Colorado lawmakers return to the state Capitol on Wednesday for their annual legislative session with a long to-do list, from balancing an out-of-whack budget to fine-tuning artificial intelligence regulations that have confounded the General Assembly for approaching three years.
First, representatives and senators must figure out how to deal with each other.
This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance.
Lawmakers had less of a break compared with a typical year due to a special legislative session in August that ended on a particularly sour note when the top Republican in the House had a very public confrontation with the chamber’s No. 2 Democrat.
Meanwhile, Democrats — who hold wide majorities in both chambers — are dealing with big internal drama as more moderate and more liberal factions butt heads.
“There’s just a lot of members that are a bit distrusting of one another,” said state Rep. Brianna Titone, an Arvada Democrat.
On top of all that, it is Gov. Jared Polis’ final legislative session and a big election year with many lawmakers running for higher office.
The Opportunity Caucus
Long-simmering divisions between more moderate and more liberal Democrats at the Capitol boiled over in the fall after a weekend retreat in Vail hosted and attended by the moderates.
The October gathering, organized by the Colorado Opportunity Caucus, which was formed last year by more moderate Democrats in the legislature, stirred outrage among liberals.
Progressives were concerned about how lobbyists also attended the retreat at the ritzy Sonnenalp Hotel, but they also saw the meeting as a sign of the Opportunity Caucus’ growing influence — and as a signal that the group may pose a growing threat to the left’s agenda and chances at the ballot box.
The Opportunity Caucus is a nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors — making it what’s commonly referred to as a dark money group — and organizers refuse to say who funded the Vail retreat. But emails and other documents obtained by The Colorado Sun show that One Main Street Colorado is a funder of the Opportunity Caucus.
That has angered progressives even more, since One Main Street has spent heavily in Democratic legislative primaries in Colorado to help more moderate candidates beat their more liberal opponents.
“One Main Street already has launched moderate candidates against progressives in primaries. Is that what we can expect more of with this caucus?” said state Rep. Lorena Garcia, an Adams County Democrat and one of the most liberal members of the legislature.
Meanwhile, some members of the Opportunity Caucus say they feel attacked after complaints were filed with the state’s Independent Ethics Commission alleging 16 of them violated Colorado’s voter-imposed gift ban by attending the Vail retreat. The complaints were filed by Colorado Common Cause, a liberal-leaning nonprofit that advocates for an open government, and cheered on by other progressive groups, namely the Working Families Party.
State Sen. Lindsey Daugherty, an Arvada Democrat, slammed Common Cause in a statement, saying they are “joining Donald Trump in attacking Democrats, trampling on justice, rejecting due process and abandoning integrity to score cheap political points.”
The Independent Ethics Commission ruled the complaints were nonfrivolous and moved to investigate the allegations. The 16 lawmakers who are being investigated — 15 of whom are having their legal defense paid for by taxpayers — said in their responses to the complaints that Common Cause’s allegations are baseless and claim that the Opportunity Caucus did not violate the gift ban.
“We never started the Opportunity Caucus to divide Democrats, rather to strengthen Democrats and our mission and what we are trying to do for the people of Colorado,” Daugherty said in an interview last week. “This has become just so toxic to everyone. I want to move on. This is just such a distraction.”
State Sen. Lindsey Daugherty, D-Arvada, speaks to reporters before Gov. Jared Polis signs a bill in the governor’s office at the Colorado Capitol in Denver on Thursday, April 24, 2025. (Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)Heading into the session, the unresolved ethics complaints and lingering bad blood between Democratic factions at the Capitol are threatening the party’s ability to accomplish its policy agenda.
“I’m not going to lie, it’s going to be a real challenge,” said House Majority Leader Monica Duran, D-Wheat Ridge.
She’s not a member of the Opportunity Caucus and she also isn’t considered among the more liberal lawmakers at the Capitol, which puts her in the position of trying to mediate.
“I’m ready for that challenge and ready just to remind both sides that we are here to listen to each other,” Duran said. “We don’t have to agree. But the matter of fact is we have to listen and we have to be respectful.”
Senate Majority Leader Robert Rodriguez, also not a member of the caucus, was cautiously optimistic Democrats would be able to work well together.
“At the end of the day, as long as we’re focused on civil conversations and working through policies, I think we’ll be OK,” he said. “We just have to be able to communicate.”
A long list of lawmakers running for higher office
Another factor likely to cause fireworks at the Capitol this year is the large number of lawmakers running for higher office, which adds another element to juggling an already packed legislative calendar.
The list includes:
State Sen. Julie Gonzales, a Denver Democrat running for U.S. Senate, as is state Sen. Mark Baisley, R-Woodland Park State Rep. Manny Rutinel, D-Commerce City, is running to represent the 8th Congressional District Titone and state Sen. Jeff Bridges of Greenwood Village, both Democrats, are running to be the next state treasurer State Sen. Jessie Danielson, D-Wheat Ridge, is running for secretary of state State Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer of Brighton and state Rep. Scott Bottoms of Colorado Springs, both Republicans, are running for governorIt can be difficult for state representatives and senators to balance their duties at the Capitol with the rigors of running a campaign, especially given that primaries will happen in June, about a month after the General Assembly adjourns.
“I am no stranger to hard work. I have worked multiple jobs for most of my life,” Gonzales said. “But my focus will shift. I won’t be able to continue to serve on the six committees I’m currently serving on. But I will continue to do my work in the legislature while also engaging in this campaign.”
State Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, at the Colorado Capitol in Denver on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2025. (Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)The reality is that sometimes the campaign trail and legislative duties blend together for state lawmakers who are running for higher office. The Capitol, with more journalists than any other place in the state, becomes a conduit for them to get their message out — though lawmakers are legally prohibited from overtly campaigning inside the building.
“Anybody that says that it doesn’t change your behavior and what you’re doing would be lying,” said former state Rep. Richard Holtorf, an Akron Republican who ran for Congress in 2024 while serving in the legislature. He came up short in his congressional bid.
Holtorf, who is now vice chair of the Colorado GOP, said running for higher office while serving in the legislature is very difficult. He said there were times he attended campaign events away from the Capitol while trying to participate in legislative votes, cellphone in hand and headphones in his ears.
“Your attention is divided,” Holtorf said. “Your constituents in your state district won’t get all the attention they deserve.”
That consideration led one candidate to leave her position at the Capitol to focus solely on her congressional bid. Democrat Shannon Bird, who is running to represent the 8th District, resigned Jan. 5 from the House. She served on the powerful Joint Budget Committee.
New leadership and lingering special session tension
The legislative session is also starting with new Republican leaders in both the House and Senate somewhat unexpectedly.
On the Senate side there wasn’t any drama. Former Minority Leader Paul Lundeen resigned in June, in the middle of his term, to take a job leading a national conservative nonprofit. State Sen. Cleave Simpson, R-Alamosa, was selected as the next minority leader.
Simpson had been the assistant minority leader — right behind Lundeen in the leadership chain — so that succession went as expected. Simpson has a strong friendship and working relationship with Senate President James Coleman, D-Denver, and is well liked among Democrats and Republicans, so his new role isn’t expected to spark major change.
Senate Republican Minority Leader Cleave Simpson, on August 21, 2025, as the Senate convenes for a special legislative session. (Hart Van Denburg, CPR News via the Colorado Capitol News Alliance)What happened with Republican leadership in the House was much more abnormal. In that chamber, Minority Leader Rose Pugliese, R-Colorado Springs, surprised everyone by resigning abruptly in September.
Pugliese’s resignation came after she had a dramatic falling out on the House floor with Majority Leader Duran, who accused Pugliese of mishandling inappropriate behavior by some House Republicans. The situation centered on how a GOP representative took an unflattering photo of a Democratic representative on the House floor last year without her consent and then shared it in a group chat with other Republicans, some who ridiculed her. The photo was then posted on social media by an unknown person and used to harass and threaten the Democrat.
Duran and Pugliese, who had previously been close friends and colleagues, called each other liars. In her resignation letter, Pugliese said the legislature had become too toxic and blamed Democratic leadership for her departure.
The GOP House caucus elected Republican Rep. Jarvis Caldwell, another Colorado Springs Republican, to be the new House minority leader. He’s only in his second year at the Capitol as a lawmaker.
House Minority Jarvis Caldwell speaks in support of Advance Colorado’s statewide ballot measure seeking tougher penalties for those convicted of fentanyl possession, Nov. 20, 2025 in Denver. (Hart Van Denburg, CPR News via the Colorado Capitol News Alliance)But even though he’s a newer member, he is familiar with how the legislature works. He was the spokesman for the House Republicans just a few years ago.
Caldwell will have his work cut out for him to manage his own divided GOP caucus, which is split ideologically and in how they stylistically approach their colleagues, and also try to rebuild his caucus’ relationship with other Democrats, including Duran.
“It’s a give-and-take relationship,” he said. “I’m going to have to advocate on behalf of my caucus and she’ll have to advocate on behalf of hers. But the important thing is that we’re able to have that relationship so we can have those conversations with each other.”
Final year at the Capitol
Looming Capitol departures are another key factor likely to affect the trajectory of the session. In addition to those members running for higher office, a number of representatives and senators are facing term limits, including some in leadership.
This will be House Speaker Julie McCluskie’s final year in the legislature. The Dillon Democrat will be aiming to pass legislation to rein in the high cost of home insurance in Colorado after her bill last year came up short.
During her time at the Capitol, McCluskie said she’s most proud of passing a bill to modernize Colorado’s school funding formula in 2024. It marked the first time since the Great Recession that Colorado funded public school students at the level voters called for when they passed an amendment to the state constitution more than two decades ago.
“We’ve got a long ways to go to fully fund it, but I’m really, really proud of the fact that we broke through and after 30 years and got it done,” she said.
House Speaker Julie McCluskie, D-Dillon, speaks to reporters at a news conference about the 2025 special legislative session at the Colorado Capitol in Denver on Aug. 21, 2025. (Jesse Paul, The Colorado Sun)Rodriguez, the Senate majority leader, will also leave the Capitol after this year. Reflecting on his tenure, he said he’s enjoyed being able to use his power to help marginalized people who feel no one is paying attention or listening to them.
“I think that’s the most rewarding part of this work,” he said.
Gov. Jared Polis is also entering his eighth and final year leading the state. He can’t run for reelection next year because of term limits.
The Democrat said he’s proud of his legacy expanding access to preschool and full-day kindergarten in Colorado, his work to improve air quality and his efforts to boost housing options — though the latter will take some time to bear fruit.
As for what he regrets not getting done?
“That’s what this session is all about,” he said. “So you’ll have to ask me that after session. We have a lot of work to do.”
Faith Winter
Lawmakers return to the Capitol under the cloud of tragedy.
State Sen. Faith Winter was killed Nov. 26 in a crash authorities say she caused on Interstate 25 south of Denver. The Broomfield Democrat was legally drunk at the time, according to a toxicology report.
Winter, 45, is survived by her teenage children, Tobin and Sienna. She’s also survived by her fiancé Matt Gray, a former state representative and fellow Democrat.
She became a Capitol fixture during her 11 years as a state lawmaker, advocating for transit, the environment and women. Her death deeply affected many in the legislature.
Hazel Gibson, left, and state Rep. Jenny Willford deliver remarks during the celebration of life for state Sen. Faith Winter on the west steps of the Colorado Capitol on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (Stephen Swofford, Denver Gazette)Titone, the Arvada representative, said Winter’s death will hit even harder when lawmakers go back to the Capitol and she’s not there. She hopes lawmakers take heed of some of the things Winter did in her life to try to lift other people up.
“Something that we can use to heal the divides that we have right now,” Titone said.
Democrat William Lindstedt of Broomfield, who was a state representative, was tapped to serve out Winter’s term. He is one of 27 state lawmakers serving at the Capitol this year who at some point were appointed to the House or Senate by or through a vacancy committee.
KUNC reporter Lucas Brady Woods contributed to this report.
This story was produced by the Capitol News Alliance, a collaboration between KUNC News, Colorado Public Radio, Rocky Mountain PBS and The Colorado Sun, and shared with Rocky Mountain Community Radio and other news organizations across the state. Funding for the Alliance is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Hence then, the article about colorado lawmakers have a big budget and policy agenda first they ll have to navigate interpersonal issues was published today ( ) and is available on Colorado Sun ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Colorado lawmakers have a big budget and policy agenda. First they’ll have to navigate interpersonal issues. )
Also on site :