Colorado’s largest water agency may be shielded from significant funding cuts as the state addresses its financial woes, under the 2025-26 budget proposed by Gov. Jared Polis.
The Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) would see a $6.9 million increase in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, rising from $98.1 million in revenue this year to $105.1 million, according to the governor’s office.
But in 2026, funding would drop to $97.6 million due to a decline in severance tax revenue, which is derived in part from oil and gas production and is a key part of the CWCB’s funding.
The CWCB is the state’s primary water planning agency, and helps fund an array of water projects and planning initiatives using a combination of grants and loans. Its revenues come from interest on loans, money from the state’s operating funds, sports betting tax revenues, and severance tax revenues, among other sources.
The CWCB referred questions on the governor’s proposal to his office.
Over the next three years, roughly $55 million will be taken from funds that would have otherwise gone to the CWCB, including future interest earned on some of the agency’s financial accounts, according to the governor’s proposal.
At a Colorado Water Conservation Board meeting Nov. 21, Nate Pearson, assistant director for water policy at the Department of Natural Resources, briefed board members on the governor’s plans.
“I see it as a loss of upside, not a cut to the base,” Pearson said.
Several board members asked for more detail, while Jackie Brown, who represents the Yampa and White river basins on the water board, said she was grateful the reductions weren’t more dramatic.
“It’s a bummer, but it could have been worse,” she said at the meeting.
Shelby Wieman, a Polis spokesperson, said protecting water programs is a priority for the governor. She also noted that voter approval to increase the amount of money the state keeps from online sports betting for water projects will help soften the impact of any cuts that may come.
Voters approved Proposition JJ in November, giving water programs a boost of $22.4 million next year, Wieman said.
“Water is a critical resource in Colorado, and Governor Polis is continuing to make significant investments to protect and preserve it for future generations. While this budget makes difficult decisions to protect essential funding for education and public safety, as well as a number of other key priorities, Colorado also continues to prioritize water projects around the state,” she said.
Next year’s budget also maintains funding for the state’s Colorado River negotiating team, according to Michael Elizabeth Sakas, a spokeswoman for the Department of Natural Resources, where the team is housed. Sakas declined to specify how much the state is spending on that team. When it began work in 2023, it had a $1.9 million budget.
How much will be cut from other state water programs next year is unclear. Lawmakers will ultimately decide how the state’s $1 billion deficit will be addressed, and what, if any, cuts will eventually be imposed on the CWCB and other water agencies, such as the Colorado Division of Water Resources. Both are housed within the Department of Natural Resources.
The legislature begins work Jan. 8. But state agencies are already responding to requests from lawmakers for possible budget cuts.
Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, Republican from Brighton and a member of the Joint Budget Committee, said she doesn’t expect big cuts to water programs, at least not yet.
“I think Colorado water projects will be protected from the brunt of the cuts,” Kirkmeyer said, “in part because there aren’t a lot of general fund monies going to the CWCB. And we all know water is sacred in Colorado.”
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