Colorado residents, businesses and technology providers have until Oct. 26 to submit formal comments on rules that will implement two state artificial-intelligence laws taking effect Jan. 1, 2027. The rulemaking covers automated systems used in consequential decisions and public-facing chatbots, including special safeguards for minors.
The Colorado Department of Law filed proposed rules Aug. 11 for the Automated Decision-Making Technology Act, Senate Bill 26-189, and the Chatbot Safety Act, House Bill 26-1263. The Attorney General’s Office says it will consider written comments received by 11:59 p.m. Mountain time on Oct. 26 when drafting the final rules. If the formal hearing continues beyond that date, the comment period will remain open through the hearing’s last day.
The automated-decision law applies when technology materially influences decisions about education, employment, housing, lending and other financial services, insurance, health care, and essential government services or public benefits. The enacted bill summary requires developers to provide technical documentation about intended uses, training-data categories, known limitations and appropriate human review. Developers and organizations using covered systems must keep compliance records for at least three years.
Consumers also gain specific rights. Organizations must give clear notice when a covered system is used, provide a plain-language description within 30 days after an adverse consequential decision, allow correction of inaccurate personal data and offer meaningful human review and reconsideration. The attorney general must clarify the post-decision disclosure requirements in rules before Jan. 1.
The chatbot law addresses a different set of risks. According to the Attorney General’s rulemaking overview, public chatbot operators must estimate users’ ages, disclose that the service is artificial intelligence rather than a person, protect minors from sexually explicit content and simulated emotional dependence, and provide privacy and account-management tools for young users. Operators must also create suicide and self-harm response protocols and may not present chatbot output as equivalent to licensed professional services.
The General Assembly’s record for House Bill 26-1263 shows the bipartisan measure became law this year. It also requires annual reports to the Attorney General’s Office. The statute leaves some reporting details open, so the department says rules are needed to define the metrics that operators must submit and make compliance obligations clearer.
The Department of Law is accepting comments through an online portal and will post submissions to the public rulemaking record. An independent review by the Consumer Financial Services Law Monitor noted that both laws share the Jan. 1 effective date and that the Oct. 26 hearing is the central formal checkpoint before implementation.
The practical stakes are substantial. Employers, lenders, landlords, insurers, health systems and public agencies need to know which tools are covered, when an explanation is required and what qualifies as meaningful human review. Chatbot providers need precise standards for age estimation, safety protocols and annual reporting. For consumers, those definitions will determine whether new rights can be exercised consistently across sectors.
Comments submitted now cannot rewrite the statutes, but they can influence how the state resolves ambiguous terms and documents compliance. Final rules will determine how Colorado turns broad legislative requirements into operational duties before the January effective date.
