In the development of the FY 2024-2025 state budget, Boulder County asks for the support of the General Assembly in maintaining or increasing appropriation levels for the following important areas.
AGING
Home and Community-Based Services: Support funding to ensure essential services for people aging in place and children and adults with disabilities, including the Governor’s budget request ($53 million) to increase wages of direct care workers.
AIR QUALITY AND CLIMATE ACTION
Improved Air Quality: Support the Governor’s budget request ($14 million) for funding for programs that reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions and implement and enforce environmental justice initiatives.
COMMUNITY HEALTH
Local Public Health Agencies: Local Public Health Agencies such as Boulder County Public Health are the backbone of preventative health programming across Colorado. Boulder County supports the Governor’s budget request ($15 million) to continue investment in Colorado’s public health infrastructure.
COMMUNITY AND JUVENILE JUSTICE
Preventing Youth Involvement in the Juvenile Justice System: Support continued funding for the IMPACT Partnership, preventing involvement of children and young people in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
Competency: Support the Governor’s budget request ($75 million) to reduce the state’s competency waitlist and comply with the consent decree, ensuring that people involved in the criminal justice system receive the competency services they need.
EARLY CHILDHOOD
Equitable Access to Early Childhood Care and Preschool: Support efforts to increase access to affordable high quality early childhood care and preschool, including supporting early childhood care providers and enhancing the Colorado Child Care Assistance Program.
EDUCATION
Teacher Pay: Support increased school finance funding to ensure teachers in Colorado are compensated at a level to improve recruitment and retention.
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE
Strengthen Enforcement and Compliance: Support the Governor’s budget request ($6.1 million) for increased air, water, and hazardous waste enforcement and compliance efforts to protect historically disadvantaged communities.
FOOD SECURITY
Food Access: Support funding and other efforts to ensure equitable food access for children and adults in Colorado as food prices and other basic living costs continue to rise.
LANGUAGE ACCESS
Early Childhood: Support the Governor’s budget request ($0.3 million) to continue the bilingual early childhood care provider program at the Colorado Department of Early Childhood.
HOUSING
Affordable Housing: Support the Governor’s budget request ($35 million) to provide funding for affordable housing tax credits and infrastructure funding for transit-oriented community housing.
MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH
Access to Care and Child Welfare Placements for Children and Youth with High Acuity Behavioral Health Needs: Support the Child Welfare System Interim Study Committee High Acuity Crisis for Children and Youth bill and Governor’s budget request ($29 million) to increase access to high levels of care and child welfare placements for children and youth.
TRANSPORTATION
Transit-Oriented Communities: Support the Governor’s budget package that includes funding to incentivize the development of transit-oriented communities and increased funding for transit.
Fare Free Transit During Ozone Season and Free Fares for Youth: Support the Governor’s budget request ($14 million) to provide permanent funding for free transit services to improve air quality and increase youth access to transit.increased funding for transit.