Building a stronger, safer, and more affordable Colorado by delivering more housing now, improving transit, making Colorado a top ten safest state, fully funding our schools, providing Coloradans with real tax relief, and protecting our environment for future generations
DENVER - Today, Governor Polis, joined by legislative leaders, celebrated the highly successful 2024 legislative session where he and the General Assembly addressed the issues Coloradans care most about, following through on promises made during his 2024 State of the State address.
“During the 2024 legislative session, we tackled the issues that keep Coloradans up at night. By addressing the high cost of housing, making historic investments in transit, saving Coloradans billions on their property taxes, cutting the income and sales tax rates, fully funding schools, and making Colorado safer, we are building a stronger, more affordable Colorado. I’m thrilled by the bold progress we have made this year and thank the legislators for their continued commitment to ensure Colorado remains the best state to live in,” said Governor Polis.
“This legislative session has been nothing short of transformational for our families and communities,” said Senate President Steve Fenberg, D-Boulder. “Coloradans demanded that we take bold action to address the issues that matter most to them, and I am pleased to say we delivered. Democrats passed legislation that will boost Colorado’s transit system and protect our clean air and water, make housing more affordable, and finally fully fund our schools for the first time in over a decade. I am proud of all we’ve accomplished together.”
“This year we set out to make Colorado a more affordable place to live, work and raise a family,” Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez, D-Denver. “Today, I’m proud to say that the legislation we passed this year achieves that goal and then some. From passing transformational tax credits that deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in relief to low and middle income families to implementing new protections for gig workers to boosting our workforce across industries, I’m extremely proud of the work that Democrats put in over the last 120 days to build on our progress and set Colorado on a path to a more prosperous future.”
“This was a breakthrough session on affordability, housing, transit, water, education, transit and so much more,” said Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon. “I’m so proud of our bipartisan efforts to increase funding for Colorado public schools by over $500 million and modernize the school finance formula for the first time in a generation to better support vulnerable students and rural schools. New laws will save Coloradans money on housing and property taxes, better protect renters and slash childhood poverty by increasing tax credits for hardworking people and families. From protecting our rivers, streams and wetlands to boosting rural economies and Colorado agriculture, we came together the Colorado way to deliver lasting results for every community in our state.”
“This session was huge. On issue after issue, lawmakers came together and passed policies that were years in the making,” said House Majority Leader Monica Duran, D-Wheat Ridge. “From preventing gun violence and protecting workers to boosting the incomes of hardworking people and preventing evictions, we made Colorado safer and more affordable for all. I’m particularly proud of the work of our Black and Latino Caucuses who passed critical legislation to support vulnerable people, improve maternal health and make Colorado a welcoming place for everyone who calls our state home.”
MORE HOUSING NOW
Governor Polis has been committed to creating more housing options that Coloradans can afford near work and transit. This year, Governor Polis, in partnership with the legislature, delivered on this vision to create more housing Coloradans can afford. Through legislation that:
- Gives Coloradans the freedom to build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on their own property
- Gets rid of unfair occupancy limits
- Creates housing options near transportation
- Lets seniors downsize without risking their tax exemptions
- Ensures that we are planning for the future and working together so that Colorado grows sustainably and affordably for future generations
- And eliminates unnecessary parking requirements that increase housing costs
Governor Polis delivered on promises he made in his Roadmap to a Future Colorado 2026. This work includes $58 Million dollars in the state budget to create more housing Coloradans can afford.
CUT TAXES
This session Governor Polis and the General Assembly are saving Coloradans historic amounts of money on their taxes, including cutting income and sales taxes for all Coloradans, keeping their hard-earned money in their pockets. Through a major bipartisan deal to cut property taxes, the average Colorado homeowner will save roughly $500 on their property tax bill next year. Legislation passed this year also:
- Cuts the income and sales tax rates for Coloradans
- Give families tax credits to help them thrive in Colorado
- Increases the Earned Income Tax Credit to support working families.
- Creates tax credits to help seniors afford their homes
- Provides support to critical child care and health care workers
FULLY FUND SCHOOLS AND SUPPORT OUR WORKFORCE
Governor Polis and legislators are making a historic investment to provide the support Colorado students and educators deserve, including making a two-year degree or two years of higher education free for students at or below the state's median income and updating the school finance formula to focus resources on students. The state budget includes another per pupil funding increase to provide an additional $17,000 per K-12 classroom on average, strengthening Universal Preschool, and fully funding Colorado schools for the first time since 2009 by eliminating the Budget Stabilization Factor and passing full mill levy equalization. Building on this strong budget, legislation passed this session will:
- Update the school finance formula for the first time in 30 years, creating a more student-focused way to fund our schools
- Make Coloradans’ first two years at a public four-year institution, or local community or technical colleges free for families earning up to $90,000 per year
- Create Colorado’s third medical school and strengthen Colorado’s healthcare and veterinarian workforces to help Coloradans and their pets get the care they need
- Provide science teachers with free professional development
- Support apprenticeship opportunities, in innovative sectors like health care and IT
- Increase transparency around and opportunities for students to participate in postsecondary and workforce readiness opportunities
- Ensure students can more easily transfer credits earned from one institution to another
- Create the fourth round of Opportunity Now to build stronger workforce pathways to fill high-demand jobs
- Invest in the building and equipment costs needed to expand our state’s training capacity for in-demand fields
- Fund grants to ensure students are prepared to succeed in high school
CLEANER AIR, BETTER TRANSIT
Governor Polis and legislative leaders made historic investments in improving and expanding access to reliable, low-cost transportation in Colorado, getting cars off the road, and protecting our air. Additionally, Governor Polis, state leaders, and environmental and industry leaders reached a consensus agreement to avoid expensive and divisive ballot measures. Legislation passed this session will:
- Create production fees on oil & gas to fund clean transportation and land restoration and conservation across the state
- Strengthen pollution reduction and air quality goals to protect our environment
- Create funding for Front Range Passenger Rail to connect our communities and protect our clean air.
- Make public transit free for youth and support Zero Fare for Cleaner Air, which increases public transit ridership, protects our air, and saves Coloradans money
- Empower local communities to save Coloradans money by adopting efficient alternatives to natural gas, including geothermal heating and cooling
- Break down barriers and reduce costs to build a more resilient and affordable grid and expand access to electricity across the economy.
- Cut through red tape to support local and tribal governments and industry with siting and permitting of renewable energy projects.
- Secure Colorado’s water future by ensuring Colorado’s access to clean water
COLORADO AS ONE OF THE TEN SAFEST STATES
Governor Polis is committed to making Colorado one of the top ten safest states through data-driven investments. Governor Polis invested $30 million in the state budget to crack down on auto theft and continue moving Colorado in the right direction, fund proven crime prevention strategies, support victims, protect schools, and more. Legislation passed this session will:
- Give the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) the tools it needs to stop illegal gun activity across the state
- Prevent human trafficking
- Protect victims of sexual assault
- Create gun-free schools and other public spaces
- Allow law enforcement to identify concerning firearm purchases before tragedies occur and more
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