Statements of basis, specific statutory authority, and purpose, incorporated on the date of adoption 
Adopted May 22, 2020; effective June 30, 2020 
Statutory Authority 
The amendments to these parts are adopted by the Colorado civil rights commission (“commission”) pursuant to its authority at section 24-34-305(1)(a), C.R.S., to adopt rules for the implementation of parts 3 through 7 of article 34 of title 24.
Purpose
The purpose of these revisions is to update rule 80.6 to reflect recent changes to section 24-34-402.3, C.R.S., a/k/a the “pregnant workers fairness act”; to expand methods by which the civil rights division may serve copies of any charge upon the parties to the charge; to eliminate from the rules regarding appeals the option for a party to request oral argument to the commission on an appeal; to clarify the good-cause standard related to the commission’s review of requests for extensions; and to amend the rule to include that harassment because of sexual orientation may include adverse treatment related to an individual’s disclosure or discussion of that individual’s gender expression, transgender status, or sexual orientation. 
Factual and Policy Issues 
The factual and policy issues encountered when developing these amendments include: 
1.	With the division’s adoption of an on-line filing system, case connect, the commission revised rule 	10.4(e)(1) to notify parties that the division will accept charges not only by mail, but also by e-mail 	and through case connect, the on-line electronic case filing system
2.	The commission further changed rule 10.4(e) at paragraph (3) to identify that service of the 	charge on the parties by “mail” is not limited to the United States postal service. The commission 	made this change to harmonize the use of “mail” with the definition found at rule 10.2(u).
3.	Because the commission has received fewer than five requests for oral argument in the past ten 	years, the commission found the option to request oral argument in rule 10.6(b)(2) to be 	unnecessary and removed it.
4.	 Because the division encounters administrative delays during its investigation process, including 	difficulty contacting witnesses, receiving information, and coordinating interviews with parties, the 	commission amended rule 10.7(b) to include that “administrative delays” include those delays the 	division encounters during its investigatory process. 
5.	The Colorado general assembly added section 24-34-402.3, C.R.S., to article 34 of title 24 in 	2016. This statutory addition required amendments to rule 80.6 to expand the previous rule to 	include more specifically the variety of requirements and remedies articulated in the statutory 	addition. 
6.	The commission expanded what activities indicate sexual harassment because of sexual 	orientation to provide further protections to individuals who may disclose their gender expression, 	transgender status, or sexual orientation in rule 81.6(a). 
7.	The commission received and considered public comment regarding proposed additions and clarifications to rule 80.6, pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions. Because of those   comments and consideration thereof, additional examples of reasonable accommodations were added to the non-exhaustive list of reasonable accommodations that may be provided to an employee covered by the rule. The commission elected not to adopt other suggestions related to  rule 80.6 concluding that they were either beyond the scope of the rule, underlying statute, or already reflected in existing rule, statutes, and/or standards of review. 
8.	The commission received and considered public comment related to the amendment of rule 81.6 	(5), regarding individuals who may disclose their gender expression, transgender status, or 	sexual orientation. Specifically, a recommendation that the phrase “one’s own” be inserted into 	the rule immediately preceding the clause “gender expression, transgender status, or sexual 	orientation.”  After careful consideration of the comments the commission decided that use of the 		phrase “an individual’s” instead of “one’s own” would both serve the purpose of including the 	latter while also maintaining consistency with the rest of the rule which at various points refers to 	an “individual.”