I worked as a middle school math, science, and technology teacher for 24 years and I saw firsthand the problems facing students and teachers across the state. I know our schools are underfunded, teachers are overworked, and classrooms are over capacity. The COVID-19 pandemic has only amplified the problems that our public schools are facing.

When the financial crisis hit, people and businesses across the state sought support and relief. Often that relief came in the form of requests for property tax deferrals. While these requests were certainly understandable, the 178 school districts serving our K-12 public school students rely on property tax as an important source of revenue, as do fire protection districts, library districts, water districts, and many others. Deferring property taxes may help individuals and businesses, but it can have a debilitating ripple effect on the funding of these districts. I worked closely with the Governor’s office, legislative leaders, school district boards and administrators, local taxing districts, and county treasurers to pass HB20-1421 to provide relief without putting the funding sustainability of our local taxing districts in jeopardy.

Furthermore, the Treasury continues to operate the K-12 Interest-Free Loan Program as well as work with the K-12 Capital Construction Assistance Board to provide funds through debt issuance for the BEST (Building Excellent Schools Today) program. Check out this video to see how the BEST program benefited Hayden, Colorado.

Education continues to be a top priority for the people of Colorado, which means it’s a priority for me. I’ll get us out of the fiscal knot that we’re in to make sure every child in Colorado has a great education.