Education & Resources
POLICY UPDATES AND EDUCATIONAL ARTICLES TO HELP ORGANIZATIONS THRIVE
 Governor’s Budget Proposal
On Friday, Governor Polis released his 2026-27 budget request. In his request, the general fund portion of the budget would be set at $18.2 billion which is a 2.3 percent increase from last year. The proposal also included cuts to almost every executive department, totaling a reduction of $25 million. The biggest takeaway from the Governor’s budget request is the need for Medicaid reductions. Colorado’s Medicaid expenditures have grown substantially in the last ten years, and now accounts for roughly one-third of state budget expenditures. Polis’ budget request proposed $200 million in Medicaid reductions for 2026-27 with matching reductions for the current fiscal year. These reductions will be made by limiting services for Medicaid members, which will put most of the reductions on Medicaid providers. The other big takeaway from the Governor’s budget request is that the concept of privatizing Pinnacol, Colorado’s public workers’ compensation insurance division, is still on the table. This idea has also been brought up in previous years, especially last year when lawmakers were grappling with the budget shortfall. Privatizing Pinnacol would free up between $300 and $500 million for the state. The proposal also includes an increase of $276 million for K-12 education, accounting for the new school finance formula which is in its second year of implementation. The Governor’s budget allows colleges and universities to increase tuition by 2.6 percent for in-state and 3 percent for out-of-state students. This would raise nearly $82 million more. He also includes $14.2 million for salary increases. Other areas of budget increases include the Department of Corrections, the Department of Revenue, and the Department of Public Safety. The Governor raised eyebrows late last week when he abruptly cancelled a meeting with the JBC members about his budget proposal. JBC members were notably frustrated because they wanted to discuss the Governor’s proposal of using $10 million from the general fund reserve to cover SNAP benefits. The Joint Budget Committee will begin reviewing Governor Polis’ budget request on November 12. Full Budget Request Read more – Gov. Jared Polis’ budget proposal takes aim at Medicaid spending, eyes Pinnacol spin-off – again Read more - Gov. Jared Polis abruptly cancels unpublicized meeting with Joint Budget Committee Representative Bird Steps Down from JBC and Other Changes Early this morning, it was announced that Representative Shannon Bird would step down from the Joint Budget Committee (JBC). Bird served as Vice Chair of the JBC and had been on the committee for two years. Representative Kyle Brown is set to replace Bird on the JBC. Brown previously served as chair of the House Health and Human Services committee, and will be replaced by Representative Lindsey Gilchrist. He also served as a member of the House Energy and Environment committee. Brown’s new role on the JBC opens up a seat on each committee he formerly served on, so there will be some shuffling around on Democratic committee assignments. Bird stepping down wasn’t necessarily unexpected, as she’s running for Colorado’s highly competitive 8th Congressional District, which will have an equally competitive Democratic primary. That being said, this goes to show the unique landscape of Colorado’s budget situation given that next year is an election year. Two other JBC members (Senators Barb Kirkmeyer and Jeff Bridges) are pursuing statewide seats that will also have difficult primaries which includes other legislators. All this to say, it’s very possible the JBC and budget issues could become more political this year than in previous years because of the competitive races – particularly primaries – we will see next year. Press release: Speaker McCluskie Appoints Rep. Kyle Brown to the Joint Budget Committee Comments are closed.
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