(And Yes, We Found It In the Couch Cushions)
Colorado lawmakers are about to lock themselves in a special session cage match because they’ve managed to spend themselves $1 billion into the red.
Cue the finger-pointing, cue the “hard choices” speeches, cue the “we just need more revenue” crocodile tears.
Well, guess what? We did your homework for you. We found your billion. And unlike your staff memos written in bureaucrat-ese, this cut list is in plain English – with receipts. Brace yourselves, this will be long, but I’ll give you a TL, DR version right up front…
TL;DR: Colorado’s in a $1 billion budget hole, but the fixes are hiding in plain sight. Half the problem vanishes if the state quits showering illegal immigration with taxpayer-funded goodies—$352M on inflated K-12 costs, $97M on bloated healthcare programs like OmniSalud, $90M in college financial aid, plus millions more for driver’s licenses, “welcome” grants, and even taxpayer-funded lawyers. Total savings: $577M. That’s more than halfway to balanced without touching a single classroom or cop car.
The rest? Easy. Auction off boutique green tax credits for $90M, take a one-year holiday on the fluffiest credits for another $250M, and trim 0.5% of bureaucratic fat for $85M. Boom—another $425M. Add it up, and you’ve got just over $1B in cuts, no tax hikes required. For once, lawmakers even have a bill draft (LLS 25B-0027.01) that treats tax credits like what they really are—spending. Pause them when money’s tight, sell a few for upfront cash, and stop acting like candy-store clerks with taxpayer wallets. Balanced budget, done. You’re welcome.
Step One: Pull the Plug on Illegal Immigration Freebies = $577,250,000
In recent years, Colorado’s been on a mission to blur the hell out of the line between citizenship and eligibility for government freebies. And surprise – when you hand out benefits like Halloween candy, someone’s gotta pay the tab. Spoiler: it’s you.
The Legislative Council Staff (aka the people paid to quietly panic on paper) dropped a report that barely scratches the surface of the fiscal dumpster fire smoldering beneath Colorado’s budget – thanks in large part to the tidal wave of undocumented residents putting pressure on state and local coffers.
What’s inside that report? Oh, just a greatest hits list of overspending, mission creep, and government programs that have evolved from “helping hand” to “bottomless pit.” Below is a breakdown of the most facepalm-worthy findings, paired with the original dollar amounts rubber-stamped by the General Assembly. I’ve also thrown in some bonus context on how these programs started and how far they’ve wandered from their original purpose – because nothing says “accountability” like watching your tax dollars get lit on fire in slow motion.
Health Care Spending on Illegal Immigration: $96,800,000
House Bill 22-1289: Health Benefits for Colorado Children & Pregnant Persons (sheesh, you can’t even say ‘Pregnant Women’ while you burn our cash)
This bill claims it’s about helping moms and babies, but most of the cash is getting sucked into bureaucracy. Think more office chairs and admin drones than actual healthcare. HCPF’s (Health Care Policy and Finance) hiring a small army just to push paper, outreach alone costs $750K a year (with $500K going to consultants billing like they’re heart surgeons), and they’re blowing over $13 million on computer code. If we’re footing the bill for non-citizen healthcare, maybe—just maybe—don’t set it on fire first.
The price tag on this bill just did a nice little inflation dance – up 32% next year and 44% the year after. What started as expensive is now full-blown “hope you weren’t attached to your wallet.” Total costs? Nearly $6 million in 2024-25 and a jaw-dropping $18 million the year after. Government budgeting: where numbers only go up and logic goes to die.
Senate Bill 20-215: Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise
This bill birthed the Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise and paved the way for OmniSalud – a program handing out low-to-no-cost insurance to low-income illegal immigrants. First year? 10,200 enrollees racked up a $57.8 million tab, with 92% of them in the priciest plans. Congrats, taxpayers – you’re now sponsoring platinum-tier coverage for people who aren’t here legally.
OmniSalud enrollment barely ticked up to 11,000 in 2023—but the cost? That exploded to $73 million. That’s a hell of a price jump for 800 extra people. Some of it’s “covered” by carrier fees and federal funds, but let’s be real—it’s still your money doing backflips into a bottomless pit. Oh, and they’re playing legal hopscotch around TABOR by calling it an “enterprise.” Bonus: taxpayers also get hit with a $13.9 million tab for uncompensated care in 2025. What a deal!
2025 Supplemental Increase for Uncompensated Care: $13,900,000
K-12 Education Spending on Illegal Aliens: $352,350,000
Colorado has around 558,000 foreign-born residents, including about 32,000 K-12-aged kids. But here’s the kicker: the state doesn’t even track students’ citizenship status – because apparently ignorance is fiscal policy. So instead of actual data, the analysis leans on ratios and estimates.
Legislative Council Staff guessed that 6% of the foreign-born population is undocumented (about 33,500), which is laughably low considering Denver alone got hit with 40,000 migrants this year. Staff say a more accurate undocumented population is closer to 162,000, and using a standard 15% under-18 estimate, that puts the number of undocumented students at 24,300 – way above LCS’s 10,000 figure.
Now, with the base per-pupil funding at $8,500, and extra costs for translation, materials, and remedial instruction, undocumented students are clocking in around $14,500 per head. Using calculations from HB 24-1389, that puts the added cost at $352.35 million – roughly 3.6% of Colorado’s entire $9.7 billion education budget.
Translation? If this keeps up, the General Assembly may need to drag the Budget Stabilization Factor out of its grave, because the cost of educating and assimilating undocumented students is getting wildly unsustainable.
Higher Education Assistance Cost: $90,200,000
Legislative Council Staff flagged a massive blind spot: Colorado opened up in-state tuition and financial aid to undocumented students – but thanks to privacy laws, no one can say exactly how much it’s costing. So they guessed.
Out of 162,000 undocumented residents, about 36,500 are aged 18–25. Using the average college enrollment rate of 39%, that means around 14,200 undocumented students are likely in Colorado higher ed. With median financial aid awards at $6,350 a pop, that puts the estimated taxpayer tab at $90.2 million.
So yeah, we’re handing out financial aid like candy, but apparently, it’s rude to ask who’s eating it.
House Bill 19-1196: Financial Aid for Students With In-State Tuition
Current law already lets undocumented students qualify for in-state tuition, College Opportunity Fund stipends, and some aid, because why stop at a discount when you can hand out freebies too? This bill cranks it up further, making them eligible for even more state-funded financial aid through the Department of Higher Ed. So yes, taxpayers are now officially sponsoring college dreams with zero questions asked about legal status. Cheers!
House Bill 22-1155: In-State Tuition for Colorado High School Graduates
This bill makes it even easier for students, regardless of status, to snag in-state tuition. It scraps the old rules about needing three years of Colorado schooling and enrolling within a year of graduation. Now, all you need is a diploma or GED from a Colorado high school and 12 months of couch-surfing in the state. Basically, the bar just got lowered like it’s doing the limbo.
Undocumented Drivers Licenses: $19,100,000
Getting state IDs and driver’s licenses into the hands of undocumented residents in Colorado has taken some legislative gymnastics – because nothing says “public safety” like bending over backwards for votes.
Senate Bill 13-251: Driver’s License & Identification Documentation
- This bill allowed for undocumented residents to receive identification cards and driver’s licenses at three locations.
- Fiscal Impact Since Passage in 2013: $3,100,000
Senate Bill 19-139: More Colorado Road And Community Safety Act Offices
- This bill expanded the location from 3 to 10.
- Fiscal impact Since Passage in 2019: $5,600,000
Senate Bill 24-182: Immigrant Identification Document Issuance
- This bill changed certain requirements for the issuance of these driver’s licenses or state identification cards.
- Fiscal impact Since Passage in 2024: $1,700,000
Office of New Americans and New Immigrants: $2,800,000
House Bill 21-1150 created the Office of New Americans (ONA) – basically a taxpayer-funded PR firm for all things immigration. It acts as the go-between for state agencies, nonprofits, and anyone else with a stake in the immigration game. It also handles refugee resettlement with federal dollars. For FY 2024-25, it’s costing Colorado $365,000 from the General Fund, not including refugee services or immigration legal defense, which come with their own price tags. Bureaucracy doesn’t come cheap.
Because handing out benefits wasn’t enough, the General Assembly passed HB 24-1280 to fund the “Statewide Welcome, Reception, and Integration Grant Program” – a $2.5 million taxpayer-funded hug for new migrants. The money goes to community groups helping newcomers navigate services in their native languages within a year of arrival. Translation: arrive, apply, and get a guided tour – on the house.
Legal Counsel/Immigration Legal Defense Fund: $2,100,000 ($700,000 annual General Fund appropriation)
Colorado shells out big for legal defense – $238 million in FY 2024-25 – for anyone too broke to hire a lawyer, including undocumented residents. Add another $33.5 million for child welfare cases, $2.4 million for guardianships, and a state that has no clue how much of this is going to non-citizens because they don’t track immigration status (how convenient).
Oh, and let’s not forget the cherry on top: a $700,000-a-year Immigration Legal Defense Fund created by HB 21-1194, dished out through the Office of New Americans to cover court costs for undocumented folks. Justice may be blind – but apparently, it also doesn’t ask for papers.
Subtotal from Step One: $577M
Step Two: Crack Open the Tax Credit Piggy Bank
The presented draft legislation LLS NO. 25B-0027.01 for the Special Session already gave you the keys. Time to use them.
Auction green tax credits – $90M (one-time)
Sell off those boutique credits (heat pumps, e-bikes, electric lawnmowers). The Department of Revenue can raise up to $30M each. That’s $90M cash into the General Fund. Lobbyists can buy them back later.
Suspend/prorate boutique credits – $250M
Section 3 of the draft bill lets you “pause” nonessential credits when times are tight. Take a one-year holiday on the fluffiest ones. Savings: $250M.
Subtotal from Step Two: $340M
Step Three: Trim the Bureaucratic Fat
A 0.5% across-the-board admin trim (excluding public safety) saves $85M. That’s a couple fewer consultants and some canceled DEI retreats. Colorado will survive.
Subtotal from Step Three $85M.
Grand Total: ~$1.002 Billion
- Illegal immigration freebies: $577M
- Credit auctions + suspensions: $340M
- Bureaucracy trim: $85M
Done. Balanced. Without raising taxes. Little old me (with some help from my friends currently behind the battle lines under the Gold Dome). Just like that scene from the movie Dave.
Colorado lawmakers finally stumbled onto a grown-up idea with this draft bill (LLS 25B-0027.01): stop handing out unlimited tax credits like candy, and actually tie them to the state’s bottom line. When revenue is tight, credits get paused or trimmed – simple, responsible, and fair. Better yet, the state can sell a batch of future credits now, raising tens of millions for the General Fund without raising a dime in taxes. In other words, it’s budget discipline without the tantrums – plugging the $1B hole by treating credits like what they really are: spending, not free money.
