Colorado legislature to start 2026 session on Wednesday

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(The Center Square) – On Wednesday, the Colorado General Assembly will kick off its 2026 legislative session.

This will be the second regular session of the 75th General Assembly, as Colorado prepares in 2026 to mark its 150th anniversary of statehood.

The Colorado General Assembly remains strongly controlled by Democrats, who maintain a trifecta in the Centennial State.

In the state Senate, there are 23 Democrats and 12 Republicans. In the state House, there are 41 Democrats and 22 Republicans.

This means that Democrats are gearing up for another chance to pass significant Democrat-backed legislation in the 120 days of the session.

Some of the areas that legislators are prepared to look at include bills related to housing affordability, artificial intelligence regulation, and other regulatory and affordability bills that seek to lower the cost of living for Colorado residents.

Senate Minority Leader Cleave Simpson, R-Alamosa, said he is looking forward to the new legislative session.

“My priority for this session is simply: Listen first, bring people together, and work towards practical solutions that make life better for families across our state,” Simpson said.

This year, the Colorado General Assembly will be faced with a unique budgetary challenge, which includes dropping revenue and an unbalanced budget.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, has already submitted a series of budget amendments and supplements for the legislature’s approval. The proposal included budget supplements totaling $48.6 billion in total funds and $18.2 billion general fund requests for fiscal year 2025-2026.

Then, for fiscal year 2026-2027, there are an amended $50.5 billion in total funds and $18.5 billion in general fund requests.

This came following an $800 million gap in Colorado’s funding, following the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Congress passed July 1.

Now, in the coming months, the Colorado legislature will have to make decisions about how the state’s budget might be impacted in the long term.