Colorado agency proposes civil rights, insurance budget cuts; seeks $450,000 for another division

The Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies proposed reducing the Civil Rights Division’s general-fund support by $97,954 and the Division of Insurance’s cash-fund appropriation by $567,312 for the 2027-28 budget. Separately, the department is seeking $450,000 in additional spending authority for its Division of Professions and Occupations.

At a Nov. 13 briefing to the Colorado Joint Budget Committee, staffer Michelle Curry said the proposed reductions are part of an effort to lower the department’s general-fund impact by 4%. The committee discussed potential effects, but did not vote on the proposals.

The reductions use different funding mechanisms. The Civil Rights Division reduction would come from general-fund support. The insurance reduction would come from the Division of Insurance Cash Fund, which receives insurance-premium-tax revenue that otherwise would go to the state’s General Fund, Curry said. A lower appropriation would leave more of that revenue in the General Fund; it is not a direct cut to a General Fund appropriation for the division.

Curry said the department planned to manage the reductions through natural attrition, vacancies, retirements and contract expenses within available resources. She did not identify a specific service reduction. Curry also discussed a proposed bill that could let health insurers cover certain contractor costs for reviews of individual- and small-group insurance rates, potentially offsetting part of the insurance reduction. The bill was only a possibility discussed at the briefing, not an enacted funding source.

The Professions and Occupations Division says the $450,000 in additional cash-fund spending authority would support expedited settlements and expert services. The division also proposed shifting $483,600 from operating expenses to personal services. Curry said the added capacity was intended to help address delays in complaint handling and could contain legal costs when cases settle before going to legal services.

Committee members questioned whether earlier settlements would reduce legal expenses and asked for complaint-volume and processing-time information.

The committee’s tentative schedule lists a separate department hearing for Nov. 30. The Nov. 13 briefing did not establish approval or final funding levels for the proposals.