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| Colorado Fiscal Institute | |
|---|---|
| Name | Colorado Fiscal Institute |
| Formation | 2007 |
| Type | Nonprofit think tank |
| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado |
| Region served | Colorado |
| Leader title | Executive Director |
| Leader name | (varies) |
| Website | (omitted) |
Colorado Fiscal Institute is a Denver-based nonpartisan public policy think tank focused on fiscal analysis and tax policy in Colorado. The institute produces research, commentary, and advocacy related to state and local tax policy, budgetary decisions by the Colorado General Assembly, and fiscal impacts on programs administered by the Colorado Department of Human Services, Colorado Department of Education, and Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. Its work intersects with state ballot measures, municipal budgets in cities like Denver, Boulder, and Colorado Springs, and national discussions involving organizations such as the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Urban Institute, and Brookings Institution.
The institute was founded in 2007 amid debates over Amendment 23 and the aftermath of economic shifts tied to the 2008 financial crisis. Early analysis contrasted state revenue forecasts during sessions of the Colorado General Assembly and the Colorado State Legislature with projections from the Legislative Council Staff and the Office of Management and Budget. Founders and early leaders included policy analysts with experience at organizations such as Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center, Bell Policy Center, and the Colorado Center on Law and Policy. The group expanded during debates over Referendum C aftermath and state responses to federal initiatives like the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the Affordable Care Act implementation in Colorado under the Hickenlooper administration.
The institute's stated mission emphasizes analysis of tax policy, budget priorities, and fiscal equity affecting populations served by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Department of Education, and Colorado Department of Human Services. Activities include publishing briefings for the Colorado General Assembly during regular sessions, offering testimony before legislative committees such as the Joint Budget Committee, and coordinating with advocates from AARP, UnidosUS, and Children's Hospital Colorado on fiscal impacts. It hosts events featuring speakers from institutions like the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, and the National Conference of State Legislatures to discuss revenue forecasting, TABOR-related litigation (including cases in the Colorado Supreme Court), and municipal responses in cities like Fort Collins.
Publications include policy briefs, budget trackers, and issue briefs on topics ranging from state revenue forecasting to the fiscal effects of healthcare expansions under the Medicaid expansion in Colorado ballot measures. Reports often cite data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Colorado Department of Revenue. Major reports have examined impacts of tax policy changes similar to national proposals from the Economic Policy Institute or state-level reforms modeled after California and Washington Initiative 1183 (2011). The institute's methodology draws on microsimulation techniques used by groups such as the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy and the Tax Policy Center, and collaborates with university researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State University, and the Metropolitan State University of Denver.
The institute has engaged in advocacy around statewide ballot measures such as Amendment 66, Proposition CC, and local tax measures in municipalities including Aurora and Lakewood. It provides testimony for legislative debates involving stakeholders like the Colorado Education Association, Colorado Children's Campaign, and Colorado Consumer Health Initiative. Its influence is visible in fiscal analyses cited by reporters at the Denver Post, Colorado Public Radio, and the Boulder Daily Camera, and in expert panels convened by entities such as the Bell Policy Center and the Colorado Fiscal Policy Institute (note: distinct organizations exist). The institute has filed amicus briefs linked to TABOR litigation heard by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Colorado Supreme Court.
Structured as a nonprofit classified under 501(c)(3), the institute receives funding from philanthropic foundations and individual donors, often overlapping with funders of peer organizations like the Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Heising-Simons Foundation, and regional foundations such as the Colorado Health Foundation and the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation. Grants have supported collaborations with academic partners at the University of Denver and research networks including the State Priorities Partnership and the National Academy of Public Administration. Staff typically include policy analysts with prior affiliations to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Economic Policy Institute, and the Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy.
Critics have challenged the institute's analyses from several perspectives: conservative policy groups like the Goldwater Institute and Independence Institute argue the institute understates the effects of tax reductions advocated by figures such as Ken Buck and Tom Tancredo; progressive organizations sometimes dispute its stance in coalition strategies with entities like the Bell Policy Center and ProgressNow Colorado. Debates over its assumptions surfaced during coverage by outlets such as Fox News, The Washington Post, and The Denver Post regarding projected impacts of tax amnesty proposals, TABOR refunds, and fiscal offsets tied to federal funding streams like those from the U.S. Department of Education and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Litigation and public disputes have at times involved stakeholders including the Colorado Department of Revenue and municipal finance offices in Pueblo and Greeley.
Category:Non-profit organizations based in Colorado