Part 3. Fraudulent and Deceptive Sales and Business Practices

(1) A person commits a class 2 misdemeanor if, in the course of business, he knowingly:
(a) Uses or possesses for use a false weight or measure, or any other device for falsely determining or recording any quality or quantity; or
(b) Sells, offers, or exposes for sale or delivers less than the represented quantity of any commodity or service; or
(c) Takes or attempts to take more than the represented quantity of any commodity or service when as buyer he furnishes the weight or measure; or
(d) Sells, offers, or exposes for sale an adulterated or mislabeled commodity. “Adulterated” means varying from the standard of composition or quality prescribed by or pursuant to any statute of the state of Colorado or the United States providing criminal penalties for such variance, or set by established commercial usage. “Mislabeled” means varying from the standard of truth or disclosure in labeling prescribed or pursuant to any statute of the state of Colorado or the United States providing criminal penalties for such variance, or set by established commercial usage; or
(e) Makes a false or misleading statement in any advertisement addressed to the public or to a substantial segment thereof for the purpose of promoting the purchase or sale of property or services.
(f) Repealed.

(1) Any person who, after once selling, bartering, or disposing of any land, or executing any bond or agreement for sale of any land, again sells, barters, or disposes of the same tract of land or any part thereof, or executes any bond or agreement to sell or barter or dispose of the same land or any part thereof, to any other person, with intent to defraud, commits selling land twice. Selling land twice is a class 5 felony.
(2) Any person who knowingly makes a false representation as to the existence of an ownership interest in land which he has as a seller or which his principal has, and which is relied upon, commits a class 6 felony.
(3) A person who signs a lien waiver for a construction loan under section 38-22-119, C.R.S., and knowingly fails to timely pay any debts resulting from a construction agreement covered by the waiver commits a class 1 misdemeanor, unless there is a bona fide dispute as to the existence or amount of the debt.

(1) A person commits bait advertising if, in any manner, including advertising or any other means of communication, he offers property or services as part of a scheme or plan, with the intent, plan, or purpose not to sell or provide the advertised property or services at all, or not at the price at which he offered them, or not in a quantity sufficient to meet the reasonable expected public demand, unless the quantity is specifically stated in the advertisement.
(2) It shall be an affirmative defense that a television or radio broadcasting station or a publisher or printer of a newspaper, magazine, or other form of printed advertising which broadcasted, published, or printed a false advertisement prohibited by section 18-5-301 (1)(e) or a bait advertisement prohibited by subsection (1) of this section or a telephone company which furnished service to a subscriber did so without knowledge of the advertiser’s or subscriber’s intent, plan, or purpose.
(3) Bait advertising is a class 2 misdemeanor.

It is a class 1 petty offense for any person engaged in the publication of any newspaper, magazine, periodical, or other advertising medium published in the state of Colorado or for any employee of any such publisher knowingly to make any statement concerning the circulation of the newspaper, magazine, periodical, or other advertising medium which is untrue or misleading where such publisher fixes his charges for advertising space in the publication on the amount of its circulation.

(1) A person commits the crime of altering identification number if, with intent that identification of an article be hindered or prevented, he obscures an identification number or in the course of business he sells, offers for sale, leases, or otherwise disposes of an article knowing that an identification number thereon is obscured.
(2) “Identification number” means a serial or motor number placed by the manufacturer upon an article as a permanent individual identifying mark.
(3) “Obscure” means to destroy, remove, alter, conceal, or deface so as to render illegible by ordinary means of inspection.
(4) Possession of an article on which an identification number is obscured is prima facie evidence that the person possessing it obscured the number with intent to hinder or prevent identification of the article, and that he knows that the identification number is obscured, unless, prior to his arrest or the issuance of a warrant for a search of the premises where the article is kept, whichever is earlier, he reports possession of the article to the police or other appropriate law enforcement agency.
(5) Altering identification number is a class 3 misdemeanor.

Source: L. 81: Entire section added, p. 995, § 1, effective July 1; (1)(a) amended, p. 2031, § 46, effective January 1, 1982. L. 83: Entire section repealed, p. 704, § 4, effective July 1.

(1) As used in this section:
(a) “Applicant” means any person applying to a private employment agency in order to secure employment with any person, firm, association, or corporation other than the private employment agency.
(b) “Employment” means every character of service rendered or to be rendered for wages, salary, commission, or other form of remuneration.
(b.5) “Fee-paid position” means a position of employment which is available to an applicant where no fee or cost accrues to the applicant as a condition of obtaining such position.
(c)
(I) “Private employment agency” means any nongovernmental person, firm, association, or corporation which secures or attempts to secure employment, arranges an interview between an applicant and a specific employer other than itself, or, by any form of advertising or representation, holds itself out to a prospective applicant as able to secure employment for the applicant with any person, firm, association, or corporation other than itself, or engages in employment counseling and in connection therewith supplies or represents that it is able to supply employers or available jobs, where an applicant may become liable for the payment of a fee, either directly or indirectly.
(II) “Private employment agency” also means any nongovernmental person, firm, association, or corporation which provides a list of potential employers or available jobs in a publication, if the primary purpose of the publication, as represented by the provider, is to enable applicants to find employment or to list available jobs and if the applicant is charged more than twenty dollars within any period of time of thirty days or less for access to the publication or revisions or updates thereof, unless the listings of all jobs in the publication are initiated by employers rather than the provider.
(2) Any fee paid by an applicant to a private employment agency shall be by written contractual agreement which includes specific provisions for refunds and extended payment options. The exclusion of said options from the contractual agreement shall be explicitly stated in said agreement.
(3) No fee shall be charged by a private employment agency until an applicant is placed in employment.
(4) In the event employment terminates for any reason within one hundred calendar days, an applicant shall not be required to pay a fee to a private employment agency in excess of one percent of the total fee for each calendar day elapsed between the beginning and termination of employment. For purposes of this subsection (4), the amount of the total fee shall be based on the actual gross income earned, annualized in accordance with the contractual fee schedule.
(5) In the event employment terminates for any reason within one hundred calendar days, a private employment agency shall refund any portion of a fee paid by an applicant in excess of the limits specified in subsection (4) of this section. Such a refund shall be made in full within seven calendar days of said agency’s receipt of written notification of the termination of employment; except that, if it has not been determined within that period of time that the instrument used to pay the fee is backed by sufficient funds, the refund is due upon such determination. If a refund is not made when due, the private employment agency is liable to the applicant for the refund due plus an additional sum equal to the amount of the refund.
(5.5) It shall be unlawful for any private employment agency knowingly to do or cause to be done any of the following:
(a) Send an applicant to any fictitious job or position or make any false representation concerning the availability of employment;
(b) Send an applicant to any place where a strike or lockout exists or is impending without notifying the applicant of the circumstances;
(c) Conspire or arrange with any employer to secure the discharge of an employee or give or receive any gratuity or divide or share with an employer any fee, charge, or remuneration received from any applicant for employment;
(d) Circulate or publish, by advertisement or otherwise, any false statements or representations to persons seeking employment or to employers seeking employees;
(e) Fail to refund fees to an applicant where such refund is due pursuant to subsection (5) of this section;
(f) Advertise or represent the availability of fee-paid positions where no cost accrues to the applicant if hired in such a manner as to confuse such position with other available positions which are not available on a fee-paid basis;
(g) Advertise or represent that an available position is available on a free or no fee basis or otherwise indicate that no charge or cost accrues to anyone when in fact the employer is obligated to pay a fee contingent upon the acceptance of employment of the applicant;
(h) Advertise for any position, including personnel for its own staff, without identifying in the advertisement that it is a private employment agency.
(6) A private employment agency or any employee of such agency commits a misdemeanor if said agency or employee knowingly violates any provision of this section. An agency found guilty of such a crime shall be subject to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars per conviction, and any employee of such agency found directly responsible for committing acts in violation of this section shall be subject to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment for not more than one year in the county jail, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(7) A private employment agency which has been convicted of a misdemeanor pursuant to this article, or any person connected therewith pursuant to paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of this section prior to conducting business in this state after such conviction, regardless of how classified as person, firm, association, or corporation, shall file with the department of labor and employment a cash or corporate surety bond in the sum of twenty thousand dollars. Such bond shall be executed by the private employment agency as principal and by a surety company authorized to do business in this state. Said private employment agency shall maintain such bond in effect as long as it conducts business in this state. Any person who suffers loss or damage as the result of a violation of this article, including any person who is owed a refund or any part thereof pursuant to subsections (4) and (5) of this section, may recover against the bond to the extent of the loss or damage suffered. A surety on any bond filed under the provisions of this section shall be released therefrom after such surety serves written notice thereof to the department of labor and employment at least sixty days prior to such release. Said release shall not discharge or otherwise affect any claim for loss or damage which occurred while said bond was in effect or which occurred under any contract executed during any period of time when said bond was in effect, except when another bond is filed in a like amount and provides indemnification for any such loss. The sole responsibilities of the department of labor and employment under this subsection (7) shall be to serve as a repository of bonds filed pursuant to this subsection (7) and to notify the district attorney in the county in which a private employment agency is located when the department of labor and employment receives written notice from a surety seeking release from a bond that has been filed with the department of labor and employment by said private employment agency pursuant to this subsection (7). A private employment agency that violates the provisions of this section with regard to any three or more different applicants in any one-year period shall be deemed a class 1 public nuisance and shall be subject to the provisions of part 3 of article 13 of title 16, C.R.S. Any surety bond filed by such agency shall be forfeited and the proceeds distributed as provided in section 16-13-311, C.R.S.

(1) A person commits electronic mail fraud if he or she violates any provision of 18 U.S.C. sec. 1037 (a).
(2) This section shall not apply to a provider of internet access service, as defined in 47 U.S.C. sec. 231, who does not initiate the commercial electronic mail message.
(3) Electronic mail fraud is a class 2 misdemeanor; except that a second or subsequent offense within two years is a class 1 misdemeanor.

(1) A person commits money laundering if he or she:
(a) Conducts or attempts to conduct a financial transaction that involves money or any other thing of value that he or she knows or believes to be the proceeds, in any form, of a criminal offense:
(I) With the intent to promote the commission of a criminal offense; or
(II) With knowledge or a belief that the transaction is designed in whole or in part to:
(A) Conceal or disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, or control of the proceeds of a criminal offense; or
(B) Avoid a transaction reporting requirement under federal law;
(b) Transports, transmits, or transfers a monetary instrument or moneys:
(I) With the intent to promote the commission of a criminal offense; or
(II) With knowledge or a belief that the monetary instrument or moneys represent the proceeds of a criminal offense and that the transportation, transmission, or transfer is designed, in whole or in part, to:
(A) Conceal or disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, or control of the proceeds of a criminal offense; or
(B) Avoid a transaction reporting requirement under federal law; or
(c) Intentionally conducts a financial transaction involving property that is represented to be the proceeds of a criminal offense, or involving property that the person knows or believes to have been used to conduct or facilitate a criminal offense, to:
(I) Promote the commission of a criminal offense;
(II) Conceal or disguise the nature, location, source, ownership, or control of property that the person believes to be the proceeds of a criminal offense; or
(III) Avoid a transaction reporting requirement under federal law.
(2) Money laundering is a class 3 felony.
(3) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) “Conducts or attempts to conduct a financial transaction” includes, but is not limited to, initiating, concluding, or participating in the initiation or conclusion of a transaction.
(b) “Financial transaction” means a transaction involving:
(I) The movement of moneys by wire or other means;
(II) One or more monetary instruments;
(III) The transfer of title to any real property, vehicle, vessel, or aircraft; or
(IV) The use of a financial institution.
(c) “Monetary instrument” means:
(I) Coin or currency of the United States or any other country; a traveler’s check; a personal check; a bank check; a cashier’s check; a money order; a bank draft of any country; or gold, silver, or platinum bullion or coins;
(II) An investment security or negotiable instrument in bearer form or in other form such that title passes upon delivery; or
(III) A gift card or other device that is the equivalent of money and can be used to obtain cash, property, or services.
(d) “Represent” includes, but is not limited to, the making of a representation by a peace officer, a federal officer, or another person acting at the direction of, or with the approval of, a peace officer or federal officer.
(e) “Transaction” includes a purchase, sale, loan, pledge, gift, transfer, delivery, or other disposition and, with respect to a financial institution, includes a deposit; a withdrawal; a transfer between accounts; an exchange of currency; a loan; an extension of credit; a purchase or sale of any stock, bond, certificate of deposit, or other monetary instrument; the use of a safe deposit box; or any other payment, transfer, or delivery by, through, or to a financial institution by whatever means.