HB26-1149 • 2026

Legislative Committee Testimony Required Oath

The bill requires a person testifying before a legislative committee to provide the testimony under oath. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Budget Crime Labor

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Rep. T. Winter, Sen. B. Pelton
Last action: 2026-02-19
Official status: House Committee on State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Postpone Indefinitely
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official status shows this bill was postponed indefinitely by a House committee, meaning it did not pass as described in the metadata label 'Passed Legislature'.

Requiring Oaths for Legislative Committee Testimony

This bill requires people testifying before a Colorado legislative committee to take an oath stating their words are true and accurate.

What This Bill Does

Requires witnesses to promise that their testimony is true and accurate under penalty of perjury in the first degree.
Mandates that the chair of each committee gives this oath to every witness before they testify.
Exempts elected members of the General Assembly from taking an oath when speaking at meetings.
Exempts legislative staff who are presenting information as part of their job duties.
Creates a new section in state law called 2-2-315.5 to define these rules.

Who It Names or Affects

People giving testimony before committees made up solely of General Assembly members that take public testimony.
Chairs of legislative committees who must administer the oath.
Members of the General Assembly, who are exempt from this requirement when speaking at committee meetings.
Employees of the House, Senate, or Legislative Service Agencies presenting within their job duties.

Terms To Know

Oath: A formal promise to tell the truth that is spoken before giving testimony.
Perjury in the first degree: A serious crime for knowingly making a false statement while under oath, which can lead to criminal prosecution.
Legislative Service Agency: Groups like the Legislative Council Staff, Office of Legislative Legal Services, Office of the State Auditor, or staff of the Joint Budget Committee that support lawmakers.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not apply to people who do not have to sign up before presenting, such as department representatives at specific budget hearings.
This law will only take effect on August 12, 2026, unless voters challenge it with a petition.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

L.001

HOU State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs

Passed [*]

Plain English: This amendment changes the bill to require people testifying before a legislative committee about state duties or military matters to take an oath.

Adds 'OR' after mentioning the Constitution on page 2, line 22.

The amendment text only shows where words are added and which lines are deleted; it does not show what new words replace the deleted sections.
Because the replacement text for pages 2 and 3 is missing from this document, we cannot explain exactly how the rules about who must take an oath will change.

Bill History

2026-02-19 House
House Committee on State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Postpone Indefinitely
2026-02-04 House
Introduced In House - Assigned to State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs

Official Summary Text

The bill requires a person testifying before a legislative committee to provide the testimony under oath.
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Second Regular Session
Seventy-fifth General Assembly
STATE OF COLORADO
INTRODUCED

LLS NO. 26-0517.01 Conrad Imel x2313 HOUSE BILL 26-1149
House Committees Senate Committees
State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs
A BILL FOR AN ACT
CONCERNING REQUIRING A WITNESS TO TAKE AN OATH IN ORDER TO101
PROVIDE TESTIMONY TO A LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE.102
Bill Summary
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does
not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill
passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that
applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at
http://leg.colorado.gov.)
The bill requires a person testifying before a legislative committee
to provide the testimony under oath.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:1
HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
Winter T.,
SENATE SPONSORSHIP
Pelton B.,
Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.
Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing law.
Dashes through the words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law.
SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 2-2-315.5 as1
follows:2
2-2-315.5. Witnesses testimony before committee - oath and3
affirmation required - definitions.4
(1) BEFORE TESTIFYING BEFORE A COMMITTEE OF THE GENERAL5
ASSEMBLY, A PERSON SHALL TAKE THE FOLLOWING OATH:6
"THE TESTIMONY I WILL PROVIDE TO THIS LEGISLATIVE7
COMMITTEE IS TRUE AND ACCURATE TO THE BEST OF MY8
KNOWLEDGE. I UNDERSTAND THAT KNOWINGLY MAKING A9
MATERIALLY FALSE STATEMENT DURING TESTIMONY MAY10
CONSTITUTE PERJURY IN THE FIRST DEGREE AND MAY11
RESULT IN CRIMINAL PROSECUTION."12
(2) BEFORE A PERSON TESTIFIES BEFORE A COMMITTEE, THE CHAIR13
OF THE COMMITTEE SHALL ADMINISTER THE OATH DESCRIBED IN14
SUBSECTION (1) OF THIS SECTION TO THE PERSON.15
(3) THIS SECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO:16
(a) A MEMBER OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY WHO SPEAKS AT A17
COMMITTEE MEETING , REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE MEMBER OF THE18
GENERAL ASSEMBLY IS A MEMBER OF THE COMMITTEE , AND NOTHING IN19
THIS SECTION INFRINGES ON A MEMBER'S SPEECH THAT IS PROTECTED BY20
THE SPEECH-OR-DEBATE CLAUSE, SECTION 16 OF ARTICLE V OF THE STATE21
CONSTITUTION;22
(b) A N EMPLOYEE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES , THE23
SENATE, OR A LEGISLATIVE SERVICE AGENCY, TESTIFYING OR OTHERWISE24
PRESENTING TO A COMMITTEE WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE EMPLOYEE 'S25
DUTIES; OR26
(c) A PERSON PRESENTING OR TESTIFYING TO A COMMITTEE UNDER27
HB26-1149-2-
CIRCUMSTANCES IN WHICH THE COMMITTEE 'S REGULAR PRACTICE DOES1
NOT REQUIRE THE PERSON TO SIGN UP BEFORE PRESENTING OR TESTIFYING2
TO THE COMMITTEE , INCLUDING A REPRESENTATIVE OF A DEPARTMENT3
PRESENTING TO A COMMITTEE AS PART OF THE DEPARTMENT 'S4
PRESENTATION DURING ITS "SMART ACT" HEARING REQUIRED BY5
SECTION 2-7-203 OR PRESENTING TO THE JOINT BUDGET COMMITTEE AS6
PART OF A BUDGET HEARING.7
(4) AS USED IN THIS SECTION, UNLESS THE CONTEXT OTHERWISE8
REQUIRES:9
(a) "C OMMITTEE" MEANS A COMMITTEE COMPRISED SOLELY OF10
MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY THAT TAKES PUBLIC TESTIMONY ,11
INCLUDING A COMMITTEE THAT IS ESTABLISHED IN STATE LAW OR BY A12
RULE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OR SENATE OR JOINT RULE OF13
THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OR AN INTERIM COMMITTEE14
CREATED PURSUANT TO SECTION 2-3-303.3.15
(b) "L EGISLATIVE SERVICE AGENCY " MEANS THE LEGISLATIVE16
COUNCIL STAFF, OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE LEGAL SERVICES, OFFICE OF THE17
STATE AUDITOR, OR STAFF OF THE JOINT BUDGET COMMITTEE.18
SECTION 2. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act19
takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the20
ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August21
12, 2026, if adjournment sine die is on May 13, 2026); except that, if a22
referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the23
state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act24
within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect25
unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in26
HB26-1149-3-
November 2026 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the1
official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.2
HB26-1149-4-