DENVER — Fresh off the 2025 legislative session, Colorado leaders in both parties looked back at their achievements over the last four months.
Democratic leaders in the General Assembly joined Governor Jared Polis in Denver’s Sun Valley neighborhood on Thursday, where he signed Senate Bill 25-002 to reduce regulatory barriers for modular housing.
"This bill will help lean into innovation as one of the ways we can build more housing quicker,” said Polis.
The governor said it’s one example of work he and Democratic lawmakers did this legislative session to make things more affordable for Coloradans. The group also praised the bipartisan Joint Budget Committee for delivering a balanced budget in a tough budget year.
“They came into this session with seemingly impossible tasks of cutting over $1 billion from the budget without harming essential services that Coloradans rely on,” said Colorado Senate President James Coleman, D-Denver.
They also touted efforts to protect rights for immigrants, women, and LGBTQ+ Coloradans.
“Very proud of our partnership with the governor in making sure that the action we were taking would ultimately result in safeguarding those rights and freedoms,” said Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon.
Meanwhile, back at the State Capitol, Republican lawmakers touted their achievements, which included some bipartisan bills that passed.
“We are really excited about the work that we were able to accomplish this session, even being in the minority,” said Colorado House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, R-Colorado Springs.
Republicans also took credit for stopping some Democratic proposals, including a resolution to challenge the constitutionality of TABOR. Some Democratic lawmakers did not want to move forward with that plan this year.
Republicans criticized many of the bills that did pass, including Senate Bill 25-003, a bill banning certain semiautomatic firearms.
“We saw an assault on the Second Amendment with Senate Bill 3,” said Colorado House Assistant Minority Leader Ty Winter, R-Trinidad. “We heard from people in all districts across the state — all 65 — who believe the government should keep their hands off our guns, and we’re going to continue to fight for those rights.”
Republicans in the Senate criticized the Democratic majority for killing many of their bills, which they say would have saved Coloradans thousands of dollars per year.
“At the start of this session, we unveiled that suite of bills that, if passed, would've given the average Colorado family $4,500 in annual savings,” said Colorado Senate Minority Leader Paul Lundeen, R-Fort Lupton. “Tragically, but not surprisingly, Democrats chose to stand against the people of Colorado and our efforts to bring relief, opting instead to prioritize their own partisan agenda items.”
But lawmakers may have more work to do. The governor confirmed he may call a special session by the end of the year if Congress cuts Medicaid.
“Almost certainly if some of these big cuts to Medicaid go through, potentially cuts or matches required for SNAP, we would likely need to reconvene, depending on what Congress does,” Polis said.
Republicans in Congress have said they have no intention to cut Medicaid, however, Democrats said there's no way Republicans can make deep spending cuts without touching the program. Colorado leaders said they’ll be watching very closely.
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