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Colorado Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules

Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited August 15, 2026). · Reviewed by the RecordingLaw editorial team. · Law checked current as of August 15, 2026. · 28 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content

Colorado Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Colorado a one-party or two-party consent state?

Colorado is a one-party consent state. Under C.R.S. 18-9-303, a sender or receiver of a phone, telegraph, or electronic communication may record it without notifying others, and under C.R.S. 18-9-304 a principal party to an in-person conversation may do the same. Both statutes make it a Class 2 misdemeanor for a non-participant to record without any party's consent.

Can I record a phone call in Colorado without telling the other person?

Yes, if you are a party to the call. C.R.S. 18-9-303 requires the consent of only one sender or receiver. The complication is interstate calls: if the other person is in a two-party consent state such as California or Florida, announce the recording to avoid exposure under that state's law.

Is illegal recording a felony in Colorado?

No, for the basic offenses. C.R.S. 18-9-303 (wiretapping) and C.R.S. 18-9-304 (eavesdropping) are both Class 2 misdemeanors after SB 21-271 (effective March 1, 2022): up to 120 days jail and up to $750 fine. Voyeurism under C.R.S. 18-3-405.6 is more serious, reaching a Class 6 felony when the defendant has a prior conviction for unlawful sexual behavior (C.R.S. 16-22-102(9)), or when the depicted person is under 15 and the defendant is at least 4 years older.

Can I record the police in Colorado?

Yes. C.R.S. 16-3-311 gives every person an express statutory right to record any incident involving a peace officer and to keep custody of the recording. An officer may temporarily seize a device without a warrant on either of two grounds: (1) a reasonable, articulable, good-faith belief that seizure is needed to prevent destruction of the recording while a warrant is obtained; or (2) a life-safety exigency. A seizure on either ground may last no longer than 72 hours while the officer obtains a search warrant, and these limits do not apply to a device seized incident to arrest. Two civil remedies apply if police interfere: C.R.S. 13-21-128 and C.R.S. 13-21-131. The Tenth Circuit held the right to film police clearly established as of May 2019 in Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022).

Are Ring doorbells and nanny cams legal in Colorado?

Generally yes for outward-facing cameras on your own property: a porch-facing doorbell captures a non-private space and you are a principal party for porch conversations under C.R.S. 18-9-304, and a nanny cam in a shared family room is outside C.R.S. 18-3-405.6 when intimate parts are not captured. Problems arise if a hidden camera is placed in a private space (bedroom, bathroom) or captures audio of conversations the homeowner does not participate in. Voiceprint or facial-recognition processing of the captured audio or video separately triggers HB 24-1130 affirmative-consent requirements.

Can my employer record me at work in Colorado?

Generally yes if the employer participates in the conversation, since Colorado is a one-party consent state under C.R.S. 18-9-303 and C.R.S. 18-9-304. Employers may not record in bathrooms, locker rooms, or changing areas. NLRB Stericycle, 372 NLRB No. 113 (Aug. 2, 2023) limits blanket no-recording rules: the rule must advance a legitimate, substantial business interest that cannot be met with a narrower rule. Extracting voiceprints or faceprints from recorded audio separately requires affirmative consent under HB 24-1130 (active July 1, 2025).

Can I record an HR meeting or a conversation with my boss in Colorado?

Yes. As a participant, you may record under C.R.S. 18-9-303 or C.R.S. 18-9-304 without disclosing it. An internal no-recording policy may apply, but violating it is a workplace-discipline matter, not a criminal one, provided you are a principal party.

Updates

Corrected the description of C.R.S. 16-3-311: the 72 hours is the maximum time an officer may hold a seized recording device while obtaining a search warrant, not a deadline for applying for one, and the rule does not reach devices seized incident to arrest.

Corrected the maximum sentence for aggravated voyeurism (24 months, not 18, under the state's extraordinary-risk-crime enhancement), added the mandatory additional $10,000 fine for intimate-image disclosure, fixed a wrong statute citation for the body-camera inadmissibility rule, clarified that SB 25-288's $150,000 civil action covers only AI-altered images and not real unaltered photos, and corrected Oregon's phone-call consent rule to one-party.

Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes

Updated Colorado AI Act coverage: SB 24-205 was repealed and replaced by SB 26-189 (2026) before taking effect.

Removed a fabricated third ground for police seizure of a recording device under C.R.S. 16-3-311 (the statute gives exactly two grounds, not three), repeated in KeyTakeaways, the police-recording section, and the FAQ. Also corrected the facial-recognition citation from C.R.S. 24-31-1303 (Colorado's worker-misclassification statute, unrelated to recording law) to the actual facial-recognition act, C.R.S. 24-18.5-101 et seq. (SB 22-113), and removed the wrong citation from the Sources list.

Corrected the citation for Colorado facial-recognition restrictions to C.R.S. 24-18-301 et seq., with the law-enforcement warrant rule at 24-18-307, and added the source.

Governing law re-checked for recent changes

Reviewed and approved by an editor

Restructured into spec-compliant format. Re-verified load-bearing facts against primary sources: C.R.S. 18-9-303 and 18-9-304 both Class 2 misdemeanors post-SB 21-271; corrected C.R.S. 16-3-311 temporary-seizure standard (reasonable articulable good-faith belief to prevent destruction of recording pending warrant, not a probable-cause requirement); confirmed HB 24-1130 effective July 1 2025 and SB 25-288 effective August 6 2025; trimmed to length cap.

Corrections audit: (1) C.R.S. 18-9-303 corrected to Class 2 misdemeanor (not Class 6 felony), same as 18-9-304 (120 days / $750, post-SB 21-271). (2) C.R.S. 13-21-128 corrected to the recording-device remedy ($500/recording + replacement + fees + up to $15,000 punitives); C.R.S. 13-21-131 (SB 20-217) is the no-qualified-immunity constitutional action. (3) C.R.S. 16-3-311 clarified as the right-to-record statute. (4) Device offense corrected to C.R.S. 18-9-302 (petty offense per HB 23-1293); 18-9-305 is the exceptions statute. (5) Facial-recognition bill corrected to SB 22-113. (6) Removed HB 22-1003 from the body-camera attribution.

Major restructure: anchored bifurcated criminal regime as the lead structural section (C.R.S. 18-9-303 wiretap Class 6 felony + C.R.S. 18-9-304 eavesdropping Class 2 misdemeanor). Added Frasier-to-Irizarry Tenth Circuit progression (Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022) recognized clearly-established First Amendment right to film police as of May 2019). Distinguished C.R.S. 16-3-311 own-statute civil remedy ($500 per recording, replacement, fees, punitive) from C.R.S. 13-21-128 no-qualified-immunity cause of action ($15,000 minimum). Added HB 24-1130 Colorado Privacy Act biometric provisions (active July 1, 2025) and SB 24-205 Colorado AI Act (active February 1, 2026). Corrected hidden-camera anchor to C.R.S. 18-3-405.6 (replaced incorrect 18-7-801 reference). Corrected body-cam citation to C.R.S. 24-31-902 (Part 9), keeping C.R.S. 24-31-1303 (Part 13) only as the facial-recognition layer. Dropped unverified People v. Diaz placeholder, unverified People v. Lesslie, and tortious-purpose carve-out framing (not Colorado law). Updated FCC 24-24 to vacated by 11th Cir. (Insurance Marketing Coalition Ltd. v. FCC, mandate Apr 30 2025) and removed stale 47 C.F.R. 64.501. Added NLRB Stericycle / GC 25-05 / GC 25-07 workplace overlay. Added TAKE IT DOWN Act federal compliance (Pub. L. 119-12). Added SB 25-288 intimate-digital-depiction reframe of C.R.S. 18-7-107 and $150,000 liquidated-damages civil action. Replaced commercial-codifier URLs with leg.colorado.gov, courts.state.co.us, ca10.uscourts.gov, and uscode.house.gov canonicals. Populated keywords array with 15 Colorado-specific terms.

Major restructure: added Frasier-to-Irizarry Tenth Circuit progression (Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022), clearly-established right to film police as of May 2019); HB 24-1130 biometric provisions (July 1, 2025) and SB 24-205 AI Act (February 1, 2026); corrected hidden-camera anchor to C.R.S. 18-3-405.6 and body-cam cite to C.R.S. 24-31-902 (Part 9); added NLRB Stericycle / GC 25-07 workplace overlay, the TAKE IT DOWN Act (Pub. L. 119-12), and the SB 25-288 reframe of C.R.S. 18-7-107.

Added wearable recording devices section and 2 FAQs covering AI voice recorders and smart glasses

Sources and References

  1. C.R.S. 18-9-303; C.R.S. 18-9-304(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  2. C.R.S. 18-9-303(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  3. C.R.S. 18-9-304(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  4. C.R.S. 18-9-303; C.R.S. 18-9-304; C.R.S. 18-1.3-401; C.R.S. 18-1.3-501(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  5. C.R.S. 18-9-302 (wiretapping and eavesdropping device possession, petty offense; HB 23-1293 eff. Oct 1, 2023); C.R.S. 18-9-305 (exceptions to wiretapping and eavesdropping prohibitions)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  6. C.R.S. 13-21-128 (recording-device civil remedy: $500/recording, replacement, fees, punitive up to $15,000 bad-faith cap)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  7. Frasier v. Evans, 992 F.3d 1003 (10th Cir. 2021), cert. denied, 142 S. Ct. 427 (2021)(ca10.uscourts.gov).gov
  8. Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022)(ca10.uscourts.gov).gov
  9. C.R.S. 18-3-405.6; C.R.S. 18-3-401(2)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  10. Doe v. High-Tech Institute, Inc., 972 P.2d 1060 (Colo. App. 1998); Robert C. Ozer, P.C. v. Borquez, 940 P.2d 371 (Colo. 1997); C.R.S. 13-21-102; C.R.S. 13-80-102(courts.state.co.us)
  11. Cal. Penal Code 632; Fla. Stat. 934.03; 720 ILCS 5/14-2; Md. Code Cts. and Jud. Proc. 10-402; Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 272 14; Mont. Code 45-8-213; N.H. RSA 570-A:2; Or. Rev. Stat. 165.540; 18 Pa. C.S. 5703; Wash. Rev. Code 9.73.030; Conn. Gen. Stat. 52-570d(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  12. 18 U.S.C. 2510-2522; 18 U.S.C. 2511(2)(d)(uscode.house.gov).gov
  13. Stericycle, Inc., 372 NLRB No. 113 (Aug. 2, 2023); NLRB GC 25-05 (Feb. 14, 2025); NLRB GC 25-07 (June 25, 2025); Bartlett-Collins Co., 237 NLRB 770 (1978)(nlrb.gov).gov
  14. NLRA Section 7; NLRB GC 25-07 (June 25, 2025)(nlrb.gov).gov
  15. C.R.S. 24-31-902; SB 20-217; HB 21-1250(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  16. Colorado Privacy Act, C.R.S. 6-1-1301 et seq.; HB 24-1130 (Chapter 313, Session Laws of Colorado 2024)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  17. C.R.S. 18-7-107 (post-SB 25-288); SB 25-288 (Chapter 339, Session Laws of Colorado 2025)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  18. SB 24-205 (Colorado AI Act)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  19. HB 24-1147(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  20. FCC Declaratory Ruling 24-17 (Feb. 8, 2024); 47 U.S.C. 227 (TCPA); Colorado Consumer Protection Act, C.R.S. 6-1-105 et seq.(docs.fcc.gov).gov
  21. Insurance Marketing Coalition Ltd. v. FCC, 127 F.4th 303 (11th Cir. 2025); 47 C.F.R. 64.1200(f)(9); 47 C.F.R. 64.501 (REMOVED Nov. 20, 2017); 82 Fed. Reg. 48,766(media.ca11.uscourts.gov).gov
  22. Justice Manual 9-7.302; 18 U.S.C. 2511(2)(c)(justice.gov).gov
  23. TAKE IT DOWN Act, S. 146, 119th Cong., Pub. L. 119-12(congress.gov).gov
  24. 47 U.S.C. 1001-1010 (CALEA); 45 C.F.R. Part 164 (HIPAA); 12 C.F.R. 1006.6 (Reg F); 15 U.S.C. 1692 et seq. (FDCPA); C.R.S. 5-16-101 et seq.; FTC v. Ring (2023)(uscode.house.gov).gov
  25. C.R.S. 13-21-131; SB 20-217; HB 21-1250 (no-qualified-immunity civil action for state-constitutional rights deprivation)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  26. leg.colorado.gov.gov
  27. leg.colorado.gov.gov
  28. dre.colorado.gov.gov
  29. C.R.S. 24-18-307 - Use of facial recognition service by law enforcement agencies(colorado.public.law)
  30. Colorado SB 26-189 (Automated Decision-Making Technology Act — repeals and reenacts SB 24-205)(leg.colorado.gov).gov
  31. C.R.S. 16-3-311 (peace officer incident recordings; (2)(e) 72-hour cap on temporary seizure while a search warrant is obtained; (3) inapplicable to devices seized incident to arrest)(olls.info)
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