The monthslong fight over Colorado’s education budget is inching closer to the finish line. 

Although districts could end up receiving less money than they were promised by lawmakers last year, many educators are breathing a sigh of relief over the new finance formula.

Colorado lawmakers approved the School Finance Act on Wednesday with a vote of 57-8, sending the state’s new school funding formula to Gov. Jared Polis’ desk as it waits to be signed into law. Just weeks before, Polis signed a $43.9 billion state budget spending plan for the next fiscal year that gives K-12 schools more money, though less than they initially expected, as lawmakers worked to close a $1.2 billion spending shortfall.

“This progress reflects the advocacy of educators across the state, including the voices of Summit teachers who have passionately spoken up for fair and adequate funding,” said Summit School District Superintendent Tony Byrd. “We’re grateful that their voices were heard. The work is not done, and we are committed to collective advocacy to improve school funding into the future.”

While the new formula provides a projected increase to Summit School District funding, officials at the district said they remain deeply concerned about the broader landscape for school financing. The district noted that when adjusted for inflation, public education funding in Colorado still lags behind 1989 levels.

Despite ongoing financial constraints, Summit School District said it “will prioritize educator compensation and classroom instruction.”

How K-12 education fared in the state budget

The Joint Budget Committee committed to routing roughly $150 million from the general fund to begin implementing the school finance formula — bringing total state and district spending to $10 billion next year for K-12 education. This is $256 million more than the funding districts received this year from the 2024-25 state budget.

One of next year’s biggest changes to the education budget from the General Assembly’s spending plan increases per-pupil funding by $195 in Colorado as an inflation adjustment. The state’s base per-pupil funding of $8,692 differs from actual per-pupil funding for individual districts, which can increase based on where the schools are located and their student demographics.

Average per-pupil funding in Colorado is set to rise to $11,852 — $412 more per student than the previous year.

The overall increase in funding is good news for schools, which, according to studies commissioned by the Colorado legislature in 2023, are underfunded by over $3.5 billion. Compared to the funding increase promised by lawmakers when the old school finance formula was established last year, however, K-12 education will be receiving around $16 million less next year than originally expected.

The school funding formula, which was introduced with the elimination of the budget stabilization factor in 2024, was designed to invest an additional $500 million into schools over six years. Since the 2009-10 fiscal year, the budget stabilization factor had been used to reduce school funding allocations by around $10 billion as a means to balance the state budget.

The newly approved School Finance Act, led by Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, will still distribute the $500 million to schools, though the timeline has been extended to seven years. Instead of receiving $90 million in the first year of the formula, like originally planned, districts will get $75 million.

The change that was arguably most feared by education groups, however, has found some give-and-take in its resolution.

A middle ground for the new school funding formula

Earlier versions of the Polis’ 2025-26 budget request proposed exchanging Colorado schools’ four-year enrollment average model for funding to current-year enrollment estimates, which is already the practice for 40 other states. At the time, the legislature predicted the change would result in the loss of $150 million to education funding because of the consistent decline in Colorado public school enrollment in the last three years.

The school finance act passed on Wednesday, May 7, will keep four-year enrollment averaging, though lawmakers were clear about a plan to move away from averaging over the next few years in a way that avoids sudden funding drops.

“With this bill, Colorado has made good on our promise to fully fund K12 education under Amendment 23, supporting students and educators,” Shelby Wieman, press secretary for the governor’s office, told the Post Independent. “Gov. Polis appreciates the sponsors for working to increase school funding and turning on the new, student-focused school finance formula by funding it in a sustainable way.”

The Colorado Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, has expressed approval for the revised School Finance Act after months of advocating for a budget that would avoid unnecessary cuts to education.

“This session showed what happens when educators stand together,” Colorado Education Association President Kevin Vick said in a statement. “We made it clear to lawmakers that they could not balance the budget on the backs of our students and educators again, and they listened. We protected education funding, increased it and laid the groundwork to ensure we never go backward again.” 

The association had been vocal about its disapproval of the proposed changes to student count averaging, which have since been addressed to avoid steep funding cuts for schools with declining enrollment. In March, the association invited thousands of educators and community members to the steps of the State Capitol to rally for “no more cuts to education” and a “responsible School Finance Act.”

The Colorado Education Association also applauded the bill’s creation of the Kids Matter Fund, a permanent funding source that helps to mitigate future shortfalls by allocating $233 million from income tax revenue into the State Education Fund.

For now, every school district is slated to receive either more or equal funding next year, even the ones experiencing declining enrollment.

“We showed this year that when educators organize, we win,” Vick said.