2026 27 State Budget
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Colorado’s $46.8 billion budget nears finish line
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The Colorado Senate on Thursday voted largely along party lines to approve $46.8 billion in spending for the next state budget. The spending plan is bigger than what legislators originally approved for the current fiscal year’s budget, driven by increases in Medicaid costs. The proposal saw changes from a dozen amendments during debate Wednesday, but…
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Colorado Senate reworks key programs, gives preliminary nod to $46B budget
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With the Senate’s traditional Budget Day barbecue setting a lighter tone, lawmakers worked through the $46.8 billion state budget Wednesday, navigating a long list of amendments but avoiding the partisan clashes that defined the House debate last week. The Senate first moved through 44 of the 64 “orbitals,” which are bills that adjust state law…
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After internal strategy sessions, Colorado Senate to take up $46B budget debate
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Tax Day carries added weight at the state Capitol this year, as the Senate prepares to take up the 2026‑27 budget on Wednesday following a day of preparations by both Republican and Democratic caucuses. Senators are expected to raise some of the House amendments from last week’s debate, as well as their own ideas. On…
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Colorado House finishes work on 2026-27 state budget, finally
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The House on Saturday, after four days of work – it usually takes two – finished up their work and voted on the $46.8 billion 2026-27 state budget, as contained in House Bill 1410 and 64 accompanying measures designed to help balance the budget. The delay in getting to the finish line was caused by…
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What you need to know about the Colorado legislature reading a 661-page bill aloud
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A rarely used procedural move by a Republican legislator threw the Colorado House into an extended slowdown, after she invoked her right to have a nearly 700-page state budget bill read aloud in full. Once Rep. Brandi Bradley, R‑Roxborough Park, made the request, the House was required by law to read House Bill 1410, which…
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Colorado lawmakers grapple with spending cuts amid $1 billion-plus deficit
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The battle over Colorado’s budget for next year — which stalled in the House over a procedural maneuver — entered a more difficult phase on Thursday, when legislators grappled with hundreds of millions of dollars in proposed reductions to balance the budget. The state constitution requires a balanced budget, although that rarely stays balanced for…
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House GOP stalls Colorado budget debate by forcing full reading of 661-page bill
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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…
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Colorado House opens debate on $46.8B budget already showing strain
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With rising Medicaid costs, no dollars set aside for new legislation and dozens of bills still seeking funding, Colorado lawmakers on Wednesday began debating the proposed $46.8 billion budget that is already proving difficult to keep on track. By the time the main budget measure and its 64 accompanying “orbital” bills — which rely on…
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Colorado House Democrats focus on prison costs in budget discussions
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Colorado’s House Democrats pressed budget writers Tuesday over a nearly $70 million increase for the Department of Corrections, questioning why the state plans to add 941 prison beds and explore new prison capacity at a time when, they said, crime rates are falling and hundreds of inmates are eligible for parole. The majority of the…
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Inside the GOP caucus: Colorado legislator explains why a bigger budget still means cuts
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Tasked with explaining a budget driven by rising caseloads, shifting federal dollars and a $1.5 billion shortfall, Joint Budget Committee member Rep. Rick Taggart spent Tuesday’s Republican caucus meeting detailing why the 2026–27 spending plan appears larger on paper, even as many state programs face cuts. “If I look a little tired, I am,” Taggart…