Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP)

Colorado

State Rundown 1/7: New Year, New Opportunities for Progressive Revenue

As we kick off a new year, several states are facing revenue shortfalls. Some lawmakers are approaching the challenge with sustainable and equitable solutions.

No, Scott Bessent: States Aren’t Taking Away Anyone’s Tax Cuts

It’s wildly inappropriate for a U.S. Treasury Secretary to lean on states to adopt or not adopt specific federal provisions in their own state tax codes.

Linking to Tipped and Overtime Income Deductions Would Worsen State Shortfalls, Do Little to Help Workers

State deductions for tips and overtime are not only ineffective at supporting working-class people, it will come at a substantial cost to state budgets.

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State Rundown 12/3: Property Tax Cuts and Deficits

December 3, 2025 • By ITEP Staff

State Rundown 12/3: Property Tax Cuts and Deficits

States are increasingly facing difficult choices as revenues stagnate and deficits come clearer into focus.

Conforming to the ‘No Tax on Tips’ Gimmick Just Got Riskier and Costlier for States

An unknown number of workers who previously were assumed to be ineligible for the tax break may nonetheless claim it.

In 2025, Voters Said Yes to Public Resources and Community Investments

Important tax measures were on the ballot this week, and the outcomes are clear: many voters support new state and local spending to support critical services in their communities.

State Rundown 11/5: Voters Say “Yes!” to Public Investments

Despite being an off-year election, voters made a call for shared public investments at the polls.

Why States Shouldn’t Go Along With OBBBA’s Corporate Tax Breaks: A Practical Guide

States should immediately decouple from four costly corporate tax provisions in the new federal tax law.

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The Potential of Local Child Tax Credits to Reduce Child Poverty

October 8, 2025 • By Kamolika Das, Aidan Davis, Galen Hendricks, Rita Jefferson

The Potential of Local Child Tax Credits to Reduce Child Poverty

Local governments have a critical role to play in reducing child poverty. Local Child Tax Credits could provide large tax cuts to families at the bottom of the income scale, lessening the overall regressivity of state and local tax systems.

State Rundown 9/18: Lawmakers Confront Revenue Loss from Federal Policy Changes

Some states are trying to avoid revenue loss while others are welcoming it and doubling down.

State Earned Income Tax Credits Support Families and Workers in 2025

Nearly two-thirds of states now have an Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Momentum continues to build on these credits that boost low-paid workers’ incomes and offset some of the taxes they pay, helping lower-income families achieve greater economic security.

State Child Tax Credits Boosted Financial Security for Families and Children in 2025

Child Tax Credits (CTCs) are effective tools to bolster the economic security of low- and middle-income families and position the next generation for success.

State Rundown 9/4: Colorado Tackles Offshore Corporate Tax Avoidance, Paves Way for State Conformity Best Practices

Despite an increasingly bleak state revenue outlook, state lawmakers across the country continue to prioritize regressive tax cuts.

Colorado Lawmakers Help Fill Trump-Induced Shortfall by Tackling Offshore Corporate Tax Avoidance 

As the Trump megabill blows holes in state budgets, Colorado is leading with reforms to curb offshore tax avoidance and roll back wasteful corporate subsidies.

The Trump Megabill Hands the Rich a Gift — and Sends the Bill to Young Americans

Trump's megabill directs most benefits to the wealthy, while leaving younger generations with higher taxes, more debt, and fewer opportunities. For Millennials and Gen Z, it means reduced public investment and an economy less likely to work in their favor.

State Rundown 8/20: States to Face Serious Conformity, Revenue Issues as Summer Ends

While tax news has slowed as summer comes to an end, there are rumblings beneath the surface that could be an inauspicious sign of the times ahead for states and state budgets.

State Rundown 8/6: Tax Policy is Hot in the Middle of Summer

As states prepare for the revenue loss and disruption resulting from the federal tax bill, tax policy is being considered in legislatures across the country.

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Which States Expanded Refundable Credits in 2025?

July 24, 2025 • By Neva Butkus

Which States Expanded Refundable Credits in 2025?

Refundable tax credits were a big part of state tax policy conversations this year. In 2025, nine states improved or created Child Tax Credits or Earned Income Tax Credits.

State Rundown 7/24: States Begin Preparing for Federal Megabill Fallout

All eyes in statehouses in recent weeks have been on federal budget negotiations, and now that the “megabill” has passed, they are focused in on their own budgets in search of ways to cope with the enormous consequences coming their way. All states will see fewer federal dollars flowing through their coffers, higher needs due […]

Anti-Tax Revolts Backfire: What We’ve Learned from 50 Years of Property Tax Limits

Across-the-board property tax cuts create less fair local tax systems in the long run. State legislators and local governments should prioritize the residents who can least afford their property taxes, not the residents and businesses who can.

How Much Would Every Family in Every State Get if the Megabill’s Tax Cuts Given to the Rich Had Instead Been Evenly Divided?

If instead of giving $117 billion to the richest 1 percent, that money had been evenly divided among all Americans, we'd each get $343 - or nearly $1,400 for a family of four.

The Bell Policy Center: Colorado’s Rural Communities Will Suffer from the Federal Budget Bill

July 11, 2025

It’s been widely acknowledged that the bill’s benefits and burdens will be unequally felt. Yet, within these analyses, impacts on the urban-rural divide are often overlooked. As we detail below, the federal bill is likely to worsen the economic well-being of rural Colorado while providing substantial benefit to affluent suburban and mountain resort communities.

State Rundown 7/8: State Tax Cuts Continue Despite Federal Megabill Passing

The last states are wrapping up legislative sessions, and some are crossing the finish line with major income tax cuts.

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Analysis of Tax Provisions in the Trump Megabill as Signed into Law: National and State Level Estimates

July 7, 2025 • By Steve Wamhoff, Carl Davis, Joe Hughes, Jessica Vela

Analysis of Tax Provisions in the Trump Megabill as Signed into Law: National and State Level Estimates

President Trump has signed into law the tax and spending “megabill” that largely favors the richest taxpayers and provides working-class Americans with relatively small tax cuts that will in many cases be more than offset by Trump's tariffs.

Megabill Takes Cap Off Unprecedented Private School Voucher Tax Credit, Potentially Raising Cost by Tens of Billions Relative to Earlier Version

It is clear that this tax credit has the potential to come with an enormous cost if private school groups are successful in convincing their supporters to participate. In these times of very high debt and deficits, this is reason for all of us to be uneasy.