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Pitkin County staff preview 2026 legislation; commission asks for draft letter on wildlife-crossing reauthorization
Summary
County staff outlined key state and federal bills ahead of the Jan. 14 legislative session, asked for direction on outreach to a member of Congress about a wildlife-crossing reauthorization, and summarized pending items ranging from vulnerable-road-user funding to landfill methane rule changes.
Pitkin County staff on Jan. 6 briefed commissioners on a slate of state and federal proposals expected in the 2026 legislative session and sought direction on outreach and advocacy steps.
Levi Borscht, the county’s management analyst, opened the briefing by noting the session begins Jan. 14 and that the county will run recurring legislative updates. "January 14, the 2026 legislative session opens for 120 days," he said, and he offered to run biweekly updates and to coordinate advocacy through outside counsel.
Staff highlighted a bipartisan reauthorization to move the Wildlife Road Crossing Act from a pilot program to permanent annual funding that would annualize $200 million per fiscal year for infrastructure described in the bill; staff said the measure’s authors are likely to bundle it into broader surface-transportation reauthorization and recommended staff draft a letter for Representative Hurd to encourage cosponsorship. Commissioners asked staff to run the draft by counsel and to return for board review before sending.
Other items on staff’s list included: a proposal to add $5 to the Keep Colorado Wild vehicle-registration opt-in to fund vulnerable-road-user projects (details and fiscal notes pending); a Colorado Energy Office concept to impose an opt-in county fee on new internal-combustion-vehicle sales to subsidize EV purchases; Regulation 31 (state rulemaking on landfill methane) that potentially requires surface-emissions monitoring at large landfills (Pitkin County received a three-year extension to 2029); and a set of public-safety and open-space bills from neighboring counties (including Title 33 changes to close enforcement gaps on county-managed open space).
Commissioners generally supported staff drafting language on the wildlife-crossing reauthorization with counsel review before seeking formal endorsement. They asked staff to follow up on the fiscal implications of other bills (including potential conflicts for federal transportation priorities) and to keep the board apprised as draft legislation and fiscal notes become available.
Why it matters: Several pending bills could affect county grant opportunities, land-use authority, open-space enforcement and funding priorities; staff emphasized monitoring fiscal notes and coordinating advocacy timing.
What’s next: Staff will circulate draft letters and trackers and continue biweekly updates during the legislative session.
(Reporting based on the Pitkin County BOCC work session legislative briefing, Jan. 6, 2026.)
