Centennial State News

Gov. Jared Polis released his annual budget proposal Tuesday, which includes a $38.3 million wildfire package. 

According to the proposal, $13.8 million will go to aerial resources to fight large wildfires from above and increased support for state firefighters. This proposal builds on S.B. 22-206 by continuing one-time aerial resources, adding a new lease-to-own Firehawk helicopter and scaling up staff to coordinate statewide fire response. Approximately $7.2 million will support and empower local fire mitigation and suppression. This proposal includes funding to expand training for local firefighters, help communities assess and mitigate all-hazards risks and invest in local and state agency mitigation projects.

“The hard work of the last four years has led to a strong economic recovery, with tens of thousands of new jobs created in the last year alone and an unemployment rate below the national average," Polis said. "But we must continue pushing forward and address the challenges facing Coloradans. I am proud that this balanced budget proposal focuses on securing today and investing in tomorrow. This budget doubles down on the work to make our state more affordable, safer, cleaner and better prepared for a natural disaster or financial rainy day.”

To incentivize smart construction and community hardening in the wildland-urban interface, $2 million will be set aside and $7 million will be used for landscape mitigation and related workforce improvement through the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program (COSWAP). Further, $3.2 million will add fire investigators and start a statewide fire data governance system. Additional fire investigation capacity will enhance the state’s ability to identify the causes. 

In all, the request is $16.7 billion, a decrease of 5.9% from the present budget, Sentinel reported. Polis suggests again maintaining at 15% general fund reserve. Although Polis submits a recommendation, the final decision on the state's budget falls to the Colorado Legislature. The proposal also has a second package for public safety, which is a sum of $42.1 million. 

Elements of that package are $12.6 million over two years to prevent and prosecute auto theft, the leading property crime and a key precursor to more serious types of crime. This budget includes increased resources for technology solutions, law enforcement task forces focused on auto theft and support for district attorneys in communities with high rates of auto theft. To expand the existing network of sober recovery homes run by community providers to support offender reentry and reduce recidivism, $5 million will be allocated. 

According to the proposal, $4.5 million will help regional law enforcement to recruit and retain officers to make sure that Coloradans are safe, while another $4.5 million will provide grant funding to community organizations for local public safety solutions. This funding will help organizations engage in crime reduction and intervention strategies such as co-responder programs, violence interrupter programs, early intervention teams, restorative justice services and other research-informed crime prevention strategies. 

Approximately $500,000 will go toward a new technical assistance hub to support implementation of evidence-based solutions to crime and recidivism. The proposal also states that $1.1 million will go to provide increased resources to address high-risk concerns, including fugitive apprehension, gang disengagement and identifying and preventing violent extremist threats. Another $5.4 million will bolster the state's investigative capacity. 

This budget creates two additional Special Investigations Units within the Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) with the flexibility and expertise to help jurisdictions handle novel crime challenges like fentanyl. It also invests in the expansion of a toxicology lab with state-of-the-art equipment. An additional $900,000 will back a pilot virtual learning training program to support technical education in the trades for incarcerated individuals.