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The Long Bill Narrative, which is the annual appropriations act, is prepared by staff to explain funding decisions recommended by the JBC to the rest of the General Assembly.  This document is a companion document to the actual Long Bill.  The narrative outlines budget changes based on the introduced version of the Long Bill.

Report No. 2025-TE5

In Colorado, the state administers programs addressing both the quantity of water available for municipal, agricultural, industrial and recreational uses, as well as the quality of treated water for drinking and wastewater. The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) administers the funds and programs related to water quantity, while the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment regulates the quality of treated water and wastewater.

Focus Colorado presents forecasts for the economy and state government revenue through FY 2026-27. Implications of the forecast for the state's General Fund budget and spending limit are described in the report's highlights and executive summary sections. The report is based on current law, legislation passed by the General Assembly affecting the forecast is described throughout the report.

Report No. 2025-TE4

This memorandum presents the 2025 Legislative Council Staff forecast for the state public institutions of higher education. The forecast provides projections of resident and nonresident full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment and College Opportunity Fund (COF) FTE enrollment for the current fiscal year (FY 2024-25) and budget year (FY 2025-26). The forecast also includes projected tuition revenue for FY 2024-25.

Report No. 2025-TE3

In December 2024, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced that it is suspending the publication of monthly employment, unemployment, and wage statistics for Colorado due to data quality concerns, beginning with data for January 2025. Colorado is the only state whose data are affected. Select measures of employment and wages will continue to be reported on a quarterly basis, published five months after the end of each quarter.

According to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a high-quality bus-based transit system that delivers fast and efficient service that may include dedicated lanes, busways, traffic signal priority, off-board fare collection, elevated platforms and enhanced stations. BRT is considered by many transit planners as a cost-effective way to increase transit ridership, reduce wait times, and increase rider safety and comfort.

Colorado House Bill 16-1192 repealed and reenacted § 2-3-1203, Colorado Revised Statutes, effective April 14, 2016.  Due to the repeal and reenactment, the source note information as it existed prior to April 14, 2016, was also removed.  For those seeking the historical information regarding the enactment of and subsequent changes to § 2-3-1203, the source note information for the section as it existed prior to April 14, 2016, is printed below.

Source: L. 86: Entire section added, p. 403, § 1, effective March 26.

Colorado House Bill 16-1192 repealed and reenacted § 24-34-104, Colorado Revised Statutes, effective April 14, 2016.  Due to the repeal and reenactment, the source note information as it existed prior to April 14, 2016, was also removed.  For those seeking the historical information regarding the enactment of and subsequent changes to § 24-34-104, the source note for the section as it existed prior to April 14, 2016, is printed below.

Each year, the General Assembly is tasked with balancing constitutional, statutory, and federal requirements with competing policy priorities, caseload pressures, and the health of the state’s economy in order to create a budget. This document is intended to serve as a primer on Colorado’s budget and some of the factors that help shape it.

As the energy industry diversifies and demand to decarbonize the economy increases, interest in nuclear energy has increased in recent years. Any future nuclear energy development will involve next generation technology, which differs from traditional nuclear energy projects. This issue brief discusses the role of nuclear power in Colorado energy policy, advances in nuclear energy techology, and factors that may impact future policy decisions.

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Report No. 2025-TE2

The Supplemental Narrative is prepared by the staff to explain proposed adjustments to prior year appropriations recommended by the JBC to the rest of the General Assembly.  This narrative describes all of the proposed budget changes statewide, by department, and by program, and provides detailed calculations of the spending and revenue limits.  This explanation does not reflect any subsequent changes to the Supplemental Bills as they are amended by the Senate or House of Representatives.

In accordance with Section 24-34-802 (1)(c)(II), C.R.S., The Colorado General Assembly Digital Accessibility Report outlines the ongoing efforts made by the staff of the legislative branch of the State of Colorado to improve and maintain a digital landscape that is inclusive and accessible to everyone, including its ongoing accessibility efforts to meet or exceed accessibility standards.

This report will be updated quarterly through July 2025.

Term Limit Information for Members of the Colorado House of Representatives

This memo presents recent Legislative Council Staff (LCS) findings regarding the implications of the current-law calculation method for population growth used to determine the TABOR growth limit, which has the effect of not adjusting the TABOR limit for population growth or decline that the Census Bureau identifies in its revised estimates. The current population growth calculation method does not usually impact the TABOR limit.

Colorado receives annual payments from tobacco manufacturers as part of the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). The Tobacco MSA was reached in 1998 between certain tobacco manufacturers (known as “participating manufacturers”) and the governments of 52 states and territories. Under the MSA, participating tobacco manufacturers were released from health‑related claims associated with their products in exchange for making perpetual annual payments to states.

This memorandum provides information on state government enterprises under Article X, Section 20 of the Colorado Constitution, also known as the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). From FY 1993-94 through FY 2023-24, over 30 state government entities had received enterprise status for at least one fiscal year. In FY 2022-23, the most recent year for which financial data are available, enterprise revenue totaled $23.3 billion.

This memorandum provides an overview on the federal immigration system, Colorado’s role in immigration, and patterns of immigration in the state and nationally. It then discusses the impact of immigration on different sectors of the economy and state government programs and services, and highlights recent state legislation to address these issues.

A recall is a process that allows voters to remove and replace an elected official before the official’s term ends. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Colorado is one of 19 states that allow for the recall of state and local elected officials.