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State Issues
Colorado Wasteful Spending (FY 2024-25)
Department of Corrections: $ 7,995,411 Increase 28.3 FTE
● Transgender Unit and Healthcare
- $2,677,911 to create two transgender living units totaling 148 beds.
- $5,317,500 for “gender-confirming surgical care.
●Clinical Staff Incentives
- $6,312,464 General Fund to provide incentive payments for certain DOC clinical staff up to $25,000.
- The bill includes an increase of $6,312,464 General Fund to provide incentive payments for certain DOC clinical staff up to $25,000.
●HB 24-1389 School Funding 2023-24 for New Arrival Students (immigrants): $24,000,000
- The bill provides $24,000,000 to be distributed to school districts and charter schools for new arrival students. It increases state expenditures and school district funding in the current FY 2023-24 only.
● Office of New Americans Expansion (immigrants): $119,029 General Fund and 1.5 FTE
- $119,029 General Fund and 1.5 FTE for an administrator to manage ONA grants, coordinate with other entities, and identify opportunities for new migrant career pathway enhancement and a full-time program assistant to support the ONA Director.
-This office has had difficulty expending grants.
●SB 24-182 Immigrant Identification Document Issuance: $ 122,855
- The bill changes certain requirements for the issuance of driver licenses or state identification cards to individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States. The bill increases state expenditures for FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26 only.
●HB 24-1280 Welcome, Reception, Integration, Grant Program:
$ 2,436,862
- The bill creates the Statewide Welcome, Reception, and Integration Grant Program to provide assistance to migrants. It transfers funds in FY 2024-25 only.
●Immigrant Legal Defense Fund: $ 350,000
- Long Bill budget amendment
- A doubling of the fund for FY 2024-25 making a total budget of $700,000. This funding is used for public defense for people facing immigration legal issues. Sponsored by Rep. Mabrey and Sen. Gonzalez.
●Office of Health Equity and Environmental Justice: $ 2,840,715
- Funding for the Office
- Mission: Build partnerships to mobilize community power and transform systems to advance health equity and environmental justice.
- What this office does to advance their mission:
1. Build relationships with communities and across sectors to address root causes of health disparities.
2. Use equity in decision-making and partner with all sectors of government to embed health and equity considerations into their decision-making process.
3. Use data to support the narrative of the social determinants of health and tell the story of what creates health.
4. De-center communications from the English language or any one dominant language, and prioritize language justice when engaging with communities.
5. Develop, implement, and provide guidance on health equity training, practice, and policies within CDPHE and across the state of Colorado.
6. Focus on upstream determinants of health, guided by the Bay Area Regional Health Inequities Initiative.
●HB 24-1197 Department of Public Safety Supplemental: $ 9,800,000
- Funding for Community-based organizations providing service for migrants.
- Funds to provide grants to community-based organizations providing services to people migrating to Colorado.
●Department of Education: $ 56,100,000
- Expanding Healthy Meals for All Program.
- Adds $56.1 million total funds for the Healthy School Meals for All Program, including $40.6 million from the Healthy School Meals for All Program General Fund Exempt Account and $15.5 million from the General Fund. This includes an increase of $56.0 million for meal reimbursements and $100,000 for consulting resources.
●HB 21-1318 Department of Public Health & Environment: $ 198,192
- Outdoor Equity Program
- This bill injected identity politics into access to the outdoors.
●Department of Public Health & Environment: $2,840,715 total funds and 8.3 FTE
- Creating the Office of Health Equity and Environmental Justice by combining two offices.
- The bill includes an increase of $2,840,715 total funds and 8.3 FTE, including a reduction of $11,349 General Fund, to join the Environmental Justice Program with the Office of Health Equity to form the Office of Health Equity and Environmental Justice (OHEEJ) for the purpose of centralizing environmental justice staff. OHEEJ is responsible for ongoing environmental justice work, including administration of environmental health mitigation grants through the Community Impact Cash Fund.
●Department of Revenue: $714,515 total funds and 8.3 FTE
- GENTAX & DRIVES SUPPORT FUNDING: The bill includes an increase of $714,515 total funds and 8.3 FTE, comprised of $442,906 General Fund and $271,609 cash funds from the Colorado DRIVES Vehicle Services. Account, in FY 2024-25. Funds will address the backlog of upgrades and system enhancements to the DRIVES and GenTax systems stemming from legislative, user experience, and system operational demands.
Congressman Jeff Hurd: Are you Committed?
The Meet and Greet:
On April 1, 2026, I attended a meet and greet event for Congressman Jeff Hurd. I arrived late after spending time on the campaign trail for my own bid for City Council.
Leftist Protesters and RINO Optics:
Reports later surfaced of protesters from the left gathered outside before the event began. I found this somewhat comical. Those on the right often view Hurd as a Democrat with an “R” next to his name. One would have expected protesters from the right, given reports about how he secured his position on the 2026 primary ballot.
Jeff Hurd is no friend of President Trump as far as I can tell based on his actions, not his words. As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. It seems the left will protest anyone bearing an “R”, even if the MAGA crowd labels him a RINO.
Grilling the Congressman on Local Issues:
During the event, I questioned the congressman directly about his stances on the Gunnison Outdoor Resources Protection Act (GORP), water issues, his history of slighting the local GOP since his election, and his questionable alliances. These include associations with figures like Don Coram and Sue Hansen, who have fallen out of favor with Republicans. Coram has shown left-wing leanings on issues such as child sex education. Hansen made a late-night exit from the GOP to become unaffiliated, apparently to avoid ethics censure for her role in a recall effort against a fellow commissioner. Such involvement raises serious concerns under Article XXIX of the Colorado Constitution. That article declares that public officers and local government officials must avoid conduct that violates their public trust or creates a justifiable impression among the public that such trust is being violated. She returned just in time for the GOP caucus and assembly, where her influence was soundly rejected.
The Primary Challenge and Trump’s Request:
The core issue with Congressman Hurd is that he has placed the GOP in a difficult position. He has successfully worked to eliminate the threat of a primary challenge. President Trump reportedly asked CD-3 challenger Hope Scheppelman to step aside for now. This was to secure Hurd’s support for passing the President’s agenda through the mid-terms, given the slim Republican majority in the House. However, there is a movement afoot and at the GOP state assembly being held April 11, 2026, there is sure to be a nomination from the floor of the assembly to bring forth a challenger to Hurd.
The 98% Record and the Problematic 2%:
While Hurd may boast a record that is 98% in line with the President, it is that critical 2% where he diverges that creates the real problem. His decision not to support the censure of Rep. Ilhan Omar stands out. Hurd has defended it as a First Amendment issue and dismisses any connection to shared affiliations with groups like AIPAC. The optics, however, do not support such a dismissive view. Common sense suggests otherwise.
Upholding Constitutional Principles:
Congressman Hurd needs to stop using tactics to try and force the President’s agenda to be watered down when it is aligned with constitutional principles. Nobody is asking for anyone, least of all this author, to undermine the constitutional foundation of our Republic. We need to ensure that the Constitution is paramount and front and center in all we do and any legislation that is considered. Members of Congress swear an oath under Article VI, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution to support and defend it.
While no one agrees with another person 100% of the time, the congressman’s core values appear far from aligned with the Republican agenda on key issues. These are the matters that count when it comes to preserving the foundations of our Constitutional Republic. Voters in Colorado’s Third District deserve representation that honors that oath in full, not in part. Colorado and the nation deserve better than a politician who uses the Republican label while failing to advance what is right for our state and our country.
Michael J Badagliacco, “MJB”
