(The Center Square) – The Colorado Senate began a debate on the “Long Bill” that details the state’s $46.8 billion budget for the next fiscal year before the whole chamber on Wednesday afternoon.
The Long Bill, House Bill 26-1410, was passed by the House over the weekend. Lawmakers are grappling with cuts to programs funded by the general fund as the state faces a $1.5 billion shortfall.
The Senate majority Democratic caucus met on Tuesday, while the minority Republican caucus met on Wednesday morning to discuss their strategy and amendments.
Sen. Judy Amabile, D-Boulder, a member of the Joint Budget Committee, told the majority caucus on Tuesday that the decisions on Medicaid spending cuts were “extremely hard and difficult.” Among the cuts the JBC decided on were 2% to health care provider reimbursement rates, the Colorado Sun reported.
“We took the people who are using the services the most, because they are the most medically fragile, and then we cut benefits for them,” Amabile said. “I would really like for us to take another look at Medicaid through a slightly different lens and figure out if there is a way for us to do some cost sharing, if there is a way for us to do some utilization management for the people who actually are the healthiest, and who maybe could withstand some cut to what they’re receiving.”
Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, R-Weld County, a JBC member, told her caucus Wednesday that she believes she was able to get the best deal she could being in the chamber’s minority.
“I know folks don’t think the Long Bill goes far enough in getting cuts,” she said. “I will tell you it was the best deal that I could get coming from the minority working with Rep. [Rick] Taggert and with our colleagues across the aisle. There’s a lot of give-and-take that takes place. There’s a lot of give-and-take in this budget.”
Among some amendments Republicans are seeking are one to transfer over $700 million from the state’s film office to the Veterans Assistance Grant Program. Another amendment by Sen. Marc Catlin, R-Montrose, sought to express that general funds should only be used for wolf management, not introducing more wolves. Catlin said he is pulling his amendment and joining Sen. Dylan Roberts, D-Frisco, on a similar one.
The Common Sense Institute, a free-enterprise research group, has documented the Colorado government’s recent spending growth. The state’s per person spending has gone from $5,580 in fiscal year 2006 to $7,308 in fiscal year 2026. Since 2015, the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, which oversees Medicaid in the state, has increased spending by 101%.
Another recent report by the Independence Institute found that the general fund has grown 44% since fiscal year 1993-94.
