Budget

Sales & Use Tax Holiday Disaster-preparedness Item

House Bill13-1150

Testimony to the House Finance Committee
George Awuor, Policy Analyst
Feb. 14, 2013

The number of working families living in poverty in Colorado increased by 16,000 from 2004 to 2012 – a jump of almost 50 percent, the Bell Policy Center reports in Measuring Opportunities for Working Families, released today. In addition, the portion of all Colorado working families living in poverty increased from one in 17 to one in 12 over the same period.

The number of working families living in poverty in Colorado increased by 16,000 from 2004 to 2012 – a jump of almost 50 percent, the Bell Policy Center reports in "Measuring Opportunities for Working Families." In addition, the portion of all Colorado working families living in poverty increased from one in 17 to one in 12 over the same period.

Reported Business Fiscal Impacts

SB13-20

Rich Jones, Director of Policy and Research

Testimony to the Senate State Veterans and Military Affairs Committee

January 16, 2013

Thank you for the opportunity to submit this testimony to the committee.

The General Assembly opened its 69th session on Wednesday, a mostly ceremonial day that featured speeches from the majority and minority leaders outlining their broad goals and policy objectives for the 120-day session.

By Kevin Simpson
The Denver Post

Colorado plans to expand Medicaid coverage next year to cover more than 160,000 additional low-income adults, aided by cost-control savings of more than $280 million over the next 10 years, Gov. John Hickenlooper announced Thursday.

"This is a step toward what we have talked about for a couple of years: How can we make sure we're making Colorado the single healthiest state in America?" Hickenlooper said.

Today, Gov. John Hickenlooper announced plans to proceed with expansion of Medicaid in Colorado as part of the Affordable Care Act. Beginning in 2014, Coloradans will be eligible for enrollment in Medicaid if their annual incomes are less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level – $30,657 per year for a family of four or $14,856 per year for an individual.

By Tim Hoover
The Denver Post

Twenty years after Coloradans approved the most restrictive tax and expenditure limitation in the country, the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights has reshaped state government and sparked debate on similar proposals across the country and now is under greater assault than ever before.

Economists gave state lawmakers good news about Colorado's economy and state revenues in their quarterly forecasts to the Joint Budget Committee today.

Colorado's economy is growing at a steady pace and is outperforming the U.S. economy. In fact, it was growing faster during the summer months than previously thought. The data used for the September forecast has been revised upward, showing stronger growth in jobs and income, according to Natalie Mullis, the Legislative Council Staff's chief economist.

By Beth Potter
Boulder County Business Report

The clock is ticking for the Affordable Care Act to go into effect in 2014. The federal health-care reform legislation will require all uninsured Americans to buy insurance or face penalties as well as a host of other things. The new rules were passed by Congress and signed into law in March 2010.

There's been a lot of discussion in popular culture about health-care reform, and whether it causes existing health-insurance costs to go up or down.