SB 25-153
Fiscal Note
Legislative Council Staff
Nonpartisan Services for Colorado’s Legislature
SB 25-153: PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCIAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
Prime Sponsors:
Sen. Kolker
Rep. Garcia
Published for: Senate Appropriations
Drafting number: LLS 25-0627
Fiscal Analyst:
Anna Gerstle, 303-866-4375
anna.gerstle@coleg.gov
Version: First Revised Note
Date: March 3, 2025
Fiscal note status: The fiscal note reflects the introduced bill, as amended by the Senate Education
Committee.
Summary Information
Overview. The bill modifies the financial information that local education providers must post online and
submit to the Colorado Department of Education.
Types of impacts. The bill is projected to affect the following areas on an ongoing basis, beginning in
FY 2025-26:
State Expenditures School Districts
Appropriations. For FY 2025-26, the bill requires an appropriation of $55,538 to the Colorado
Department of Education.
Table 1
State Fiscal Impacts
Type of Impact
1
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
State Revenue $0 $0
State Expenditures $61,947 $0
Transferred Funds $0 $0
Change in TABOR Refunds $0 $0
Change in State FTE 0.3 FTE 0.0 FTE
1
Fund sources for these impacts are shown in the tables below. Page 2
March 3, 2025 SB 25-153
Table 1A
State Expenditures
Fund Source
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
General Fund $55,538 $0
Cash Funds $0 $0
Federal Funds $0 $0
Centrally Appropriated $6,409 $0
Total Expenditures $61,947 $0
Total FTE 0.3 FTE 0.0 FTE
Summary of Legislation
Under current law, each school district, charter school, board of cooperative services, and the
state Charter School Institute (local education providers, or LEPs) must post certain financial
information online. The bill:
requires the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) to add information to the Chart of
Accounts regarding revenue to public schools from private sources, no later than
July 1, 2026;
● requires LEPs to post school-level information on revenue from private sources on their
websites; and
● clarifies current reporting requirements to allow LEPs to post online their lowest and highest
educator and administrator salaries, if the full salary schedule is not available.
Background and Assumptions
The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) maintains a Financial Policies and Procedures
Handbook and Chart of Accounts that must be used by local education providers to track
financial information. The Financial Policies and Procedures (FPP) Advisory Committee maintains
the handbook and supports districts in following financial procedures and requirements. Data
submitted to the chart of accounts is posted on CDE’s financial transparency website.
State Expenditures
The bill increases state expenditures in CDE by about $61,947 in FY 2025-26 only, paid from the
General Fund. Costs are shown in Table 2 below. Page 3
March 3, 2025 SB 25-153
Table 2
State Expenditures
Department of Education
Cost Component
Budget Year
FY 2025-26
Out Year
FY 2026-27
Personal Services $28,838 $0
Data System Costs $26,700 $0
Centrally Appropriated Costs $6,409 $0
Total Costs $61,947 $0
Total FTE 0.3 FTE 0.0 FTE
Staff
In FY 2025-26 only, CDE requires 0.3 FTE to support the FPP Advisory Committee in updating the
FPP handbook and Chart of Accounts to reflect the bill’s reporting requirements, develop
training on the changes, and provide technical assistance to school districts and charter schools
in submitting the required data.
Data System Costs
In FY 2025-26 only, CDE will incur costs to modify the data system to collect school-level data on
revenue from private sources, and incorporate it to the existing financial transparency website.
The work is expected to take about 214 hours, at a cost of $125 per hour.
Centrally Appropriated Costs
Pursuant to a Joint Budget Committee policy, certain costs associated with this bill are
addressed through the annual budget process and centrally appropriated in the Long Bill or
supplemental appropriations bills, rather than in this bill. These costs, which may include
employee insurance, supplemental employee retirement payments, leased space, and indirect
cost assessments, are shown in the expenditure table(s) above.
School District
The bill increases workload and costs for school districts to track and post the required financial
information at a school level, and to compile and submit the newly required data. Workload and
costs may include website development and staff time, depending on the school district’s
current systems. Page 4
March 3, 2025 SB 25-153
Effective Date
The bill takes effect 90 days following adjournment of the General Assembly sine die, assuming
no referendum petition is filed.
Appropriation
In FY 2025-26, the bill requires a General Fund appropriation of $55,538 to the Colorado
Department of Education, and 0.3 FTE.
State and Local Government Contacts
Education School Districts
The revenue and expenditure impacts in this fiscal note represent changes from current law under the bill for each
fiscal year. For additional information about fiscal notes, please visit the General Assembly website.