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Tag: Budget deficit

Jeffco Schools Seek $135 Million Tax Hike to Address Deficit and Facility Needs
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Colorado Public Radio, Approved, Local

Jeffco Schools Seek $135 Million Tax Hike to Address Deficit and Facility Needs

By Melanie Asmar | CPR News Faced with a looming deficit, Jeffco Public Schools is weighing whether to ask voters in November to approve a $135 million tax increase. A community advisory group has recommended the funding be used for teacher salaries, career and technical education programs, technology, and safety and building upgrades. If voters approve the measure, property taxes would increase by $3.58 per month on every $100,000 of a home’s value, according to a district presentation. Although Jeffco is Colorado’s second-largest school district with 74,000 students, it spends less money per pupil than several other metro districts, according to state data. Part of the reason is that Jeffco voters have approved fewer tax increases, known as mill levy o...
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RTD faces $250M deficit as taxpayers ask where the money went
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ScottKJames.com, Approved, Commentary, State

RTD faces $250M deficit as taxpayers ask where the money went

By Scott K. James | Commentary, ScottKJames.com RTD may have real financial trouble, but riders and taxpayers deserve plain answers before service cuts or another ballot ask. Here is a sentence every taxpayer understands: Great, so I may get less service and still be asked for more money. That is the kitchen-table translation of RTD’s latest problem. Denver7 reports that the Regional Transportation District board is looking at ways to close a $250 million budget deficit, including possible service reductions and a future ballot measure for more revenue. RTD says it has been operating at a deficit since federal COVID-19 relief money ran out in 2024, and the current path is not sustainable. Well, yes. Temporary money has a bad habit of being temporary. I reali...
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Taxpayers on the Hook When Government Programs Cost More Than Promised
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Complete Colorado, Approved, Commentary, State

Taxpayers on the Hook When Government Programs Cost More Than Promised

By: Nash Herman | Commentary, Complete Colorado Colorado’s state budget is structurally unsustainable, which majority Democrats say could be fixed by ending voter consent over new taxation or by increasing taxes on Colorado residents through a progressive income tax.  While those suggestions would certainly increase state revenue, they are unlikely to fix Colorado’s ongoing budget deficits.  Meanwhile, taxpayers often learn too late that programs are vastly exceeding costs; programs like Cover all Coloradans, Healthy School Meals for All, and the wolf reintroduction scheme were all revealed to be more expensive than initially advertised to voters.  Why do programs end up being so much more expensive than advertised?&n...
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Colorado Legislators To Receive Raises During $1.5 Billion Budget Crisis
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Legislators To Receive Raises During $1.5 Billion Budget Crisis

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Colorado’s $1.5 billion budget deficit is driving widespread cuts across state services, including reduced reimbursement rates for Medicaid providers and steep income losses for families caring for relatives with intellectual and developmental disabilities. However, as those reductions take effect, an automatic pay increase for state lawmakers — triggered by a 2024 change in law — remains scheduled to begin in 2027. When Gov. Jared Polis signed House Bill 1333 on Monday, the measure included a salary increase for legislators. The bill does not reference this pay raise directly, nor is it mentioned in either of the bill’s fiscal analyses. The increased salary, along with higher per diem and mileage rates, is expe...
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The Bell Colorado Voters Refuse to Hear
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

The Bell Colorado Voters Refuse to Hear

By C. J. Garbo | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado is not experiencing a surprise budget crisis, it is experiencing the predictable result of a decade of voter signals. As a recent exile, I can speak with new objectivity. Your legislature responds to incentives. Always. If you reward expansion of government, it expands. If you tolerate fiscal opacity, it deepens. If you ignore constitutional guardrails, elected officials learn they can ignore them too. The current 1.2 billion dollar budget shortfall did not appear overnight. It is the logical outcome of a political training program voters themselves created. Yes. Created. When voters repeatedly elect candidates who promise new programs without demanding sustainable funding, the legislature learns something ...
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Polis Budget Plan Seeks To Keep Your TABOR Refund To Close Colorado Budget Gap
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Polis Budget Plan Seeks To Keep Your TABOR Refund To Close Colorado Budget Gap

By Marianne Goodland | The Denver Gazette Tucked deep within the hundreds of pages of the proposed $46.8 billion 2026–27 state budget is a line item showing $306.1 million in savings — achieved by canceling TABOR refunds. Gov. Jared Polis has recommended withholding TABOR refunds in both 2026–27 and 2027–28. His budget proposal says the state accidentally overpaid $306.1 million in refunds during the 2025–26 fiscal year. According to the governor’s office, the overpayment stemmed from federal budgetary changes that affected how the state calculated revenue for 2024–25. Those revised calculations led to higher-than-appropriate refunds being issued in 2025–26, according to the Polis administration. The request argued that if the federal budget’s impact on 2024–25 ...
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Partisan Divide Sharpens Over Colorado Spending Plan As $46.8B Budget Moves to Senate
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

Partisan Divide Sharpens Over Colorado Spending Plan As $46.8B Budget Moves to Senate

By Marissa Ventrelli | The Denver Gazette The battle over Colorado’s proposed $46.8 billion spending plan for next year shifted to the state Senate, which must decide whether to acquiesce to changes made by the House. The senators could also decide to adopt their own changes, which would force the two bodies to reconcile their differences. The state constitution requires a balanced budget, although that rarely stays balanced for long, and this year, lawmakers must plug a deficit of more than $1 billion. The proposed budget is actually bigger than the current year’s spending plan, driven by Medicaid costs. In the Senate, the budget is sponsored by Joint Budget Committee members Sens. Jeff Bridges, D‑Greenwood Village, Barbara Kirkmeyer, R‑Brighton, and Judy Amabi...
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Colorado budget showdown: GOP forces full reading of 661-page bill, halting debate
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado budget showdown: GOP forces full reading of 661-page bill, halting debate

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics A procedural battle at the Colorado Capitol boiled over on Wednesday night, when a House Republican demanded the 661‑page state budget be read aloud in full — a move that delayed the advance of the proposed $46.8 billion spending plan. Colorado legislators are constitutionally required to adopt a balanced budget each year. For next year’s budget, they are grappling with $1.5 billion deficit in general fund dollars, compelling them to cut spending and reexamine programs, particularly in Medicaid, the major factor driving the deficit. In addition to the state’s Medicaid woes, Democrats have blamed Congress for Colorado’s fiscal woes, arguing the federal budget changed the revenue equation and caused the state budget to go unbalanced. Republic...
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Lawmakers Weigh $300M Pinnacol Split To Shore Up State Budget
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Lawmakers Weigh $300M Pinnacol Split To Shore Up State Budget

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics The panel of Colorado legislators in charge of crafting next year’s budget has finalized the 2026–27 spending plan built on deep cuts and one‑time cash transfers in an attempt to close a shortfall of more than $1.2 billion. The plan is leaving lawmakers frustrated with the reductions to core services. Some cited cuts to health care programs for children and families, though others argued the spending plan “protects what matters most.” That $1.2 billion figure comes from the governor’s economic forecast. The legislature’s economists, however, warned of an even bigger deficit at around $1.5 billion. A combination of factors have led to Colorado’s budget woes. Democrats have pointed to the congressional budget approved last ...
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Lawmakers Face Tough Choices As Medicaid Spending Explodes Crushing State Budget
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Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Lawmakers Face Tough Choices As Medicaid Spending Explodes Crushing State Budget

By Nico Brambila | Colorado Politics The state’s Medicaid program — which covers about one in four Coloradans — is poised for its largest single-year jump in at least two decades, with officials proposing a $2.3 billion increase, even as lawmakers face a $1.5 billion budget shortfall. The data shows Medicaid enrollment has grown steadily, while spending has increased far more rapidly — more than fivefold since 2007. As lawmakers begin work this week on next year’s budget, they will have to grapple with Medicaid spending, which has overtaken K-12 education as the largest line item in the state budget. “What’s even more alarming, over the past five years, Medicaid expenses have averaged 19%,” said state Rep. Rick Taggart, a Grand Junction Republican. “This ...
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