Senate advances bill to suppress public records of minors’ name changes

DENVER — The Colorado Senate adopted Senate Bill 18 on second reading after committee amendments that narrow how and when courts may suppress records of minors’ legal name changes.

Senator Wallace, sponsor of SB18, said committee work clarified the bill so it only applies prospectively and will not suppress previously filed name changes. “This bill brings documents for these name changes in line with other similar government documents,” Wallace said, explaining the intent is to protect minors from identification through public records and automated data scraping.

Committee amendments removed a family-court allocation-of-parenting-responsibilities provision and added technical changes. The adopted amendment L6 was described as a technical update for a statute reference, and a later amendment L006 was discussed on the floor but lost. Senator Corker noted suppression of juvenile records is already common for dependency, neglect and criminal victim/witness cases and argued SB18 aligns name-change filings with those protections.

A floor amendment (S001) that would have required both parents to consent before a court could suppress a name-change petition failed on a recorded vote (15 ayes, 17 noes). Senator Kirkmeyer had offered a related amendment earlier seeking to ensure both parents are consulted; supporters of SB18 argued family-court procedures already provide notice and a forum for parents who lack decision-making authority.

Wallace described the bill’s suppressed records as accessible only to the applicable party, the courts and law enforcement, and said it would not apply to minors who are adjudicated. "This provision will not apply to records and will not be... minors' name changes will not be suppressed if they are under adjudication," Wallace said.

The Senate ordered SB18 for third reading and final passage.