Energy was the focus of several bills in the 2024 Colorado legislative session, including one that set new emissions standards and industry regulation practices and another that assessed a fee on oil and gas production.
The 2024 Colorado legislative session made historic achievements on taxation, support of education, transportation funding, and energy development and air quality.
Work on state income taxes and local property taxes were bipartisan efforts, while legislation on transportation and energy development were less so.
And bills on land use and housing and on gun control were driven by the Democratic majorities in both chambers.
Here’s a quick look at the top issues.
Local Property Taxes
Introduced May 6 and finally passed in the waning hours of the last day, May 8, SB 24-233 reduces valuations for both residential and commercial property, makes other changes in the tax system, and creates separate valuation systems for school districts and for all other local governments. Proponents hope the bill will mollify conservative interest groups that have been pushing ballot measures that could damage state and local finances. But leaders of those groups have said they’re keeping their options open.
SB 24-233 was passed into law on the final day of this year’s session. The bipartisan bill will reduce property tax valuations, saving the average homeowner roughly $500 a year.
State Taxes
Gov. Jared Polis has long advocated for reducing state income tax rates. Democratic legislators have resisted that idea while at the same time thinking up creative ways for tapping the TABOR surplus to fund policy goals through mechanisms such as tax credits. SB 24-228 tweaks the methods used to pay TABOR refunds, starting with the 2023-24 surplus, by reinstating temporary income tax rate cuts.
Other bills that passed will have the effect of reducing the TABOR surplus. Among them are $33.8 million in senior tax rebates (HB 24-1052); a $136 million expansion of the earned income tax credit for lower-income taxpayers (HB 24-1134), and up to $684 million for other credits for lower-income Coloradans with children (HB 24-1311).
Energy Development and Transportation Funding
Polis brokered a deal under which Democratic legislators killed some air quality bills the oil and gas industry didn’t like in exchange for the industry pulling the plug on some threatened ballot measures. Lawmakers did manage to pass SB 24-229, which sets some new emissions standards and industry regulation practices, and SB 24-230, which assesses a fee on oil and gas production. That’s projected to raise $109 million—to be used mostly for transportation projects.
Here’s a look at the other big issues.
Education Funding
House Speaker Julie McCluskie did some masterful deal-making to pass a major reform of the state’s K-12 funding formula—a goal that has eluded legislators for years.
McCluskie’s HB 24-1448 basically reorders and adjusts the factors that are used to calculate the customized amounts of per-student funding allocated to individual districts. The intention is to direct more funding to at-risk students. The plan would increase overall K–12 spending by $571.3 million by 2030-31.
The other signal accomplishment of 2024 was passage of a 2024-25 school funding package (HB 24-1430 and SB 24-188) that doesn’t include use of the Budget Stabilization Factor to trim school funding. Total K-12 funding next year will be $9.73 billion, $561.7 million higher than this school year’s funding.
House Speaker Julie McCluskie was able to pass new legislation that would increase overall K–12 spending by $571.3 million by 2030-31.
Land Use and Housing Costs
The failure of Polis’ single, omnibus land use bill in 2023 caused a shift of tactics for the 2024 session, but multiple bills on the issue were introduced and passed this year. Here’s a look at key bills:
- HB 24-1313—This complex measure, intended to encourage development of transit-oriented housing, was the centerpiece of the housing legislation.
- HB 24-1007—This ban on local laws setting residential occupancy limits was one of the first housing bills to pass.
- HB 24-1152—Some local governments will have to ease restrictions on construction of accessory dwelling units under this bill.
- HB 24-1098—Renters will gain greater protection against evictions under this bill.
- SB 24-094—This measure sets standards for habitability of rental units.
- HB 24-1304—This proposal to limit the power of local governments to require parking in residential developments was significantly watered down.
There also were successful bills to limit the powers of homeowners’ associations. But attempts to change construction defects laws failed.
Gun Control
Legislative Democrats moved aggressively on this issue, but with somewhat mixed success.
The highest profile measure, the HB 24-1292 proposed ban on assault weapons, was killed by its Senate sponsor when it became clear it wouldn’t pass.
The most sweeping proposal, SB 24-131, originally proposed a ban on carrying weapons in almost any public space. It passed after being narrowed to a ban on carrying weapons in some government buildings.
Bills that passed included a requirement for training to get concealed carry permits (HB 24-1174), secure storage of guns in vehicles (HB 24-1348), and licensing requirements for firearms dealers (HB 24-1353).
And Then There’s The Budget
The state budget for next year includes $42.88 billion in total spending, including $16 billion from the tax-supported General Fund, $11.52 billion cash funds, and $12.52 billion federal funds.
Key takeaways from the budget include:
- Most of the increase went to medical and human services programs.
- A 3 percent raise for state employees, along with approval of a step merit pay system.
- A 2 percent increase in the rates paid to medical professionals and others who provide services to the state.
The committee funded higher education more generously than the governor had requested, and resident tuition increases were capped at 3 percent and non-resident at 4 percent.
Other Issues and Bills
As happens every year, lawmakers pack as many issues as they can into their 120-day session. Here are some other bills of interest that passed:
Driving while texting – SB 24-065 prohibits use of cell phones while driving, with exceptions for hands-free devices.
Front Range rail – SB 24-184 would increase rental car fees to raise about $55 million a year for transit projects.
Immigrant aid – Hotly contested in the session’s final days, HB 24-1280 establishes grants for community organizations that help integrate immigrants.
Mortuary regulation – In response to recent scandals, SB 24-173 establishes state regulations of funeral directors and other mortuary workers.
Motorcycles – SB 24-079 will allow motorcycles to “lane split” in certain circumstances.
Right to repair – HB 24-1121 would require companies to make it easier for customers to repair appliances and devices.
Student preferred names – HB 24-1039 requires schools to use students’ preferred names even when they haven’t been changed legally.
And here a few of the notable measures that didn’t make it:
Police Conduct—HB 24-1460 would have strengthened existing laws on police misconduct but died in a rare tie vote on the House floor.
Regional Transportation District (RTD)—HB 24-1447 started as a bold plan to reform the transit agency and more closely integrate it into state transportation planning but went through multiple amendments and still died.
Safe Injection Sites—HB 24-1028 would have allowed cities to allow such centers to open.
The Stats
The 2024 legislative session saw 705 bills introduced, 472 in the House and 233 in the Senate, a high for recent years. Here’s how they sorted out:
525 bills were passed
105 bills were postponed indefinitely, Capitol jargon for defeated
75 bills died because they hadn’t been acted on when the legislature adjourned or were otherwise killed
The Northeast Denver delegation
Northeast Denver’s five legislators, all Democrats, played key roles in the 2024 session.
Rep. Jennifer Bacon (House District 7) was assistant majority leader and a prime sponsor of the school finance reform bill. She also was a prime sponsor of the police whistle-blower bill that died on the House floor.
Sen. James Coleman (Senate District 33) spent a lot of time presiding over Senate debates as president pro tempore and also was a prime sponsor of one of the tax credit bills aimed at helping lower-income taxpayers.
Sen. Chris Hansen (Senate District 31) was one of the main architects and dealmakers on the property tax reform bill.
Rep. Leslie Herod (House District 8) is the only member of the delegation who won’t be back because she’s term limited. She was a prime sponsor of the failed police whistle-blower bill but also of a successful bill to regulate police use of prone restraint (HB 24-1372).
Rep. Steven Woodrow (House District 60) was a prime sponsor of the transit-oriented development bill.
Todd Engdahl is founder of Capitol Editorial Services, which provides private clients with research, reports and news on the state budget and other issues at the legislature. He’s a former executive city editor of The Denver Post, launched DenverPost.com and was co-founder of the website Education News Colorado.
Stock photos from Adobe
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