Colorado Code
Part 1 - General Provisions
§ 26-1-127. Fraudulent Acts

(1.5) To the extent not otherwise prohibited by state or federal law, any person against whom a county department of social services or the state department obtains a civil judgment in a state or federal court of record in this state based on allegations that the person obtained or willfully aided and abetted another to obtain public assistance or vendor payments or medical assistance as defined in this title 26 to which the person is not entitled or in an amount greater than that to which the person is justly entitled or payment of any forfeited installment grants or benefits to which the person is not entitled or in a greater amount than that to which the person is entitled, by means of a willfully false statement or representation, or by impersonation, or by any other fraudulent device, is disqualified from participation in the public assistance program under article 2 of this title 26 in which a recipient is found to have committed an intentional program violation for one year for a first incident, two years for a second incident, and permanently for a third or subsequent incident. Such disqualification is mandatory and is in addition to any other remedy available to a judgment creditor.

(2) (a) [ Editor's note: This version of subsection (2)(a) is effective March 1, 2022. ] If, at any time during the continuance of public assistance under this title 26, the recipient thereof acquires any property or receives any increase in income or property, or both, in excess of that declared at the time of determination or redetermination of eligibility or if there is any other change in circumstances affecting the recipient's eligibility, it shall be the duty of the recipient to notify the county department within thirty days in writing or take steps to secure county assistance to prepare such notification in writing of the acquisition of such property, receipt of such income, or change in such circumstances; and any recipient of such public assistance who knowingly fails to do so commits a petty offense and shall be punished as provided in section 18-1.3-503. If such property or income is received infrequently or irregularly and does not exceed a total value of ninety dollars in any calendar quarter, such property or income shall be excluded from the thirty-day written reporting requirement but shall be reported at the time of the next redetermination of eligibility of a recipient.



(3) [ Editor's note: This version of subsection (3) is effective March 1, 2022. ] Any recipient or vendor who falsifies any report required under this title 26 commits a petty offense and shall be punished as provided in section 18-1.3-503.




Source: L. 77: Entire section added, p. 1333, § 3, effective January 1, 1978. L. 79: (6) repealed, p. 1093, § 2, effective June 21. L. 81: (1) amended, p. 1371, § 1, effective June 5. L. 89: (1) amended, p. 846, § 118, effective July 1. L. 94: (1) amended and (1.5) added, p. 2062, § 4, effective July 1. L. 97: (1) and (1.5) amended, p. 1229, § 13, effective July 1. L. 2002: (1), (2)(a), and (3) amended, p. 1538, § 272, effective October 1. L. 2020: (1) and (1.5) amended, (SB 20-206), ch. 222, p. 1095, § 1, effective July 2. L. 2021: (2)(a) and (3) amended, (SB 21-271), ch. 462, p. 3242, § 485, effective March 1, 2022.
Editor's note: Section 803(2) of chapter 462 (SB 21-271), Session Laws of Colorado 2021, provides that the act changing this section applies to offenses committed on or after March 1, 2022.
Cross references: (1) For fraudulent acts relating to food stamps, see §§ 26-2-305 and 26-2-306; for offenses involving fraud under the "Colorado Criminal Code", see part 1 of article 5 of title 18.
(2) For the legislative declaration contained in the 2002 act amending subsections (1), (2)(a), and (3), see section 1 of chapter 318, Session Laws of Colorado 2002.

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