The writers of the Colorado Constitution were smart in a way that even the Founding Fathers weren’t. They knew that if any work was going to get done in the Capitol, the legislative session would have to have a hard cap on the number of days it convenes.

Unlike in Congress, the conclusion of the legislative session means any new bills will have to wait another year.

So it was on Wednesday, the 120th day of the Colorado General Assembly, that lawmakers from both parties finally got down to finding compromise on several of the sticky topics that have been facing them – and creating uncertainty among a wide range of interests across the state.

For instance, while the issue called the “hospital provider fee” may have seemed to be a narrow one regarding the health care industry, rural hospitals and legislators, it carried ramifications that influenced the entire state budget. Implemented as part of the state’s response to the Affordable Care Act, the hospital provider fee has generated hundreds of millions in revenue for the state – enough to trigger provisions in the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.

Read more at The Loveland Reporter-Herald.