.png){kind=logo}
DENVER, CO — The House today will consider the FY 2025-2026 supplemental budget package on a preliminary vote.
“Congressional Republicans blew a $1 billion hole in our state budget over the summer, and now we’re navigating difficult choices to protect core services amidst a significant shortfall and increased Medicaid costs,” said JBC Chair Rep. Emily Sirota, D-Denver. “With the risk of a recession growing under the Trump Administration, we have taken a responsible approach to mitigate the harm from H.R. 1 by cutting spending, using some of our state’s rainy day fund and closing corporate tax loopholes. This supplemental budget package implements a number of the spending reductions that started in October under the governor’s executive order and protects funding for K-12 education and Medicaid eligibility, so Coloradans aren’t kicked off their health care coverage.”
“The truth of the matter is that H.R. 1 cut our 2025-2026 state budget by $1 billion, and now we’re faced with difficult choices to clean up this mess caused by Congressional Republicans and President Trump,” said JBC Member Rep. Kyle Brown, D-Louisville. “Our supplemental package protects the core programs and services Coloradans rely on, and implements the necessary spending cuts the governor identified after last year’s special session. Our supplemental budget package would be a lot less painful if Gabe Evans, Jeff Crank, Jeff Hurd and Lauren Boebert hadn’t voted for massive corporate tax cuts at the expense of Coloradans, but that’s not the reality we face.”
Last year, the legislature appropriated $16.9 billion from the General Fund for the 2025-26 fiscal year (the current budget year). In July 2025, Congressional Republicans passed H.R. 1, which drastically cut state revenue by roughly $1.2 billion for the 2025-26 fiscal year. The majority of the tax cuts went to very wealthy individuals and corporations, who received significant federal tax breaks as well. During August’s special session, Colorado Democrats led a responsible plan to close corporate tax loopholes, reduce some spending and dip into Colorado’s reserves in response.
This supplemental budget package implements the spending reductions proposed by Governor Jared Polis to balance the 2025-2026 budget. As a result, the supplemental package contains significant reductions compared to a typical year, totalling approximately $140 million across state departments, even as Medicaid utilization and caseload costs grew by nearly $170 million. According to a non-partisan analysis by Joint Budget Committee staff, “Colorado faces a structural deficit despite significant efforts to restrict spending and come into balance.”