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Lake County staff briefs commissioners on final state budget, CORA veto override prospects and attorney general contingency funds
Summary
Staff reported the state budget was finalized and en route to the governor, noted major cuts to the Department of Transportation, described a possible veto-override effort on a CORA change and said Democrats set aside $4 million for anticipated federal lawsuits to the attorney general.
County legislative staff updated the Lake County Board of County Commissioners that the state budget is finalized and on its way to the governor as the legislature nears adjournment. "Today marks exactly 2 weeks until session ends," staff member Elizabeth said, and the joint budget committee chose the more favorable forecast that left more room for appropriations.
Staff said the largest budget reductions fell to the Colorado Department of Transportation. The joint budget committee prioritized protecting K-12 and higher education and health-care provider rates. Elizabeth noted that Senator Kirkmire, a former county commissioner who sits on the joint budget committee, provided advocacy to protect local health department administrative funding.
Staff warned commissioners that special sessions could be required if federal actions reduce Medicaid funding or if other federal developments force the state to rebalance. "If he makes cuts, that puts us out of balance here in Colorado. We'd have to come in and rebalance," Elizabeth said, referring to possible federal actions.
On transparency legislation, staff said the governor vetoed a modest CORA (Colorado Open Records Act) change intended to allow combining duplicate requests; staff reported limited success counting votes for an override and said the effort did not appear likely to succeed at the time of the work session.
Staff also said Democratic legislators were setting aside $4,000,000 for the Colorado Attorney General in anticipation of federal lawsuits, and cautioned commissioners this is a politically sensitive period with potential federal-state tensions. Finally, staff noted the lodging tax bill the county supported had passed at a 5% rate.
