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Colorado Revised Statutes Title 2. Legislative § 2-2-802. People first language in state laws

Current as of January 01, 2025 | Updated by Findlaw Staff

(1) On or after August 11, 2010, all new or amended statutes that refer to persons with disabilities must:

(a) Avoid language that:

(I) Implies that a person as a whole is disabled, such as the “mentally ill” or the “learning disabled”; or

(II) Equates persons with their condition, such as “epileptics”, “autistics”, or “quadriplegics”;

(b) Replace disrespectful language by referring to persons with disabilities as persons first. Examples of people first language include, but are not limited to, the following: Persons with disabilities, persons with developmental and intellectual disabilities, persons with behavioral or mental health disorders, and persons with autism.

(c) Replace disrespectful, insensitive, or outdated terms such as “mental retardation” with people first language such as “people with developmental and intellectual disabilities”.

(2) Violation of this section shall not be grounds to invalidate any new or amended statute; however, such statutes shall be amended to reflect the provisions of this section in any subsequent revision.

(3) Nothing in this section shall constitute a requirement to change the name of any department, agency, or program of the state or any political subdivision of the state.

(4) The revisor of statutes is authorized to change any disrespectful, insensitive, or outdated terms that appear in the Colorado Revised Statutes and to replace such terms with people first language in accordance with this section.

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Cite this article: FindLaw.com - Colorado Revised Statutes Title 2. Legislative § 2-2-802. People first language in state laws - last updated January 01, 2025 | https://codes.findlaw.com/co/title-2-legislative/co-rev-st-sect-2-2-802/

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