The Denver Post’s Nick Coltrain reports that Gov. Jared Polis unveiled his last full budget, a $50.6 billion request for 2026–27, and he wants to clamp down on Medicaid’s rapid growth while again eyeing a Pinnacol privatization payday. The article lays out the stakes. Medicaid has doubled the allowed growth rate under TABOR, the general fund inches up, and there is yet another billion-dollar gap for the legislature to close.
Polis also revives his push to privatize Pinnacol Assurance, which his office says could net at least $400 million to help backfill priorities like the homestead exemption. Whether the legislature bites is a separate political soap opera.
The Bullet Point Brief
- The top line is big. Polis proposes more than $50.6 billion total spending; the general fund would rise from roughly $18.2 to $18.6 billion. That is a lot of commas.
- The hole is back. Early forecasts show nearly a $1 billion gap between plans and TABOR’s cap. Same circus, pricier tent.
- Medicaid is the budget boa constrictor. It has been growing around 8.8% vs TABOR’s 4.4% average, which squeezes everything else.
- Polis’ fix list. Cap dental at $3,000, expand prior auth, and tweak home health payments. Bureaucracy as diet plan.
- Pinnacol… again. Privatization could throw off at least $400 million, but expect a legal and political brawl. Cash now, drama later.
My Bottom Line
The governor points at Medicaid, and sure, it deserves a hard look. But this runaway started on his watch while benefits were added and costs were allowed to sprint past TABOR. That is policy choice, not gravity. During his tenure as Gov, Polis signed legislation funding healthcare via Medicaid for illegal aliens, abortions, and gender affirming care – those are choices that can be cut. But the legislature won’t, because, well, virtue signaling to a socialist base is more important.
We are once again staring at a billion-dollar gap. The usual scapegoats will come out of storage. TABOR. Trump. The weather. Meanwhile, roads and classrooms keep getting treated like the state’s side hustle. Cut spending, sunset programs that were juiced with temporary COVID cash, and stop pretending vibes can balance a ledger. If you want relief, make government smaller and focused. And for once, I agree with the governor on one thing. Privatize Pinnacol. The private sector can run an insurer better than a committee with a gavel.
Source: The Denver Post
