Colorado Union of Taxpayers opposes six bills on health coverage cuts, online gaming fees, TABOR clawbacks, THC beverages, Front Range rail, and a health insurance bailout

DENVER — The Colorado Union of Taxpayers, where Kim Monson serves as president, rated six new measures this week through its CUT Engaged citizen action tool. CUT opposes all six. The bills cut state health benefits for pregnant women and children outside the federal Medicaid match, impose a 5% fee on online gaming add-on transactions to fund a new youth mental health enterprise, claw back a portion of the constitutionally mandated TABOR refund, build a new regulatory regime around hemp-derived THC beverages, expand the Front Range Passenger Rail District, and authorize a one-time supplemental assessment plus a $100 million loan from the unclaimed property trust fund for the Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise.

Bills CUT opposes

Cover All Coloradans cuts dental, managed care, and benefits for non-citizen children

HB26-1411 limits a slate of medical assistance benefits for pregnant women and children who do not qualify for the standard Medicaid program because of immigration status. Beginning July 1, 2026, an annual cap of $750 applies to dental services. Beginning January 1, 2027, behavioral health services are provided on a fee-for-service basis only, services through the accountable care collaborative are no longer covered, and managed care services through the medical assistance program end. Children under 19 whose family household income is at or below 260% of the federal poverty line and who do not qualify for the medical assistance program due to their immigration status lose access to home- and community-based services, community first choice, long-term home health, private duty nursing, hospice care, and nursing home care unless they already receive those services on or before December 31, 2026. The bill caps enrollment of children in the state medical assistance program at 25,000 for fiscal year 2026-27 if certain conditions are met and repeals the state children’s basic health plan. CUT’s vote was not unanimous: a majority opposed the bill, citing the loss of matching federal funds and a “huge hit” to legal residents who currently rely on these benefits, while acknowledging the projected $24 million in future taxpayer savings. CUT urges the sponsors to “go back to the drawing board.”

The bill is sponsored by Representatives Kyle Brown (D) and Emily Sirota (D) and Senators Judy Amabile (D) and Barbara Kirkmeyer (R).

Tell the sponsors what you think about HB26-1411 on CUT Engaged.

Online gaming add-on transactions face 5% fee for new youth mental health enterprise

HB26-1418 creates the Youth Mental Health Services Access Enterprise inside the Behavioral Health Administration and funds it with a 5% fee on add-on transactions in online games offered through covered social media platforms. The enterprise constitutes an enterprise for purposes of section 20 of article X of the state constitution, which is the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. After administrative expenses, 40% of the revenue goes to a youth mental health peer navigator grant program, 35% to a crisis resolution team program, and 25%, beginning July 1, 2027, to the existing youth mental health services program. The bill also doubles the per-youth provider reimbursement limit from up to three sessions to up to six. CUT argues that many of the targeted games are produced by overseas companies that “will ignore Colorado fees,” that overseeing children’s internet use is “up to parents, not the state government,” and that taxing one narrow sector of society to pay for problems of another “violates the principle of equal protection under law and violates the definition of ‘fee.'” CUT also objects to creating yet another unaccountable bureaucracy outside TABOR.

The bill is sponsored by Representatives Sean Camacho (D) and Yara Zokaie (D) and Senators Judy Amabile (D) and Dylan Roberts (D).

Tell the sponsors what you think about HB26-1418 on CUT Engaged.

TABOR over-refund clawback recalculates the 2024-25 refund around federal tax changes

HB26-1419 directs the Office of the State Controller, in consultation with the Office of State Planning and Budgeting and the Department of Revenue, to recalculate the fiscal year 2024-25 TABOR over-refund to account for state revenue reductions from the 2025 federal tax policy change widely known as the One Big Beautiful Bill. The bill then allows up to half of that recalculated over-refund to offset future TABOR refunds in any single fiscal year starting with fiscal year 2026-27. CUT calls the bill an “Ex-post-facto’-style tax increase,” arguing that federal tax reductions are a benefit to taxpayers and that “clawing back the constitutionally mandated refund negates these benefits.” CUT writes that “there is no ‘over-refund'” because the actual refund amount “is determined mathematically and not subject to terminology applied,” and that withholding TABOR refunds is impermissible without a voter referendum under Article X, Section 20 of the state constitution. CUT also warns that the bill could combine with HB26-1221 and HB26-1222 to produce a net tax increase for some taxpayers.

The bill is sponsored by Representatives Kyle Brown (D) and Emily Sirota (D) and Senators Judy Amabile (D) and Jeff Bridges (D).

Tell the sponsors what you think about HB26-1419 on CUT Engaged.

Hemp-derived THC beverages get a new state regulatory regime

SB26-164 sets up a state regulatory framework for nonalcoholic beverages infused with tetrahydrocannabinol derived from legal hemp. The bill caps content at 10 milligrams of total THC per serving, requires the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment to adopt rules on labeling and packaging, restricts sales to permitted retailers and wholesalers, and prohibits beverages made from synthetic or semi-synthetic cannabinoids. CUT notes that “cannabis enthusiasts can currently smoke or eat the product” and concludes that “this bill regulates THC in beverages at a cost of $600k – $700k per year plus 20+ FTEs for the aforementioned guidelines and regulations and continues to bloat Colorado’s bureaucratic government.”

The bill is sponsored by Senator Julie Gonzales (D) and Representatives Matt Martinez (D) and Steven Woodrow (D).

Tell the sponsors what you think about SB26-164 on CUT Engaged.

Front Range Passenger Rail District set to add municipalities and metropolitan districts

SB26-172 expands the Front Range Passenger Rail District by adding listed municipalities and metropolitan districts, plus any others whose governing boards consent. The bill requires new appointed directors to live within the district, authorizes the board to create subdistricts, and changes how district election costs are distributed. CUT calls the project “a boondoggle” with no demand to justify the expense, comparing it to California’s high-speed rail. The board points out that “RTD is a huge drain and strain on all taxpayers and has been for decades. It has never had the ridership to justify its completed projects yet alone, even more projects.” CUT also warns that the proposal “is a land grab that will entail a great deal of eminent domain all the way from Wyoming to New Mexico.”

The bill is sponsored by Senators Nick Hinrichsen (D) and Cathy Kipp (D) and Representatives Andrew Boesenecker (D) and Amy Paschal (D).

Tell the sponsors what you think about SB26-172 on CUT Engaged.

Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise gets supplemental assessment plus $100M trust fund loan

SB26-178 authorizes the Colorado Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise to impose a one-time supplemental assessment, allocated equally among health insurance companies that meet specified criteria. CUT cites the assessment in the briefing as a $40 million one-time fee. Section 9 directs the state treasurer to enter into a 25-year, $100 million interest-bearing loan from the unclaimed property trust fund to the enterprise’s cash fund, with required full repayment no later than 25 years after the date of the loan. The bill also expands tax credits for contributions to the Colorado health benefit exchange to also allow tax credits for contributions to the enterprise; of the $9 million available for those tax credits, $5 million goes to qualified taxpayers that contribute to the exchange and $4 million to qualified taxpayers that contribute to the enterprise. CUT opposes the bill because it “expands powers and funding of an unelected enterprise, all outside of TABOR.” CUT warns that the assessment “will drive up costs for all private insurance ratepayers and establishes a dangerous precedent for ‘one time’ fees and income from the unclaimed property trust fund outside of TABOR restrictions,” and notes that the bill’s safety clause prevents voters from exercising their right to repeal it at the ballot.

The bill is sponsored by Senators Iman Jodeh (D) and Kyle Mullica (D) and Representatives Kyle Brown (D) and Lindsay Gilchrist (D).

Tell the sponsors what you think about SB26-178 on CUT Engaged.

Make your voice heard

All six bills are available on CUT Engaged, the Colorado Union of Taxpayers citizen action tool that lets you contact your legislators directly about the bills that affect your wallet and your freedom.