Headlines Wednesday Sept 24, 2025
Looming Budget Cuts from Colorado Economists + Unemployment in CO below U.S. Average
Colorado is bracing for yet another budget crisis next year. Analysts presented the latest economic forecasts to state lawmakers Monday.
They say the state will face a budget deficit next year of eight hundred and fifty million dollars. The shortfall will be largely due to increasing costs of healthcare and education and the spending cap set by the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights.
The legislature already had to solve two major budget problems this year. Last spring, they balanced a billion-dollar shortfall and, last month, they closed a more than seven hundred million dollar hole created by changes in federal tax
AIRBNB Sues Colorado after Boulder Case Lost
A new court case reveals that Airbnb is suing the state of Colorado and asking the judge to determine that it does not owe $10.5 million in unpaid taxes. A similar case was lost in Boulder last year.
Airbnb wrote in a statement last week that “Airbnb contests all amounts claimed due, including all taxes assessed and any new interest or penalties that may be added to such taxes.” Airbnb has an itemized list for rental costs, including charges set by hosts, as well as a nightly rate and a cleaning fee, whereas Airbnb sets a guest or service fee. Airbnb collects and pays taxes on that fee.
The Colorado Department of Revenue conducted its own audit of Airbnb, sending the company a $10.5 million bill for unpaid sales and lodging taxes from 2018 to 2021. The case will fall on Denver District Judge Ian Kellogg to determine if the state authorizes application of taxes to the guest fees.
Boulder Planning Survey
The Boulder Comprehensive Plan is being sent around within the city and county. The planning survey is designed to concentrate urbanization and ensure development is meeting community needs.
The Boulder Reporting Lab says that the city and county will be randomly selecting 5,000 households to fill out the survey beginning this week. Additionally, a companion questionnaire open to all Boulderites is available to fill out online from now through October Seventeenth.
According to the city of Boulder, the comprehensive plan originally started in 1977 to understand community thoughts on urbanization. Since then, the survey has served as a roadmap for how the Boulder area develops, responds to issues brought on by climate change, and works to foster an inclusive economy.
According to the City of Boulder, a draft update is expected in Spring of 2026.
The Sun, 9News Suing State Over Access to Child Abuse Data
A legal battle over child abuse hotline data requested four years ago by the Colorado Sun and 9News has now reached the Colorado Supreme Court, according to a recent article by the Colorado Sun.
The information was requested through the Colorado Open Records Act for the number of calls that were made to the state hotline in regards to three child residential treatment centers in the Denver area between 2018 and 2021. The Colorado Department of Human Services claimed that providing that information was a violation of the children’s privacy.
The call did not request children’s names but rather the number of calls made during the three years and the number of cases that were investigated. The arguments made in court on Monday revealed that if investigative journalists had access to that information, they could use it to identify a child who was abused.
The news outlets were able to obtain police data for their series about the growing problem of children running away from residential treatment centers. The Colorado Court of Appeals has sided with the Colorado Sun and 9News in past cases, and the justices will rule on the current matter on a later date.
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09_24_25_AM_Headlines Juanita Hurtado
