Gov. Hickenlooper to sign $25 billion Colorado budget

Colorado’s $25 billion budget for next year, which includes money for taxpayer refunds and more funding for education, is about to become official.

Gov. John Hickenlooper is set to sign the budget Friday afternoon.

The refunds are required by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights when the state’s revenue exceeds the rate of population growth and inflation.

Lawmakers are budgeting nearly $70 million in refunds next year when people file income taxes and $117 million for the following year.

Most of the funding in the budget goes to schools, health care, and prisons.

The majority of the $25 billion includes federal money over which lawmakers have little control. Included in the overall budget figure is $9.6 billion in tax revenue that lawmakers oversee.

Public schools alone are getting nearly $9 billion in state and federal funds.