Colorado Politics’ Marianne Goodland delivers the news that Colorado lawmakers are eyeing a special session to plug a looming $500 million–$600 million hole in the state budget, which they blame on Congress’s newly passed federal budget bill—even though nonpartisan analysts say the state was already staring at a deficit before President Trump’s signature deal landed on Gov. Polis’s desk .
The Bullet Point Brief
- Federal Fumble: The new GOP “megabill” is set to slash Colorado revenue by an estimated $500 million–$600 million in FY 2025-26, mostly from tax policy changes and higher SNAP costs—cue the crocodile tears from the Capitol .
- Polis’s Pity Party: Gov. Jared Polis laments that the state “can’t make up for the funding loss” from Trump’s budget—but conveniently omits that Colorado was already in the red before July 1 .
- Preexisting Predicament: OSPB warned of a nearly $700 million structural shortfall and potential TABOR cap breaches even without federal cuts or an economic downturn .
- Democratic Deflection: JBC Chair Sen. Jeff Bridges insists a special session is “almost certain” and pins the finger on Trump and Colorado’s GOP delegation—meanwhile, some Dems are itching to blame TABOR, the very brake that’s kept the state from full-on socialist skid .
- Kirkmeyer’s Reality Check: Senate GOP leader Barbara Kirkmeyer scoffs at the blame game, noting the deficit was baked in pre-federal bill, and urges a 10 percent across-the-board cut—excluding Medicaid, education, and child welfare—to claw back roughly $500 million .
My Bottom Line
Colorado doesn’t have a revenue problem—it has a spending addiction, and Democrats are scrambling to scapegoat Trump, Congress, and even TABOR for their own budgetary binge. Senator Kirkmeyer’s 10 percent haircut proposal is the fiscal slap in the face this state sorely needs, and TABOR—the one thing keeping Colorado’s spending sprawl from socialism—must be defended tooth and nail.
