Governor Polis Signs Public Health Emergency Whistleblower Rights and Paid Family Leave Act

July 15, 2020

Governor Polis has just signed the following two bills into law, both with immediate effective dates.

(1) S.B. 20-205 - Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (“HFWA”)

(2) H.B. 20-1415 - Public Health Emergency Whistleblower Law (“PHEW”)


The Division has just published guidance regarding both laws in the form of three new INFOs (Interpretive Notice & Formal Opinions) available on the Division's webpage. The INFOs summarize each law; explain how each affects employers, employees, and other stakeholders; and answer frequently asked questions the Division has received about these laws and about similar laws and rules.

Each of the two laws has a requirement of posting a notice to workers, which the INFOs summarize, and the Division has just published a compliant poster (which covers both laws), including a poster in English and a poster in Spanish. The poster must be replaced by January 1, 2021, with a new one that the Division will post, due to the substantial changes in HFWA as of that date; those changes are summarized in INFO #6B.

Finally, due to the substantial overlap between the Colorado Health Emergency Leave with Pay (“Colorado HELP”) Rules and the Healthy Families and Workplaces Act (“HFWA”), the Division is terminating the requirements of the Colorado HELP Rules after July 14th, because July 15th is the first full day in which HFWA is in effect.

Rulemaking under each law will proceed in the coming weeks and months, likely to take effect by the end of the calendar year. All who received this email will be notified of proposed rules to allow participation in hearing and comment processes. If you have any questions about the rulemaking process, contact Division Operations Director and Rulemaking Coordinator Michael Primo ([email protected]); for questions about the substance of these laws or other outreach matters, contact Division Outreach Manager Eric Yohe ([email protected]).