The 2026 legislative session was marked by lawmakers’ push to establish guardrails on artificial intelligence, a technology advancing at breakneck speed.

Colorado has remained at the forefront of AI policy, becoming the first state to pursue comprehensive regulation with Senate Bill 205 in 2024.

On the other hand, U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen told Colorado Politics on Wednesday that while Colorado and other states are beginning to assemble their own AI regulations, the federal government continues to drag its feet — falling behind China and allowing the industry to grow at a record pace.

In Colorado, lawmakers from both parties agree that AI oversight will require continual updates as the technology evolves. During the 2026 session, they passed nearly half a dozen bills addressing AI’s impact on Coloradans, all of which now await Gov. Jared Polis’s signature.

Below is a brief overview of those measures.

The bill: Senate Bill 189

What it does: A result of several years of work to establish one of the nation’s first policies regulating “consequential decisions” made by artificial intelligence technology, Senate Bill 189 is a revised version of the landmark 2, which was amended during a special session last year to delay its implementation date.

The new bill requires developers of “automated decision-making technology” — defined as technology that processes personal data and uses computation to generate output to make, guide, or assist in a decision, judgment, or determination concerning an individual — to disclose the technology’s intended use to deployers and users. The bill also requires developers to notify deployers of the categories of training data, known limitations, and instructions for appropriate use and human review.

The legislation also includes user disclosure requirements. Under the measure, if a consumer alleges that the automated decision-making was used to make a consequential decision resulting in an “adverse outcome,” deployers will be required to provide a description of the role the technology played in influencing that decision.

The bill also grants consumers the right to request personal data, to have incorrect data used in automated decision-making corrected, and to request “meaningful human review” following a consequential decision resulting in an adverse outcome.

The bill passed by 34-1 in the Senate and 57-6 in the House. It was sponsored by Senate President James Coleman, D-Denver; Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez, D-Denver; House Majority Leader Monica Duran, D-Wheat Ridge; and Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver.

Read more about Senate Bill 189 here.

The bill: House Bill 1263

What it does: The bill requires chatbot services to inform users that they are communicating with artificial intelligence, prohibits operators from providing minors with points or rewards that encourage engagement with the service, and requires operators to enact “reasonable measures” to prevent chatbots from producing sexually explicit material or statements that “simulate emotional dependence.”

Additionally, it requires chatbot operators to implement a protocol for user prompts that include mentions of suicidal ideation or self-harm, and prohibits operators from stating or implying that any information provided by a chatbot is endorsed by, or equivalent to, services provided by a licensed professional.

The bill passed on a 40-24 vote in the House and a 24-11 vote in the Senate. It was sponsored by Reps. Sean Camacho, D-Denver, Javier Mabrey, D-Denver, and Sens. John Carson, R-Highlands Ranch, and Iman Jodeh, D-Aurora.

The bill: House Bill 1195

What it does: The bill prohibits therapists and social workers from using artificial intelligence to give recommendations or treatment plans to clients without clinician review.

Additionally, it requires therapists to have clients’ consent before using artificial intelligence to record or transcribe sessions, and it prohibits individuals from offering psychotherapy services unless they are a regulated professional.

The bill passed unanimously in the House and on a 33-2 vote in the Senate. It is sponsored by Reps. Gretchen Rydin, D-Littleton, and Javier Mabrey, D-Denver, and Sens. Judy Amabile, D-Boulder, and Kyle Mullica, D-Thornton.

The bill: House Bill 1139

What it does: The bill prohibits health insurance companies from basing coverage decisions solely on group data collected by AI systems. It also requires insurance companies’ AI systems to consider a patient’s medical or clinical history, along with other important factors, in coverage decisions.

House Bill 1139 passed on a 47-15 vote in the House and a 32-3 vote in the Senate. It is sponsored by Reps. Junie Joseph, D-Boulder, and Sheila Lieder, D-Littleton, and Sens. Lisa Cutter, D-Evergreen, and Lindsey Daugherty, D-Arvada.

The bill: House Bill 1210

What it does: The bill prohibits the use of “price or wage setting algorithms” to determine the amount charged to a consumer or the wage offered to a worker.

House Bill 1210 passed on a 39-24 vote in the House and a 19-15 vote in the Senate. It is sponsored by Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon, D-Denver, and Rep. Javier Mabrey. D-Denver, and Sens. Iman Jodeh, D-Aurora, and Sen. Mike Weissman, D-Aurora.