Colorado Highways Bond Bill Advances In State Senate

DENVER (AP) — A bill to ask Colorado voters to approve a $3.5 billion bond issue to improve underfunded roads has passed its first hearing.

The GOP-led Senate Finance Committee voted 3-2 along party lines Thursday to send the bill to the Appropriations Committee.

As far as road funding goes, it's seen as a GOP response to Democrat-led efforts to loosen state spending limits set by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights.

Republicans favor bonding, not new taxes, to pay for critically needed road improvements. They point to a $1.7 billion bond issue in 1999 that paid for improvements to I-25 and other projects.

The state Department of Transportation says it needs $1 billion more than it has each year to improve — not just maintain — Colorado's highways.

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