Colorado lawmakers have killed legislation that would have limited local governments’ ability to dictate residential lot sizes as the legislature enters its final weeks of work before the 2026 session concludes.
The session’s dying light usually includes the sweeping demise of bills big and small. On Thursday, the Senate Local Government and Housing Committee brought that extinguishment to . Part of a yearslong effort to reshape local zoning rules, the bill would’ve prohibited local governments from requiring that single-family home lots be larger than 2,000 square feet, making larger minimum sizes against state law.
The measure passed the House in late February, only to hit the skids in the Senate, which has taken a more critical view of zoning reforms. The bill died on a 7-0 vote after its Senate sponsor, Denver Democrat Sen. Matt Ball, asked for its euthanization following testimony and debate.
But the legislature is not done with this debate. On Thursday, the same Senate committee is set to take up , which would allow a homeowner to sell off a smaller section of their lot, generally without local government approval.
After today, 16 days remain in the legislative session, and HB-1308's hearing is but one of several policy debates set for this week.
The fight over data center policy is still dragging along. The bill that would rewrite Colorado's dormant artificial intelligence regulations is expected to be introduced this week. The is still getting its final tweaks, as is legislation related to , which provides Medicaid-like care for immigrant children and pregnant women who lack legal status.
Here's what else to expect this week:
Today
The House is set to take up several bills on third reading, which is a chamber's final vote. Those include , which would put additional limitations in place on Colorado officials' ability to work with federal immigration authorities, and , which would generally require universities and colleges to offer abortion medication at their health centers.
The Senate is set for a first floor vote on , which would generally block companies from using customers' personalized data to set individualized prices or wages.
After welcoming members of Denver Summit FC first thing Monday, the Senate also began debating . That measure would institute several regulations related to sports betting, though its sponsors stripped a provision that would've banned prop betting.
Tuesday
The House Judiciary Committee will take up three bills related to prison population management (Senate Bills , and ).
The Senate Appropriations Committee has a very long calendar to advance or dispatch a number of bills. That's standard: When the budget bill is (just about) settled, the mountain of legislation with fiscal impacts are then clear to get fuller debates.
The Senate Finance Committee will debate , which would regulate hemp-derived THC beverages.
Thursday
The Senate's Local Government and Housing Committee will take up the aforementioned HB-1308, the lot-splitting bill.
