Legal Protections for Dignity of Minors - Name Change Records
Summary
Colorado legislators have introduced SB26-018 to require courts to suppress court records for name changes filed by petitioners under 18 years old, effective July 1, 2026. The bill prohibits courts from publishing a minor petitioner's name or new name online and eliminates the public notice requirement for minors seeking name changes. Courts retain administrative access to suppressed records and may share them upon request with verbal consent and a perjury-affirmed affidavit.
What changed
The bill would require Colorado courts to suppress records associated with petitions to change the name of any petitioner under 18 years old at the time of filing, unless the petitioner was previously convicted of a felony. Courts may continue to use suppressed records for internal administrative purposes but are prohibited from publishing the petitioner's name or new name online. The bill also eliminates the requirement for minors to provide public notice of their name change.
Petitioners under 18, their families, and legal professionals handling name changes should prepare for streamlined procedures with enhanced privacy protections effective July 1, 2026. Courts will need to implement administrative protocols for suppressing records and responding to access requests, which may be granted upon verbal consent from a party plus a perjury-affirmed affidavit. The bill does not affect name changes for adults or for minors with prior felony convictions.
What to do next
- Minors seeking name changes in Colorado should prepare to file without public notice requirements
- Legal professionals handling name changes should monitor SB26-018 through the legislative process
- Court systems should prepare administrative procedures for suppressing records upon enactment
Archived snapshot
Apr 8, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
SB26-018
Legal Protections for Dignity of Minors
| Type | Bill |
|---|---|
| Session | 2026 Regular Session |
| Subjects | Children & Domestic Matters Courts & Judicial |
Concerning legal protections for the dignity of a minor, and, in connection therewith, suppressing a court record associated with changing a minor's name.
Recent Bill (PDF) Recent Fiscal Note (PDF) Bill Summary:
Beginning July 1, 2026, if a petitioner is under 18 years old at the time of filing a petition seeking to change the petitioner's name, the bill requires the court to suppress ~~a record associated with a petition seeking to change the name of a petitioner who is less than 18 years of age~~ the record unless the petitioner was previously convicted of a felony. The bill authorizes the court to use the suppressed court record for administrative purposes, but the court is prohibited from publishing the petitioner's name or the petitioner's new name online. A petitioner who is under 18 years old is not required to give public notice of the name change. The bill authorizes an individual to access a suppressed court record without a court order if the individual obtains verbal consent from a party to the case and submits an affidavit to the court, upon penalty of perjury, that the individual has obtained the verbal consent.
~~In determining parenting time and the allocation of decision-making responsibility, the bill requires the court to consider whether the parties recognize the child's identity as it relates to a protected class.~~
(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)
(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)
Prime Sponsors
Katie Wallace
Senator
Chris Kolker
Representative
Meg Froelich
Representative
Lorena García
Committees
Senate
House
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Status
Passed
Introduced
Passed
Related Documents & Information
| Date | Version | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| 04/06/2026 | Final Act | |
| 04/02/2026 | Rerevised | |
| 04/01/2026 | Revised | |
| 02/24/2026 | Reengrossed | |
| 02/23/2026 | Engrossed | |
| 01/14/2026 | Introduced |
| Date | Version | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| 02/19/2026 | PA1 |
| Date | Version | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| 03/23/2026 | First Revised Fiscal Note | |
| 02/02/2026 | Initial Fiscal Note |
| Activity | Vote | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| Refer Senate Bill 26-018 to the Committee of the Whole. | The motion passed on a vote of 7-4. | Vote summary |
| Hearing Summary | Committee Report: PDF | |
| Activity | Vote | Documents |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Adopt amendment L.005 (Attachment D) | The motion passed without objection. | Vote summary |
| Adopt amendment L.001 (Attachment G) | The motion passed without objection. | Vote summary |
| Adopt amendment L.002 (Attachment H) | The motion passed without objection. | Vote summary |
| Adopt amendment L.003 (Attachment I) | The motion passed without objection. | Vote summary |
| Refer Senate Bill 26-018, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole. | The motion passed on a vote of 5-2. | Vote summary |
| Hearing Summary | Committee Report: PDF | |
| Date | Calendar | Motion |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 04/02/2026 | Third Reading | BILL |
| 04/01/2026 | Committee of the Whole | AMD (H.001) |
| 04/01/2026 | Committee of the Whole | AMD (H.003) |
| 04/01/2026 | Committee of the Whole | AMD (H.002) |
| 04/01/2026 | MISC | LIMIT |
| Date | Calendar | Motion | Vote | Vote Document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/24/2026 | Third Reading | BILL | 20 AYE 11 NO 3 OTHER | Vote record |
| 02/23/2026 | Committee of the Whole | COW * (S.001) | 15 AYE 17 NO 2 OTHER | Vote record |
| Date | Amendment Number | Committee/ Floor Hearing | Status | Documents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/01/2026 | L.020 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.019 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.022 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.021 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.018 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.010 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.011 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.015 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 04/01/2026 | L.014 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 02/23/2026 | S.001 | Committee of the Whole | Lost | |
| 02/23/2026 | L.007 | Second Reading | Lost [**] | |
| 02/23/2026 | L.006 | Second Reading | Passed [**] | |
| 02/18/2026 | L.003 | SEN Judiciary | Passed [*] | |
| 02/18/2026 | L.002 | SEN Judiciary | Passed [*] | |
| 02/18/2026 | L.001 | SEN Judiciary | Passed [*] | |
| 02/18/2026 | L.005 | SEN Judiciary | Passed [*] |
- Amendments passed in committee are not incorporated into the measure unless adopted by the full House or Senate.
** The status of Second Reading amendments may be subsequently affected by the adoption of an amendment to the Committee of the Whole Report. Refer to the House or Senate Journal for additional information.
| Date | Location | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 04/07/2026 | House | Signed by the Speaker of the House |
| 04/07/2026 | Senate | Signed by the President of the Senate |
| 04/02/2026 | House | House Third Reading Passed - No Amendments |
| 04/01/2026 | House | House Second Reading Special Order - Passed - No Amendments |
| 03/30/2026 | House | House Second Reading Laid Over Daily - No Amendments |
| 03/25/2026 | House | House Committee on Judiciary Refer Unamended to House Committee of the Whole |
| 02/25/2026 | House | Introduced In House - Assigned to Judiciary |
| 02/24/2026 | Senate | Senate Third Reading Passed - No Amendments |
| 02/23/2026 | Senate | Senate Second Reading Passed with Amendments - Committee, Floor |
| 02/18/2026 | Senate | Senate Committee on Judiciary Refer Amended to Senate Committee of the Whole |
| 01/14/2026 | Senate | Introduced In Senate - Assigned to Judiciary |
Prime Sponsor
Sen. C. Kolker | Sen. K. Wallace
Rep. M. Froelich | Rep. L. García
Sponsor
(None) Co-Sponsor
Sen. N. Hinrichsen | Sen. I. Jodeh | Sen. C. Kipp | Sen. M. Weissman
Rep. J. Bacon | Rep. A. Boesenecker | Rep. K. Brown | Rep. S. Camacho | Rep. M. Carter | Rep. M. Duran | Rep. L. Gilchrist | Rep. J. Joseph | Rep. M. Lindsay | Rep. M. Martinez | Rep. K. McCormick | Rep. K. Nguyen | Rep. A. Paschal | Rep. G. Rydin | Rep. E. Sirota | Rep. L. Smith | Rep. T. Story | Rep. B. Titone | Rep. A. Valdez | Rep. E. Velasco | Rep. J. Willford | Rep. S. Woodrow | Rep. Y. Zokaie
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