to appropriate 50% of costs to provide age-appropriate books to eligible children (birth to age 5) from the general fund, with county-based affiliate programs covering the remaining 50%, with intent to provide full funding by 2026.

• Annual reporting requirements specify that contractors must submit reports to the Department of Early Childhood detailing total eligible children and enrollment numbers by county or city and county, to be forwarded to the education committees of the legislature.