Community-centered boards - designation - purchase of services and supports - performance audits - Colorado local government audit law - public disclosure of board administration and operations.

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(1) In order to be designated as the community-centered board in a particular designated service area, a private for-profit or not-for-profit corporation shall annually apply for such designation to the state department in the form and manner specified by the executive director. Designation shall be based on the following factors:

  1. Utilization of existing service agencies or existing social networks or natural sourcesof support in the designated service area;

  2. Encouragement of competition among service agencies within the designated servicearea to provide newly identified services or supports, the variety of service agencies available to the person receiving services within the designated service area, and the demonstrated effort to purchase new or expanded services or supports from service agencies other than those affiliated with the community-centered board;

  3. Utilization of state-funded services and supports administered at the local level, including but not limited to public education, social services, public health, and rehabilitation programs;

  4. Quality of services and supports provided directly or by contract for persons withintellectual and developmental disabilities;

  5. The establishment of new services and supports for the prevention of institutionalization, the support of deinstitutionalization, and a commitment to innovative, effective, and inclusive services and supports for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities; and

  6. The willingness of the applicant to pursue authorized services and supports from alleligible persons within the designated service area.

(2) Once a community-centered board has been designated pursuant to this section, it shall, subject to available appropriations:

(a) Be under the control and direction of a board of directors or trustees composed of one or more persons from each of the following categories:

  1. Interested persons representing the community at large;

  2. Family members of persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities who arereceiving services or supports; and

  3. Persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities who are receiving servicesor supports;

(b) Adopt by-law provisions to ensure that:

  1. Members of the governing board are prohibited from voting on issues in which theyhave a conflict of interest;

  2. Staff members of the community-centered board and employees or board membersof service agencies may not serve on the governing board;

  3. Staff members of the community-centered board and employees or board membersof service agencies are prohibited from voting in elections for members of the governing board; and

  4. Board meetings must be scheduled after adequate notice and must be open to thepublic; except that, by vote of a two-thirds majority of members present, the board may elect to address the following matters in executive session:

  1. The purchase, acquisition, lease, transfer, or sale of any real, personal, or other property interest;

  2. Conferences with an attorney for the purpose of receiving legal advice on specificlegal questions;

  3. Matters required to be kept confidential by federal or state law or rules;

  4. Specialized details of security arrangements or investigations;

  5. Determining positions relative to matters that may be subject to negotiations;

  6. Developing strategy for negotiations and instructing negotiators; and(G) Personnel matters;

  1. Determine the needs of eligible persons within the community-centered board designated service area and prepare and implement a long-range plan and annual updates to that plan for the development and coordination of services and supports to address those needs. The needs determination and designated service area plans or annual update shall be submitted to the state department.

  2. Determine eligibility and develop an individualized plan for each person who receives services or supports pursuant to section 25.5-10-211; except that, for a child from birth through two years of age, eligibility determination and development of an individualized family service plan are made pursuant to the provisions of part 7 of article 10.5 of title 27, C.R.S.;

  3. Provide case management services and periodic reviews pursuant to section 25.5-10211, for persons receiving services and families with children with intellectual and developmental disabilities or delays;

  4. Obtain or provide early intervention services and supports pursuant to the provisionsof part 7 of article 10.5 of title 27, C.R.S.;

  5. Take steps to notify eligible persons, and their families as appropriate, regarding theavailability of services and supports; and

  6. Establish a human rights committee. The human rights committee is composed, tothe extent possible, of two professional persons trained in the application of behavior development techniques and three representatives of persons receiving services, their parents, legal guardians, or authorized representatives. An employee or board member of a service agency within the community-centered board's designated service area shall not serve as a member of the human rights committee.

  1. The executive director shall review each designated community-centered board program to ensure that the program complies with the requirements and standards set forth in this article and the rules promulgated thereunder.

  2. The state auditor shall conduct or cause to be conducted a performance audit thatincludes each community-centered board that receives more than seventy-five percent of its funding on an annual basis from the federal, the state, or a local government or from any combination of such governmental entities to determine whether such board is effectively and efficiently fulfilling its statutory obligations. A community-centered board becomes subject to the audit requirement under this subsection (4) at such time as the board initially satisfies the seventy-five percent funding requirement for any one year regardless of whether or not the funding level decreases below seventy-five percent in any subsequent year. Any performance audit that is required to be conducted under this subsection (4) must be completed in the first five-year period following August 10, 2016. Thereafter, a performance audit may be conducted of such community-centered boards described in this subsection (4) if requested by the state auditor in the exercise of his or her discretion. The state auditor shall submit a written report and recommendations on each audit conducted under this subsection (4) and shall present the report and recommendations to the legislative audit committee created in section 2-3-101 (1), C.R.S. The state auditor shall pay the costs of any performance audit conducted pursuant to this section.

  3. Each community-centered board is subject to the requirements of the "Colorado Local Government Audit Law", part 6 of article 1 of title 29, C.R.S.

  4. In connection with the board of directors of each community-centered board, in addition to any other requirements applicable to the operation of the board of directors pursuant to this section or as required elsewhere by law:

  1. The community-centered board shall post the date, time, and location of each regularly scheduled meeting of its board of directors on the website of the community-centered board not less than fourteen business days prior to the date of the meeting. The communitycentered board shall post on the website of the community-centered board the date, time, and location of any special or emergency meeting of the board of directors not less than twenty-four hours before the meeting.

  2. Each community-centered board shall post the agenda for each meeting of its boardof directors on the website of the community-centered board not less than seven business days prior to the date of the meeting. The community-centered board shall post on the website of the community-centered board the agenda of any special or emergency meeting of the board of directors not less than twenty-four hours before the meeting. Each meeting of the board must allow for public comment, and the agenda must reflect this requirement. Public comment must be reasonably permitted during the board meeting to accommodate community needs. Any documents related to functions of the community-centered board to be distributed at a meeting of the board of directors that are available for public dissemination at the time the agenda is posted must also be posted on the website of the community-centered board at the time the agenda is posted, and written copies of such documents must be made available for public dissemination at the board meeting; except that, the posting requirement specified in this paragraph (b) does not apply to any document, or any portion of such document, the disclosure of which requires the approval of the board of directors and which approval has not been obtained as of the time the agenda is posted or any other document, or any portion of such document, containing any information that is legally prohibited from being disclosed to the public pursuant to the privacy requirements specified in the health insurance portability and accountability act, any document that has been or will be discussed by the board of directors meeting in executive session, or any other document the disclosure of which is otherwise prohibited by law.

  3. Each community-centered board shall provide a direct e-mail address to each member of its board of directors on the website of the community-centered board. The e-mail address selected must specify the name of the individual board member and make reference to the particular community-centered board for which he or she serves as a member of the board of directors. An e-mail that is sent to a member of the board of directors of a community-centered board shall not be filtered by the community-centered board through an employee of the community-centered board before it is sent to the member of the board of directors.

  4. The board of directors of each community-centered board shall present the financialstatements of the corporation for the approval of the board at each regularly scheduled meeting of the board of directors. The financial statements must reflect accurate and current financial information and be prepared using generally accepted accounting principles. Where exigent circumstances are present that materially affect the preparation of the financial statements on a monthly basis, such statements may be presented for the approval of the board of directors at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board but not less than at least once each quarter of the calendar year.

  5. Each community-centered board shall require the person or entity that performs financial audits of the community-centered board to present and discuss the results of the audit to the board of directors not less than once each year at a regularly scheduled meeting of the board of directors.

  6. Each community-centered board shall provide to the incoming members of its boardof directors training in such topics as the duties of a board member, the financial and fiduciary responsibilities assumed by board members, the intellectual and developmental disability system in the state, the overall business functions of the community-centered board, and any other matters that will, in the determination of the community-centered board, allow the board member to better understand and fulfill his or her obligations to the board of directors and the community-centered board and the role played by community-centered boards in the state in connection with the delivery of services for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

  7. Each community-centered board shall post on the website of the community-centeredboard the minutes of each meeting of its board of directors as such minutes are approved by the board of directors. Each community-centered board shall also post on the website of the community-centered board any additional documents that were distributed to the board at such meeting that were not, as of that date, already posted on the website of the community-centered board unless the public distribution of such documents, or any portion of such documents, is otherwise prohibited pursuant to the privacy requirements specified in the health insurance portability and accountability act or as otherwise prohibited by law. Minutes of special meetings of the board of directors must be posted after approval by the board of the same at the board's next regular meeting.

(7) With respect to financial information concerning the community-centered board, each community-centered board shall:

(a) Post the following on the website of the community-centered board in a place on the website that allows access to the public in a clear, accessible, easily operated, and uncomplicated manner:

  1. Each completed financial audit undertaken of the community-centered board not laterthan thirty days following acceptance by the corporation's board of directors of the audit; and

  2. The most current form 990 the community-centered board has filed with the federalinternal revenue service not later than thirty days following filing of the form with the internal revenue service.

(b) Make the following information available upon reasonable request not later than five business days after the request is made:

  1. The annual budget of the community-centered board for each calendar or fiscal year,as applicable, not later than thirty days after final approval of the budget by the board of directors of the community-centered board;

  2. An annual summary of all revenues and expenditures of the community-centeredboard as have been appropriated by the state concerning capacity building, family support services, state general fund supported living services, and state general fund early intervention that is calculated by September 30 of each year for the prior year, as applicable; and

  3. A description of the policies and procedures it follows to track, manage, and reportits financial resources and transactions, which policies and procedures are also known and may be referred to as its "financial controls".

(8) Any contract that each community-centered board enters into on or after August 10, 2016, with either the department of health care policy and financing created in section 25.5-1104 (1) or the department of human services created in section 26-1-105, C.R.S., must be posted on the website of the community-centered board in a place on the website that allows access to the public in a clear, accessible, easily operated, and uncomplicated manner not later than thirty days following approval of the contract by the board of directors of the community-centered board.

Source: L. 2013: Entire article added with relocations, (HB 13-1314), ch. 323, p. 1760, § 1, effective March 1, 2014. L. 2016: (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8) added, (SB 16-038), ch. 199, p. 702, § 2, effective August 10. L. 2017: (2)(e) amended, (HB 17-1343), ch. 320, p. 1725, § 6, effective June 5.

Editor's note: This section is similar to former § 27-10.5-105 as it existed prior to 2013.

Cross references: (1) For the federal "Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996", (HIPAA), see 42 U.S.C. sec. 1320d et seq.

(2) For the legislative declaration in SB 16-038, see section 1 of chapter 199, Session Laws of Colorado 2016.


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