Colorado SB26-113: what sober living operators need to know before July 1, 2027

Colorado is changing who oversees recovery residences. Under Senate Bill 26-113, sober living homes will need a license from the state’s Behavioral Health Administration (BHA) instead of relying on third-party certification. If you run a house, here’s what’s confirmed, what’s still being decided, and what you can do now so the change is a formality instead of a scramble.

What’s changing

Today, Colorado recognizes recovery residences through certification: an outside organization reviews a home against a national standard and certifies it. SB26-113 moves that responsibility to the state itself. The BHA becomes the licensing authority, sets the standards, reviews applications, and handles complaints and investigations.

For operators, that means a different reviewer, a different rulebook, and an application you’ll file with the state. The day-to-day work of running a good house doesn’t change much, but the documentation that proves it matters more.

Key dates

If you’re ORH-C certified today

Your current certification doesn’t disappear overnight, and you don’t have to choose between maintaining it and preparing for licensure. The safest approach:

• Keep your certification in good standing through the transition. It’s your proof of standing until your license is issued.
• Note your certification’s expiration date. Transition deadlines may be tied to it.
• Get on the BHA’s notification list so you see rule drafts, comment periods, and application instructions as they’re released.
• Start building your license file now, alongside your certification file, so you’re not doing both under deadline pressure.

What’s still being decided

It’s worth being honest about what nobody knows yet. Until the BHA publishes final rules, these are open:

• The exact standards a home will be licensed against
• Application forms, fees, and how long review takes
• How inspections and renewals will work
• The precise transition deadlines for currently certified homes
• The details of any incident-reporting and complaint processes

Anyone telling you exactly what the final rules require is guessing. What you can do is make sure the fundamentals are documented, because those carry over no matter where the rules land.

What you can do now: a readiness checklist

These are the records a licensing reviewer is likely to ask about, because they’re what certification looks at today. Check what you have on file:

Policies and procedures

• Written house rules and a signed resident agreement for every resident
• A grievance procedure residents can use without fear, and a record of how concerns were resolved
• Admission, discharge, and transfer policies, including how a resident can appeal a discharge
• A drug and alcohol screening policy, and a clear response plan that prioritizes safety and connection
• An overdose response plan, including where naloxone is kept and who is trained to use it
• A good-neighbor policy
• A medication policy, if residents store or take medications at the house

Records

• Resident files: move-in date, emergency contact, signed documents
• Meeting attendance and any required recovery activities, recorded and dated
• Screening logs with results and who administered them
• Incident reports: dated, factual, and describing what happened rather than judging the person
• Staff and house manager information, and any training records

The house itself

• Working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, fire extinguishers, and posted emergency exits
• Occupancy that matches local zoning and your certification
• An emergency contact posted for residents

Stay involved

• Sign up for BHA updates and read the draft rules when they’re posted
• Comment during public feedback periods. Operators who know the day-to-day are exactly who the rules need to hear from
• Set aside budget for licensing fees and any changes to your house