HB 23-1172

House Bill 23-1172, which has been approved by the governor and will take effect on August 7, 2023, allows Colorado juvenile courts to make permanent decisions about custody arrangements for children without needing to declare each parent unfit. It also gives these courts the power to change a child's name if they are involved in cases related to dependency or neglect, and it removes the requirement to publish notice of such name changes publicly. This bill affects families dealing with child welfare issues and those involved in juvenile court proceedings.

Official Summary

The act provides juvenile courts jurisdiction to enter permanent allocations of parental responsibilities, without requiring a full court determination of a child as dependent or neglected as to each parent, in certain circumstances. Juvenile courts are granted concurrent jurisdiction to district and county courts to order name changes for children or youth who appear in dependency and neglect and foster youth in transition cases. The requirement to give public notice of name changes through publication for a child or youth determined by the court to be dependent or neglected or subject to a continued dependency or neglect case is eliminated. APPROVED by Governor April 12, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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