House committee advances sweeping annual elections cleanup after hours of testimony

The House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee moved House Bill 11-13, a broad elections-code cleanup measure, to the Committee of the Whole after a lengthy hearing and a sequence of adopted amendments.

Sponsors Representative Dafna Wilford and Representative Janel Sirota said the bill packages clarifications requested each year by Colorados 64 county clerks and the Secretary of States office. "Each year clerks, the Secretary of State, and other stakeholders identify clarifications and adjustments that make our election system even better," Wilford said during opening remarks.

Why it matters: The bill contains technical fixes and programmatic changes that backers say will improve voter access and election administration, including clarified treatment of eligible voters in transitional status, expanded student-access provisions and signage for campuses, a tiered approach to jail voting hours, reduced manual redaction requirements for ballot images, and a streamlined timeline for ballot mailings. Sponsors also proposed provisions allowing counties to use geographic information system (GIS) tools to reduce undeliverable ballots.

What supporters said: County clerks who testified during the hearing largely expressed conditional support, saying the bill advances needed updates but flagged implementation questions. Pueblo County Clerk Candace Rivera told the committee the clerks "appreciate the intent" and asked for refinements around timing, sheriff coordination at correctional facilities and fiscal impacts for smaller counties. Weld County Clerk Carly Coppice, speaking for the Colorado County Clerks Association, said clerks favor the clerk-led approach to selecting equipment and the bills reduction of time-consuming ballot image redaction.

What opponents said: Witnesses who identified themselves as members of advocacy groups or concerned citizens criticized the bill as an unnecessary expansion of centralized control and voiced distrust of elections overall. One remote witness, Jeanne Rush, argued the state did not have a "gold standard" of elections and said the bill is "criminal" in places; Candace Stutzram, an El Paso County canvass board member, warned language about presidential electors could overreach if the National Popular Vote plan were not enacted nationally.

Amendments and process: The sponsors offered and the committee adopted 14 amendments (numbered L1L14, with the panel noting there is no L7). The changes included adding definitions, modernizing statutory references, adjusting petition-processing deadlines, clarifying hand-counting language, and setting reporting timelines for long VSPC wait times. After amendment votes, the committee recommended HB 11-13 as amended by voice and roll call; the committees final tally was recorded as 8 in favor and 3 opposed.

What happens next: HB 11-13 goes to the Committee of the Whole for further consideration. Sponsors said they will continue working with clerks and stakeholder groups on implementation details ahead of second reading.

Source notes: Testimony and questions cited in this article come from the committee hearing transcript of Feb. 24, 2026, including sponsor remarks by Rep. Wilford and Rep. Sirota and testimony from county clerks (Candace Rivera, Carly Coppice, Matt Crane) and the Secretary of States staff (Caleb Thornton).