# Colorado

Colorado’s P.O.S.T. Board must certify deputy sheriffs and community parole officers, but Department of Corrections (DOC) officers and noncertified detention officers need not hold certification. Since 2023 the State has put limits on restrictive housing in county jails into effect, required county jails to meet state jail standards from July 1, 2026, set strip-search, PREA, and whistleblower rules for jails, and required permanent revocation for sexual abuse of people in jail custody.

Source: https://uscli.org/corrections-tracker/colorado

## At a glance

- **Certifying body:** Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Board, in the Department of Law. Certification depends on the job. Deputy sheriffs and community parole officers “shall be certified” ([C.R.S. 16-2.5-102, 16-2.5-103(1), 16-2.5-136](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-16.pdf)). A DOC warden or corrections officer is a peace officer while on duty, with primary authority over people in DOC custody, “who may be certified by the P.O.S.T. board” (16-2.5-135). “A noncertified deputy sheriff or detention officer is a peace officer employed by a county or city and county” whose authority is limited to assigned duties under the sheriff’s or chief’s direction (16-2.5-103(2)). Adult probation officers are Judicial Branch peace officers while on duty (16-2.5-137). See the [Colorado Officer Ledger page](https://uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/colorado) for P.O.S.T. certification.
- **Statute:** Title 17 (corrections): 17-1-113.7 (restraint of pregnant DOC inmates), 17-1-113.8 (no long-term isolated confinement of people with serious behavioral or mental health disorders), 17-1-113.9 (administrative segregation reporting), 17-1-115.8 (corrections officer staffing and overtime), 17-1-167 (restraint standards), 17-1-103.8 (DOC inspector general); 17-26 (county jails: 17-26-104.7 pregnant persons, 17-26-301 et seq. restrictive housing, 17-26-141 to 17-26-143 strip searches, PREA, and whistleblowers). Jail standards: 2-3-1901, 2-3-1901.5, 30-10-530. Peace officer status: 16-2.5-101 et seq. P.O.S.T.: 24-31-301 et seq.
- **Minimum standards:** Certified officers, including certified deputies working in jails and community parole officers, must meet P.O.S.T. basic certification under C.R.S. 24-31-305, including, since August 12, 2026, being at least 21; the [Officer Ledger page](https://uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/colorado) lists the rest. DOC corrections officers and noncertified detention officers need not hold P.O.S.T. certification (16-2.5-103(2), 16-2.5-135); their hiring standards are set by the employing agency and were not found in statute.
- **Basic training:** No statute sets academy hours for DOC corrections officers or noncertified detention officers. Certified deputies and community parole officers complete a P.O.S.T.-approved basic academy (C.R.S. 24-31-305(1)), with hours set in P.O.S.T. rules (4 CCR 901-1). DOC’s own academy length was not confirmed from an official source.
- **In-service training:** P.O.S.T.-certified officers must complete the yearly in-service training P.O.S.T. sets by rule, and by statute the programs must include restraint and holds, anti-bias training, and, since 2026, trauma-informed response; certification is suspended for non-compliance (C.R.S. 24-31-315). No statutory in-service requirement for non-certified DOC corrections officers or detention officers was found. Since May 27, 2026, each local jail must designate a PREA coordinator and have staff protocols for responding to sexual abuse (HB26-1123).
- **Decertification:** For P.O.S.T.-certified officers, including jail deputies, community parole officers, and DOC officers who hold optional certification: mandatory suspension or revocation for listed convictions and untruthfulness, and permanent revocation under C.R.S. 24-31-904(1)(a) for unlawful force or failure to intervene causing serious bodily injury or death. Since May 27, 2026 (HB26-1123), P.O.S.T. must also permanently revoke when an administrative law judge, hearing officer, or internal investigation finds sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact, or invasion of privacy for sexual gratification against a person in a county or municipal jail’s custody. P.O.S.T. keeps a public, searchable officer conduct database (24-31-303(1)(r); 24-31-321, added by [HB25-1136](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB25-1136/333/download)). Details are on the [Officer Ledger page](https://uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/colorado).
- **Jail standards:** Yes, phased in. The legislative oversight committee for Colorado jail standards adopts the standards (C.R.S. 2-3-1901), and “Each county jail shall comply with the standards adopted by the legislative oversight committee pursuant to section 2-3-1901 (2), beginning July 1, 2026,” unless it has a variance; revised standards must be met within 1 year of adoption ([2-3-1901.5](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-02.pdf)). A jail standards advisory committee plans assessments by attorney general peer assessors, with each jail assessed at least every 5 years, sets variance rules, and reports each year (30-10-530). HB26-1039 extends standards, data collection, and oversight to municipal jails beginning July 1, 2027.
- **Probation and parole officers:** Community parole officers are DOC peace officers who “shall be certified by the P.O.S.T. board” (C.R.S. 16-2.5-136). Adult probation officers are Judicial Branch peace officers while on duty, with authority limited by 16-11-201 et seq. (16-2.5-137); their training standards are set within the Judicial Branch and were not reviewed. Since August 12, 2026, DOC must establish a risk assessment quality review team for parole risk assessments (HB26-1315); whether the team is in place was not confirmed.
- **Restrictive housing:** Local jails, since July 1, 2023: a jail “shall not involuntarily place an individual in restrictive housing, including for disciplinary reasons,” if the person has a serious mental illness or signs of one, self-reported suicidality or self-harm, a significant sensory impairment, is pregnant or postpartum, is significantly neurocognitively impaired, is under 18, or has an intellectual or developmental disability, except under narrow conditions; such placements are capped at 15 days in a 30-day period without a court order. Anyone placed in restrictive housing must be assessed by a medical or mental health professional within 24 hours, and jails must document out-of-cell time daily and post their policies online. For people with a listed condition held under the exception, the jail must also provide at least 1 hour of exercise outside the cell 5 days a week, among other minimums ([17-26-303(2)(j), (4), (5), (7)](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-17.pdf)). DOC “shall not place a person with a behavioral or serious mental health disorder in long-term isolated confinement except when exigent circumstances are present” (17-1-113.8(1)), with yearly administrative segregation reporting (17-1-113.9).
- **Corrections use of force:** Pregnancy: DOC, private prison, and county jail staff restraining someone they reasonably believe is pregnant “shall use the least restrictive restraints necessary to ensure safety,” must follow the Protection of Individuals from Restraint and Seclusion Act during labor, delivery, and postpartum recovery, and must keep a written record of any restraint during labor or delivery for 5 years (C.R.S. 17-1-113.7, 17-26-104.7). DOC clinical restraint: by July 1, 2027, DOC must meet the National Commission on Correctional Health Care restraint and seclusion standards, and it must document each restraint order and its clinical basis (17-1-167). Jail strip searches: since May 27, 2026, allowed only at intake under policy, on two staff members’ reasonable belief of concealed contraband, or under a written condition-based policy, and they must be recorded on a body-worn camera and never done to retaliate (HB26-1123). General peace officer force rules are in 18-1-707.

## Changes, 2023 to 2026

- Aug 12, 2026 — **Parole risk assessments get a quality review team and become criminal justice records** — HB26-1315, Session Laws 2026 · Approved June 1, 2026; effective August 12, 2026, per the Legislature’s Digest of Bills — “Risk assessments assess a parolee’s criminogenic needs and risk of recidivism and are used to guide parole supervision planning.” The act requires a risk assessment quality review team for these assessments, adds SMART Act reporting on them, and makes risk assessment outputs criminal justice records. The session law text was not retrieved; this entry relies on the official Digest. — **For corrections staff:** Parole officers’ risk assessments will be quality-reviewed and handled as criminal justice records. — [2026 Digest of Bills](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/digest2026-accessible.pdf)
- Jul 1, 2026 — **County jails must comply with the state jail standards** — HB24-1054, ch. 328, Session Laws 2024 (C.R.S. 2-3-1901.5), compliance date · Enacted June 3, 2024; compliance required from July 1, 2026 — From July 1, 2026, each county jail must comply with the standards adopted by the legislative oversight committee for Colorado jail standards, posted on the committee’s website. “A county jail does not have to comply with a standard or revised standard if it receives a variance from the standard pursuant to section 30-10-530 (5)(g).” Revised standards must be met within 1 year of adoption unless the committee sets an earlier date. The adopted standards themselves were not reviewed for this page. — **For corrections staff:** Jail policies, staffing, and training must now match the posted state standards unless a variance has been approved. — [C.R.S. 2-3-1901.5](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-02.pdf)[HB24-1054](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB24-1054/328/download)
- May 27, 2026 — **Jail strip-search limits and body-camera recording, PREA coordinators, whistleblower protection, and permanent revocation for sexual abuse of people in custody** — HB26-1123, ch. 159, Session Laws 2026 (adds C.R.S. 17-26-141 to 17-26-143 and related sections; amends 24-31-904) · Approved May 27, 2026; effective on approval (safety clause); sheriffs’ strip-search and tagging deadline August 1, 2026 — County and municipal jails may strip search only at intake under policy, when two staff members reasonably believe a person is concealing drugs, a dangerous instrument, or contraband, or under a written condition-based policy after a prior incident. Strip searches must be recorded on a body-worn camera, never an overhead camera, and the footage must be tagged, access-restricted, and reported each year; a search may not be retaliatory. Sheriffs had to put the policies and camera tagging in place by August 1, 2026. Each jail must designate a PREA coordinator, adopt staff protocols for responding to sexual abuse, require staff reporting, and give advocates access. New 17-26-143 provides that “A LOCAL DETENTION FACILITY SHALL NOT DISCHARGE, DISCIPLINE, DEMOTE, DENY A PROMOTION TO, TRANSFER OR REASSIGN, DISCRIMINATE AGAINST, HARASS, SUSPEND, CREATE A HOSTILE WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR, SUBJECT TO CORRECTIVE ACTION OR REPRIMAND” staff who disclose sexual abuse or sex-based harassment to the proper authority, with a private right of action that is not subject to the Governmental Immunity Act. P.O.S.T. must permanently revoke certification when an administrative law judge, hearing officer, or internal investigation finds sexual assault, unlawful sexual contact, or invasion of privacy for sexual gratification against a person in jail custody (24-31-904(1)(a)(VI)). The yearly reporting duties end in 2031. — **For corrections staff:** Run a body camera for every strip search, report sexual abuse through the PREA coordinator, and know you can sue if you are punished for reporting. — [HB26-1123](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB26-1123/159/download)
- Jun 4, 2025 — **Visitation becomes a right for people in DOC facilities** — HB25-1013, Session Laws 2025 · Approved and effective June 4, 2025, per the Legislature’s Digest of Bills — “The act establishes visitation as a right for a person confined in a correctional facility (confined person).” DOC may limit visitation only on stated grounds, a confined person may grieve a limit, and DOC reports on visitation at its SMART Act hearing. The session law text was not retrieved; this entry relies on the official Digest. — **For corrections staff:** A visitation restriction now needs one of the stated grounds and can be grieved, so record the reason for any limit. — [2025 Digest of Bills](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/digest-2025-accessible.pdf)
- Jun 3, 2025 — **Deputies and detention staff of local agencies can sue over whistleblower retaliation** — HB25-1031, ch. 389, Session Laws 2025, amending C.R.S. 24-31-906 · Approved June 3, 2025; effective on approval (safety clause); training or posting due January 1, 2026 — A peace officer’s employer may not discharge, discipline, demote, transfer, harass, or take a long list of other adverse actions against a peace officer who disclosed in good faith, to the proper supervising authority, information the officer reasonably believes shows a danger to public health or safety or an alleged violation of law or policy by another peace officer. An aggrieved employee has a private right of action after using the employer’s internal procedures, or once the agency fails to finish them within 180 days. Relief includes reinstatement, back pay, compensatory damages, and attorney fees; the action is not subject to the Governmental Immunity Act and must be brought within 2 years. “Employee” means a peace officer described in 16-2.5-102 “AND A NONCERTIFIED DEPUTY SHERIFF AS DESCRIBED IN SECTION 16-2.5-103 (2),” and “employer” means a political subdivision such as a county, city and county, or municipality. The State is not named as an employer, so whether DOC staff can sue under this section is not clear from the text. The [Officer Ledger page](https://uscli.org/officer-certification-tracker/colorado) has the full entry. — **For corrections staff:** County jail deputies who report misconduct and are punished for it can sue the county, after using internal procedures. — [HB25-1031](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB25-1031/389/download)
- Jun 3, 2024 — **Jail standards advisory committee, attorney general jail assessments, and a 2026 compliance date** — HB24-1054, ch. 328, Session Laws 2024 (adds C.R.S. 2-3-1901.5, 30-10-530; amends 2-3-1901, 24-33.5-503) · Approved and effective June 3, 2024 — The legislative oversight committee for Colorado jail standards is extended (repeal in 2033). “Each county jail shall comply with the standards adopted by the legislative oversight committee pursuant to section 2-3-1901 (2), beginning July 1, 2026.” A jail standards advisory committee of sheriffs, county commissioners, the state public defender, a jail health professional, and an advocate advises the attorney general on peer assessors, schedules assessments at least every 5 years, sets variance rules, and reports each year. Assessments include policy review, physical inspection, and interviews of jail staff and, when appropriate, incarcerated people. — **For corrections staff:** Expect peer assessments that include staff interviews. — [HB24-1054](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB24-1054/328/download)[C.R.S. 30-10-530](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-30.pdf)
- May 28, 2024 — **Corrections officer overtime: exception for long shifts on compressed or flexible schedules** — HB24-1228, ch. 265, Session Laws 2024 (amends C.R.S. 17-1-115.8(3)) · Approved and effective May 28, 2024 — A DOC corrections officer who works 12 or more hours in a 24-hour period still gets time and a half for hours beyond 8.5, “unless the additional time is part of the corrections officer’s normal shift that is longer than eight and one-half hours and is part of a compressed, flexible, or alternative scheduling system.” Unchanged by the act, 17-1-115.8 already lets work periods run 7 to 14 days, with overtime over the equivalent of 85 hours in 14 days, and excludes parole officers from the definition. — **For corrections staff:** On an approved 10- or 12-hour schedule, the scheduled hours beyond 8.5 no longer earn daily overtime. — [HB24-1228](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB24-1228/265/download)[C.R.S. 17-1-115.8](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-17.pdf)
- Aug 7, 2023 — **DOC inspector general’s office may arrest escapees and help catch fugitives** — SB23-203, ch. 355, Session Laws 2023 (amends C.R.S. 17-1-103.8) · Effective August 7, 2023 (no safety clause) — At the request of a DOC division or a law enforcement agency, the DOC Office of Inspector General may seek out and arrest fugitives from correctional facilities and help apprehend fugitives statewide, and it must report each year the investigator time and cost involved. The code’s source note reads: “L. 2023: IP(2) amended and (2)(f) and (2.5) added, (SB 23-203), ch. 355, p. 2132, § 1, effective August 7.” — **For corrections staff:** DOC investigators may be assigned to fugitive apprehension in the community. — [2023 Digest of Bills](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/digest-2023-accessible.pdf)[C.R.S. 17-1-103.8](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-17.pdf)
- Jul 1, 2023 — **Limits on restrictive housing in county jails take effect** — HB21-1211, ch. 322, Session Laws 2021 (adds C.R.S. 17-26-301 to 17-26-307); effective date moved from July 1, 2022 by HB22-1063 · Effective July 1, 2023 — “A local jail shall not involuntarily place an individual in restrictive housing, including for disciplinary reasons, if the individual meets any one of the following conditions”: serious mental illness, suicidality or self-harm, significant sensory impairment, pregnancy or postpartum status, neurocognitive impairment, intellectual or developmental disability, or age under 18, except under narrow conditions with documentation. Such placements are capped at 15 days in 30 without a court order on clear and convincing evidence. For every restrictive housing placement, the jail must arrange a medical or mental health assessment within 24 hours, document out-of-cell time and contact daily, and post its written policies. For people with a listed condition held under the exception, the jail must also provide at least 1 hour of exercise outside the cell 5 days a week. — **For corrections staff:** Check for the listed conditions before any segregation placement, document each step, and track the 15-day limit. — [C.R.S. 17-26-301 to 17-26-307](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-17.pdf)
- Jun 5, 2023 — **DOC restraint and seclusion: national standards by 2027, restraint records, and limits on involuntary medication** — HB23-1013, ch. 364, Session Laws 2023 (adds C.R.S. 17-1-167) · Approved and effective June 5, 2023; standards deadline July 1, 2027 — “By July 1, 2027, the department shall implement policies and practices that conform to the minimum standards prescribed by the most updated restraint and seclusion standards of the national commission on correctional health care.” Facilities must document every clinical restraint in the electronic health record (order, prescriber, clinical basis, less intrusive interventions tried, and release criteria), screen everyone at intake for self-harm risk and prior four-point restraint, and use involuntary medication only for dangerousness, after less restrictive alternatives and with committee approval. DOC must report restraint and involuntary medication data each year and present it at its SMART Act hearing. — **For corrections staff:** Record the justification and length of every clinical restraint; DOC restraint practice must meet the national standards by mid-2027. — [HB23-1013](https://leg.colorado.gov/laws/session-laws/HB23-1013/364/download)[C.R.S. 17-1-167](https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-17.pdf)

## Enacted, not yet in force, pending, and bills that did not pass

- **Release allowance and state ID (HB26-1256):** approved June 3, 2026; effective January 1, 2027. DOC must give each person discharged from custody a release allowance of at least $100 free of deductions, and eligible people must take part in DOC's existing state identification card program unless they opt out. DOC must report on release allowances and identification documents each year, beginning by September 15, 2027.
- **Municipal jails (HB26-1039):** approved April 27, 2026; effective August 12, 2026. From July 1, 2027, municipal jails must meet the jail standards and data requirements. A pregnant person held for a municipal ordinance violation must be released if staff reasonably believe she is in labor, unless custody is needed for her health or welfare; if she is not released, restraints are barred during labor, delivery, and postpartum recovery. City councils must examine their jails each year, and the attorney general may assess them. Which provisions apply before July 1, 2027 was not confirmed from the session law.
- **DOC restraint standards (HB23-1013):** DOC must conform to the national restraint and seclusion standards by July 1, 2027.

HB26-1256 and HB26-1039 rest on the Legislature’s official Digest of Bills; their session law text was not retrieved. Failed 2023 to 2026 Colorado bills on corrections staff were not searched; only enacted bills in the Digest’s corrections chapter and HB26-1123 were reviewed.

## Checked and unchanged

- C.R.S. 16-2.5-103 (noncertified deputy sheriffs and detention officers) and 16-2.5-135 (DOC officers): source notes in the 2024 statutes show no amendment since 2003, and no 2025 or 2026 act reviewed here amends them. 16-2.5-136 (community parole officers): last amended in 2010.
- Not reviewed: the adopted Colorado jail standards, DOC academy hours and in-service requirements, detention officer training standards beyond the jail standards, and Judicial Branch training standards for adult probation officers.