Colorado Budget to be Introduced with $1.5 Billion Shortfall

I’d love to hear YOUR thoughts. What do you think SHOULD be cut from the budget? Or what are you concerned WILL be cut?

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The state budget, what is also referred to as the “Long Bill”, is expected to be introduced this week down at the Colorado State Capitol in Denver.

Colorado is currently facing a roughly $1.5 billion shortfall. This is the worst financial situation our state has ever been in. EVER.

When you’re dealing with a gap like that it forces tradeoffs across the entire budget, impacting what gets prioritized, what gets reduced, and what gets pushed down the road.

What is clear from the drafts of their budget work is that some of the biggest cost drivers, especially Medicaid, continue to grow, and that’s putting pressure on everything else. It’s also clear there is a pork barrel spending problem across a rapidly growing bureaucratic state.

To make the numbers work, lawmakers are looking at scaling back or delaying funding in other areas. Some are programs that probably should have never existed in the first place, but other cuts are much more questionable and will be painful for families. I am going to be digging into both of those to make sure the public knows where their tax dollars are being spent.

What concerns me is that instead of addressing those underlying cost pressures, we’re seeing more short-term balancing just to get through this year. This might look good on paper but it is not the long term solution we need.

Understanding how to manage growth, control costs, and make thoughtful decisions is practical work that requires discipline. It’s also something I’ve spent decades doing as a career in my work as a controller and fractional Chief Financial Officer.

Dig into the budget yourself: content.leg.colorado.gov/content/budget

Stay tuned, and make sure you’re following along. I’ll keep you updated as we go.