Colorado Senate Bill 26-145 Takes a Step Toward Leveling the Playing Field

Colorado Senate Bill 26-145 Takes a Step Toward Leveling the Playing Field for Charter Schools

Colorado lawmakers are moving a bill this session that could reshape how school districts plan and present local funding measures by requiring districts to engage charter schools earlier and more formally in the process.

Senate Bill 26-145 (“Concerning Charter School Involvement in Local Ballot Questions”) would give charter schools a clearer seat at the table when districts decide what projects to include in ballot measures that ask voters to approve new debt or additional local tax revenue for capital construction. Supporters say the changes would improve transparency for voters and help ensure charter students benefit more equitably from the local dollars their families help approve at the ballot box.

In Colorado, large facility upgrades such as new school buildings, major renovations, safety improvements, and other long-term capital needs are often funded through local bond measures. These proposals are often crafted through long-range planning processes and committees that identify and prioritize district capital projects before a school board finalizes what will be presented to voters.

Charter schools, while public schools, operate under different facility arrangements than district-run schools. Some charters lease space, occupy older buildings, or lack access to district-owned facilities. Advocates have long argued that, even when charter families pay into local tax measures, charter buildings and capital needs can be left out of the planning and project lists that ultimately get funded.

SB 26-145 is designed to address that gap by strengthening procedural requirements for how districts consult with charter schools and consider their facility needs when planning bond questions. At its core, the bill would require districts that are considering submitting ballot questions to voters to more actively solicit and consider charter school capital construction needs.

The bill would require districts to solicit proposals from their charter schools about capital construction needs when the district is considering putting a ballot question before voters. It also requires the district’s board to notify charter schools whether it will include those charter proposals in the ballot questions being developed.

In addition, SB 26-145 would strengthen expectations around representation and notice for planning committees that influence what ends up on the ballot. Districts already use long-range planning committees and other advisory bodies to assess and prioritize facility needs, and the bill reinforces that charter schools must have representation on those committees and must receive clear notice of meeting schedules so they can participate meaningfully.

Advocates of SB 26-145 frame the bill as a transparency-and-equity measure. It states that every Colorado public school student deserves fair and equitable funding, and that voters benefit from clear information about how bond proceeds are planned, allocated, and distributed across schools in a district. It also emphasizes that transparency in bond development supports informed decision-making by voters, families, and school communities, and that voters deserve clarity on how proposals were developed, which schools were included, and why.

For charter families, advocates say the benefit is straightforward: when local voters approve new taxes or long-term debt for school facilities, charter students should be visible in the plan and more likely to benefit from the improvements those dollars support.

Supporters argue that this approach addresses the recurring challenge that charter schools are treated as “afterthoughts” in capital planning, even though they serve public-school students and operate within the same communities as district-run schools. When charter needs are not surfaced early in the bond development process, they can be easily excluded later.

By requiring districts to solicit charter proposals and respond with a clear decision about whether those needs will be included, the bill effectively forces the conversation to happen earlier, in writing, and closer to the point where the public and voters can understand what’s being proposed.

Charter school leaders often describe facilities as one of the biggest structural disadvantages they face compared with district-managed schools. A district can finance and build buildings through long-term capital planning and debt measures tied to district-owned property and systems. Charters, meanwhile, may rely on lease payments and private financing, competing for suitable buildings in a commercial real estate market, costs that can divert dollars away from classrooms.

SB 26-145 does not automatically guarantee charter schools a set share of bond proceeds, nor does it require districts to fund every charter request. But it intends to reduce the procedural imbalance that can prevent charter needs from being considered on equal footing.

The bill’s emphasis on “equitable consideration” is significant. If a committee is shaping a recommended list of projects for the board, the measure would require that charter needs be solicited and weighed alongside district-run school projects rather than being omitted from the start. And requiring boards to notify charters whether their needs will be included creates a clearer record that could influence public debate, board deliberations, and voter understanding.

For charter families, advocates say the benefit is straightforward: when local voters approve new taxes or long-term debt for school facilities, charter students should be visible in the plan and more likely to benefit from the improvements those dollars support. For voters, the argument is that transparency about which schools are included builds trust and improves accountability.

If passed and signed into law, SB 26-145 could change the front end of local ballot planning by adding formal steps: solicitation of charter proposals, committee processes that explicitly incorporate charter needs, and clearer board communication about inclusion decisions. Districts may need to adjust timelines, especially in election years, to ensure that charters have adequate time to submit proposals and participate in committee work.

The bill could also influence how bond measures are communicated to the public. Supporters contend that when charter needs are considered openly and early, bond packages can be explained more clearly as community-wide investments in all public school students rather than as district-only facility initiatives.

SB 26-145 has moved through the Colorado Senate, is sponsored by Sens. Bright and Kipp, with additional sponsorship noted, and has House sponsors as well. On Thursday April 30th, the bill [      ] the House Education Committee on a x-x vote. As the bill continues through the legislative process, the bill’s central premise is clear: when Colorado communities vote to invest in school facilities, the planning process should be transparent, and charter schools, as public schools serving public school students, should be part of that process from the beginning.