Colorado lawmakers debate $150M education cuts, impact on school budgets
The Colorado Joint Budget Committee is addressing K-12 education funding, with several members expressing concerns about what they say amounts to $150 million in cuts to public schools.
Adams 12 Five Star Schools is one of the districts worried about the proposed budget, which officials say could disproportionately affect districts experiencing declining enrollment or limited property tax revenues.
At the center of the debate is the state's approach to managing student counts. Some educators argue that the governor's proposed funding formula could significantly impact districts facing unique financial challenges.
"It's a decrease in K-12 funding, which is not acceptable," committee member and Republican State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer said. "We have a constitutional mandate to fund education, and we have a constitutional mandate to fund it, plus inflation. So I'm going to make sure that we fund it."
The governor's office defended the proposal, saying it ensures funding is allocated to students where they are enrolled.
"Colorado remains a complete outlier when it comes to using a pupil count from three years ago to fund this year's students," a spokesperson said.
After CBS News Colorado's story aired, the Governor's Office disputed the characterization of the proposed cuts. A spokesperson sent the following statement:
"Amendment 23 requires per pupil funding to go up by inflation each year. Our proposal does that and more by increasing funding to implement the new formula. This is not cutting K-12 on a per-pupil basis year over year and such is not bringing back a negative factor. Our proposal increases average per pupil funding by $299 from $11,448 in FY 2024-25 to $11,747 in FY 2025-26 and results in a $48.4 million increase to K-12 funding."
