Among the 1,407 rape kits awaiting testing by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation is one taken after the alleged sexual assault of Colorado state Rep. Jenny Willford, D-Northglenn, last year.

Willford’s emotional description of the fear she experiences daily persuaded House lawmakers Wednesday to allow the investigations unit to roll over the remaining $3 million of 2024-25 funds for DNA testing into 2025-26.

Willford’s amendment reversed Tuesday’s action by the House Appropriations Committee to remove that spending authority. As introduced last week, Senate Bill 105 removed the CBI’s authority to use its remaining $3 million to continue working on the backlog into the 2025-26 fiscal year.

The underlying issue deals with the backlog of DNA testing at CBI, partly due to the actions of a former forensic scientist, who allegedly mishandled tests that led to the re-examination of more than 10,000 cases, a growing backlog of rape kits that now take at least 570 days to clear, and a capacity issue at the unit, which is trying to build up its staffing at the same time that it’s facing these backlogs.

Willford went public with her sexual assault allegations last month, when she announced that she was suing Lyft after she was allegedly attacked by one of its drivers using an account that did not belong to him.

Willford, through tears and sobs, said offering the amendment was difficult. She said she is angry at CBI for the lengthy backlog on sexual assault kits.

“I’m angry that I’ve been waiting almost a year, with no end in sight, no resolution. Do I want accountability from CBI? You betcha. Do I want to hold their feet to the fire for every victim who’s going through the same thing I’m going through? You betcha!”

She said she knows members of the Joint Budget Committee care about victims and survivors and they want to make sure the money is spent well, and she would do the same if she were in their shoes.

But she’s not in their shoes, she said.

“I’m a survivor, and those are the shoes that I walk in,” she said. 

Some lawmakers expressed concerns that the CBI lacked a plan for dealing with the backlog and hesitated to allow millions of dollars to roll over without a clear plan.

The JBC has lost twice on the rollover authority battle — first in the Senate last week and again on Wednesday in the House, as lawmakers debated the bill.

Willford said she’s walking through a daily nightmare, a cloud following her that reminds her she doesn’t have answers or justice.

The legislator’s amendment went far beyond what the agency had previously been required to do in the bill and, in effect, created the plan the Joint Budget Committee had been seeking.

It calls on the department to provide a progress report to the JBC by Nov. 1, accelerate testing for the backlog of sexual assault kits through contracting with a third-party lab, and notably, provide an email update every 30 days, beginning March 1 and continuing through June 30, 2026 to the legislature on the DNA backlog and sexual assault kit backlog.

CBI will also be required to set up a public dashboard so the public knows the status of the backlog.

That update would tell lawmakers the total number of cases with pending tests in each category, the current turnaround, the number of kits completed in the prior 30 days, how long it will take to reach a 90-day turnaround, updates on CBI staffing levels, and any issues with contract labs that could impact testing capacity or turnarounds.

She offered the amendment not because the Colorado Bureau of Investigation deserves it but because it ensures it has the funds to contract with a third party to get the kits tested. She her amendment requires more transparency from CBI.

The amendment passed on a voice vote, and the bill won approval on a second vote. SB 105 will now go to a final House vote on Thursday. The bill will then go back to the Senate, which will review the changes.