Colorado signs HB 22-1386, reforming the competency restoration system

Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed HB 22-1386 on June 2, 2022, enacting bipartisan reforms to the state's competency-to-proceed and restoration system after years of federal court pressure and a documented backlog leaving hundreds of defendants in jails without timely services. The law expanded community-based restoration options, modified timelines and triage procedures, and created new pathways to divert low-level defendants from state hospital waitlists. The legislation directly addressed the failures documented in Colorado's federal consent decree and set the legal foundation for the 2026 reforms that followed.