A bill that would give members of the Southern Ute Indian and Ute Mountain Ute tribes free access to Colorado’s 43 state parks cleared its first vote Monday at the Capitol. 

Led by a bipartisan group of Western Slope lawmakers, House Bill 1163 “takes an important and long-overdue step” toward reconnecting Indigenous people with their ancestral lands, said prime bill sponsor Rep. Katie Stewart, D-Durango, during a House committee hearing. 

“The Ute people are the oldest continuous residents of what is now known as the state of Colorado,” said Stewart, whose southwestern district overlaps both tribes’ reservations. “Many of our favorite places in Colorado, including the vast majority of Colorado state parks, are located on ancestral homelands and include sacred tribal sites.” 

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The bill’s other prime sponsors are Rep. Rick Taggart, R-Grand Junction, Sen. Cleave Simpson, D-Alamosa, and Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Frisco. 

Approximately 1,770 state park passes are purchased annually by Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribal members based on 2023 population data, according to a fiscal analysis by the state’s nonpartisan legislative council staff. 

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Most entrance fees for state parks range from $10 to $12 while the annual Keep Colorado Wild Pass, which provides access to all state parks, costs $29, according to information from Colorado Parks and Wildlife. To have fees waived under the bill, tribal members would need to show a current tribal photo ID card when entering a park. 

The Southern Ute Indian and Ute Mountain Ute are the only two federally recognized tribes within the state. Leaders from both tribes testified in support of House Bill 1163 on Monday, citing their people’s deep ties to Colorado. 

“We are the definition of in-state residents,” said Southern Ute Tribal Council Vice Chairman Marvin Pinnecoose. “Today, it is critical that our tribal youth and elders be able to access and visit these sites and traditional areas to ensure that our cultural practices are carried going forward into future generations.”

Still, the bill faced criticism from members of other tribal nations who said free entry to state parks should be extended to the dozens of tribes that have been displaced from what is now Colorado.

“One of the worst genocides that ever happened in America happened in the Eastern Plains of Colorado,” said Rick Williams, a member of the Oglala Lakota and Northern Cheyenne tribes. “That’s why you have no reservations here. That’s why, in the homeland of the people, you’re ignoring us.” 

Lynette GreyBull, a member of both the Hunkpapa Lakota of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Northern Arapaho from the Wind River Indian Reservation, said Colorado lands are “deeply tied to my bloodline, my identity, my heritage.” 

“This bill should include all tribal nations with ties to Colorado,” GreyBull said. “This bill, as it stands, creates an unnecessary division among the Native communities.” 

Representatives for Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the state Department of Natural Resources, both of which support the bill, said they are looking into ways to broaden access for other tribal members in the future. 

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Deputy Director Heather Dugan said the agency is “actively seeking to hire a consultant who is an expert at engaging with Native American and Indigenous communities,” with outreach beginning this fall and lasting three to six months. 

Pinnecoose, the Southern Ute vice chairman, said his hope would be for other state governments to look to Colorado as a model for expanding free park access to tribes in those states.

“Today, we fight for the existing residents of Colorado and the two federally recognized tribes. And then down the road, yeah, we hope to include more people — we want to fight for Native America as a whole,” Pinnecoose said. “But it’s baby steps, so this is kind of where we start from. This is where we begin.” 

Bill sponsors described their legislation as a first step toward reducing barriers to public land access, with Stewart adding, “This is just the beginning, it truly is.” 

“And, granted, I hear all of you (saying) that we are far too late to just be starting these conversations,” Stewart said. “We need to do better.” 

House Bill 1163 was approved unanimously by the House Agriculture, Water and Natural Resources Committee. Some Democrats, before voting for the measure, urged bill sponsors to consider future amendments that ensure the state is committed to exploring ways to extend park access to other tribes.

The bill now heads to the House Appropriations Committee where it will need to be approved before receiving a full chamber vote on the House floor.