The pay gap made national news after the women’s US Soccer team won the world cup. Meanwhile, a commission designed to deal with this very inequality expired in Colorado rather unceremoniously.

Not long after Lily Griego was hired as an inspector for Jefferson County, a local paper published all the employee salaries in the name of government transparency. It was through this publication that Lily realized, despite her previous 10 years of government experience, she was the lowest paid of the four inspectors. The other woman who had tenure only made only a tad more, and both men on the team made significantly more money.

Pay inequity is a stubborn problem. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in January that the pay gap between men and women is widening, with women in Colorado earning 77.9 cents for every dollar earned by men. Colorado women are paid a median weekly wage of $762 versus a median weekly wage of $978 for men. The numbers are even more dismal for women of color — with Black women making 67.5 percent, Native American women making 56.3 percent and Latina women 52.5 percent of what Colorado’s white men make.

Pay inequity is an expensive problem. Collectively, the pay gap costs women and families billions nationally, meaning less money to make ends meet today and a less secure retirement tomorrow, as well as less money to contribute to the economy.

Pay inequity is also a complex problem, with many contributing factors. Members of 9to5 Colorado can tell you about them.

For Shelby, it was needing to take unpaid time off work to care for her family and falling behind on her rent as a result.

For Deb, it’s being unable to get a job after she came out as transgender, ending up penniless and homeless.

For Lily, it was old-fashioned discrimination, being paid thousands of dollars less than her male co-workers for the same work..Some pundits claim that the pay gap is due to women’s choices. But while women may choose to work in professions like nursing, teaching or childcare, we don’t choose to struggle economically as a result. The reality is that jobs done predominantly by women are valued and paid less than jobs done predominantly by men, even when they require the same level of skills, effort and responsibility, and have comparable working conditions. Those who care for our children and elders are paid less than those who care for our cars.

It is unacceptable that a pay gap exists and even worse that it’s widening in the state of Colorado. Despite that, and despite some bipartisan support when the bill passed through the House, Republicans on the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee voted along party lines to kill House Bill 1133, which would have extended the Colorado Pay Equity Commission that sunsetted on July 1.

Without a Commission, there will be no government focus on solving the problem of pay inequity in Colorado. The State of Colorado should be a leader on the issue of pay equality. When it sunsetted, the Commission was working on a pay equality module for a statewide financial literacy curriculum — a powerful way to connect pay equality to economic and workforce development. Thanks to a handful of Colorado legislators, we are now taking a step in the wrong direction.

The Pay Equity Commission was an easy way for Colorado to be a leader on this issue. When women do well, our families, communities and local businesses do well. It’s time for our elected officials to take a stand and take action to combat gender and race pay discrimination, to ensure that women and families have the money we need to make ends meet and participate fully in the state’s economy.

Linda Meric is the national executive director of 9to5 National Association of Working Women.