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Denver council orders publication of ordinance to remove limits on needle-exchange programs
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Summary
The Denver City Council voted 8–4 to order publication of Council Bill 24-17-91, which would amend Article 5, Chapter 24 of the Denver Revised Municipal Code to remove distance and other limitations on needle-exchange and treatment referral programs. Several council members said they had constituent concerns and will vote against final passage.
The Denver City Council on Monday voted to order published Council Bill 24-17-91, an ordinance to amend Article 5, Chapter 24 of the Denver Revised Municipal Code to remove certain limitations on needle-exchange and treatment-referral programs.
The motion to publish the bill was placed on the floor by Council Member Ramiro Alvidrez and was ordered published after a roll-call vote that the clerk recorded as 8 ayes and 4 nays.
The bill would eliminate specific distance and program caps that staff and sponsors said currently limit where harm-reduction services may operate. Rob Hague, senior city planner with Community Planning and Development, was not the presenting staff for this item; discussion focused on policy rather than zoning details. Council Member Lisa Sawyer, who called the item out for a vote, said she had “some concerns based on the experience of my residents” with an existing needle-exchange program in District 5 and announced she would vote no. “I’m not a solid no,” Sawyer said, “I had hoped there would be a compromise, but the bill sponsors weren’t willing to consider that.”
Council Member Andrew Flynn also announced he would vote no and said he would provide more detail at final passage, citing “concerns for down-the-road impacts” of removing distancing requirements.
Council members voting aye included members who recorded their votes during the roll call; the clerk announced the final tally as 8 ayes and 4 nays, and the council ordered the bill published. Ordering a bill published is the step that makes it available for public inspection and sets it up for later final consideration by the full council.
The vote does not adopt the ordinance; final passage will occur at a later meeting after the required public-notice period. The council did not adopt any amendment on the floor when it ordered the bill published.
The bill text and published staff report will be available through the council clerk’s office and on the city’s legislative portal once publication is complete.
