§ 35-1-114. Agricultural Drought and Climate Resilience Office – Creation – Rules – Definition

1. Legislative declaration. The general assembly hereby:
   1. Finds that:
      1. Severe droughts, as well as unaddressed water demands associated with urban growth, will add pressure to Colorado’s already strained water supply in all of Colorado’s watersheds;
      2. More frequent and severe droughts will add pressure to Colorado’s already strained water supply; and
      3. A strong, prosperous, diverse, and resilient agricultural sector is fundamental to the fabric of Colorado;
   2. Determines that:
      1. Colorado’s agricultural producers are stewards of our lands, waters, and ecosystems, but they cannot shoulder the burden of water scarcity without addressing water-saving measures being implemented and sustained in urban areas; and
      2. Colorado’s agricultural sector is a leader in implementing practices that build resiliency, conserve our water supplies, provide an economic base for rural communities, and enhance our environment; and
   3. Declares that:
      1. Creating the agricultural drought and climate resilience office will support and elevate producers in their resiliency efforts through nonregulatory, voluntary, and incentive-based programs without negatively impacting the overall rural economic viability of agricultural operations and rural communities; and
      2. The agricultural drought and climate resilience office can best address and mitigate agricultural climate-related issues on a wide scale by providing support to and assisting bona fide agricultural producers in implementing practices that minimize the impacts of climate change.
2. Office created. There is hereby created in the department the agricultural drought and climate resilience office, referred to in this section as the “office”. The office may provide voluntary technical assistance, nonregulatory programs, and incentives that increase the ability to anticipate, prepare for, mitigate, adapt to, and respond to hazardous events, trends, or disturbances related to drought or the climate. The office shall advise the commissioner, the Colorado agricultural value-added development board created in section 35-75-203, other state agencies, and the governor on the impact to agriculture of drought and climate policies and programs. The commissioner shall appoint the head of the office.
3. Rules. The commissioner may promulgate rules necessary for the administration of the office’s assistance, programs, and incentives, including grants. Before promulgating the rules, the commissioner shall convene a stakeholder group, including representatives of organizations whose membership consists of agricultural producers engaged in the production of the top ten agricultural commodities produced in Colorado and members of the state conservation board created in section 35-70-103 (1)(a). The stakeholder group shall advise the commissioner as to the needs of the agriculture industry to respond to and mitigate the impacts of climate change on agricultural production. For the purpose of this section, “bona fide agricultural producer” means an agricultural producer that receives a majority of the producer’s annual income from agriculture, an agricultural producer that spends more than one thousand forty hours per year engaged in agricultural production, or a Colorado business that processes agricultural products. Except for a program or support administered by the office to address immediate needs as a result of disaster, including wildfire and drought, or a program that was in existence on January 1, 2021:
   1. A program administered by the office must be designed to benefit bona fide agricultural producers actively engaged in agriculture. Grants awarded by the office must pay for implementation of practices to address and mitigate the impacts of climate change or drought or to provide direct adaptation support for impacted agricultural communities, including mental health resources, conflict resolution assistance, and risk-management guidance. A grant award may pay no more than five percent of administrative expenses incurred by a bona fide agricultural producer to implement the practices.
   2. The department shall, at least thirty days before opening the grant application process, make available on its website information related to the grant program available to bone fide agricultural producers;
   3. A grant authorized pursuant to this section must receive final approval by the commission before a final award can be issued; and
   4. The department shall post on its website all applications for grant awards. Within fifteen days after awarding a grant, the department shall post on its website the name of the individual or entity receiving a grant, the amount of the grant awarded, the project or projects to be funded by the grant, and the duration of the grant award.

Source: L. 2021: Entire section added, (HB 21-1242), ch. 332, p. 2143, § 1, effective June 24.