(a) There shall be an official seal of the House for use in authenticating official communications of the body, its committees, or its members. The seal shall be used only by or on behalf of a member of the House in conjunction with his or her official duties.
(b) The official seal is circular, ringed with a green border with the words "State of Colorado" centered on the top half of the circle and the words "House of Representatives" centered on the bottom half of the circle. Bordering the outside of the inner circle are sixty-five gold stars to signify Colorado's sixty-five elected state representatives. In addition to the sixty-five stars, the inner circle includes the following devices inscribed thereon:
(1) Centered at the top is the gold dome of Colorado's state capitol building;
(2) Below the gold dome there are two devices taken from the Colorado state seal: On the left, three snow-capped mountains with white clouds above them on a blue background and on the right, written in the Garamond font, Colorado's state motto, "Nil Sine Numine", the Latin phrase meaning "nothing without the Deity";
(3) Beneath the mountains is a gold gavel on a white background, symbolizing the strength of the People's House, the House of Representatives;
(4) Next to the gavel is a columbine, Colorado's state flower, on a yellow background; and
(5) Centered at the bottom are the figures "1876", the year Colorado came into statehood.
(c) (1) Use of the official seal shall be limited to official business of the House, other official legislative business, or business by a member in his or her official capacity as an elected member of the House. The official seal may not be used by any other entity or individual.
(2) The official seal may not be used on any political campaign materials.
(3) A person may not use the official seal for any purpose once the person ceases to be a member of the House.
(d) Matters concerning the unauthorized use of the official seal shall be referred by the chief clerk to the House services committee for action.
(e) Under Rules 3 and 43 of these rules, the Speaker and the chief clerk of the House shall be the custodians of the official seal.