A-Corp passes: 49-14

I was standing outside a committee room in the Colorado State Capitol while our lobbyist whispered in my ear. This one will support us. This one's against. Each Representative walked past us toward the room where, in thirty minutes, they would vote on whether the first business structure designed for artists in America would survive its next hurdle.

The Capitol itself is ornate, wooden, gilded. Dramatic lighting. I peered through a glass partition into a House floor debate. Like watching democracy in a museum or zoo.

I was there to testify in favor of the Colorado Artist Company Act. Four others — some of whom I’ve gotten to know well over several trips the past year — testified with me, including Meredith Badler from the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts; Josh Blanchard, Director of Colorado Creative Industries (part of the Governor’s team), painter Sarah Darlene, and John Clark, Mayor of Ridgway, Colorado. 

The hearing — which you can watch here — included a half-hour of questioning by Representatives directed at the bill's bipartisan cosponsors and the five of us.

There were several tense moments and exchanges. Finally, the vote was taken. The committee passed it 10-3, bipartisan. The bill cleared its next hurdle.

This set the stage for the bigger one the following Monday: the bill would be heard and voted on in front of the full Colorado House of Representatives. Representative Matthew Martinez brought his bass to the floor in honor of the bill.

It worked. Colorado SB26-133, the Colorado Artist Company Act, passed the Colorado House of Representatives 49-14. The bill had already been passed 31-3 on the Senate floor in April. Now the bill goes to Governor Polis's desk, where we expect him to sign it into law. 

Almost there.

What does the A-Corp do?

The Colorado Artist Company Act creates a new kind of LLC — the A-Corp — built for creative people. With an A-Corp:

• Your stated artistic mission is legally protected
• You can create A-Corp shares and fractional ownership during formation
• Intellectual property is treated as a capital contribution to the A-Corp (meaning its value is included in the A-Corp valuation)
• Artists must own at least 51% of all voting shares

How and when can I become an A-Corp?

Once the bill is signed, Colorado will need to update their systems and infrastructure. In 2027, the first A-Corps will exist in Colorado.

For those of you outside of Colorado, this includes you, too. Colorado allows for businesses to be created from out of state provided they go through a specific process. More on how that will work for A-Corps as we get closer.

Where can I learn more?

The Artist Corporations website includes the text of the law, an A-Corp calculator to show you how it works, and a sample registration process to show you how an A-Corp is configured.

More on A-Corps:

• Podcast: Yancey Strickler and Joshua Citarella on A-Corps (link)
• Hyperallergic: WTF is an A-Corp? (link)
• Colorado Sun: A Colorado bill could help creatives retain more control of their work (link)
• Denver Gazette: Artists as corporations? Colorado is changing the game (link)
• Artist Corporations Foundation receives a Doris Duke Foundation grant (link)