by Colleen Enos

We have all heard the Golden Rule, based on Matthew 7:12, which commands that we treat others the way we would like to be treated. But have you heard of the Golden Rule of Money? This rule says that “He who has the gold makes the rules.” It is a truth based on ownership of resources, which we should be very familiar with here in Colorado. The part-time homeschool enrichment public funding conversations happening under the golden dome in Denver are an incredibly clear example of this golden rule.

The Joint Budget Committee (JBC) has asked for a bill* to be drafted that addresses Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) operating programs outside their member districts, defines “instructional time,” and clarifies that any eligible program must also be available to full-time public-school students in the districts. This bill draft should be available this week for the JBC to review, revise, and vote on.

It is important to remember that public money is regulated and controlled by public entities; in this case, the entities are the Colorado General Assembly and the Colorado State Board of Education. Because we believe that parents should be the ones directing the education, upbringing, and care of their children, CHEC has taken a strong stand against government control and for privately funded homeschooling. We understand that when the state provides the gold, the state crafts the rules.

It is because of this foundational truth that HB26-1292, Scholarship Granting Organizations, is so egregious. This bill — a bill that represents a power and funding grab — seeks to take private donations to Scholarship Granting Organizations and treat them as if they were public monies. They are not. The Colorado public education system is not particularly open to free market competition. While the Trump Administration’s private scholarship program, passed in the One Big Beautiful Bill, is a threat to that monopolistic education system, the impending competition that the scholarship program invites is now on a certain timeline due to Governor Polis’ opting the state into the scholarship program.

Colorado’s legislature has made a habit of seizing every available opportunity to encroach on First Amendment protections of speech and religion, and this bill is simply the latest example. With so much opposition to the bill, it has been rescheduled repeatedly and is now set to be heard on April 30 in the House Education Committee. 

Harkening again to the Golden Rule of Money, the state also wants to force Colorado universities, both public and private, to stock the abortion pill, mifepristone, in their college health care centers. In this case, not only does the state fund public universities, but it also wields power over all universities in the state through the Colorado Commission on Higher Education and its accreditation authority. Through the College Abortion bill, HB26-1335, the state plans to make every college in the state a pro-abortion advocate. They are not, however, requiring information on abortion pill reversal, adoption, or even the documented risks of the abortion pill, which harm one in ten women who use it. True informed choice is not available to students. This bill passed out of the House Education Committee on April 16, was debated on the House floor last Friday, and will surely be on its way to the Colorado Senate before the week is over.

In addition to the General Assembly killing HCR26-1002, Require Age Verification for Pornographic Material, which would have allowed Colorado voters to weigh in on this commonsense safety measure, they also killed HCR26-1004, Person’s Rights Related to Their Children, which would have placed this fundamental right on the 2026 ballot. It is evident that parental rights in Colorado continue to be assaulted under our current Colorado leadership.

As the Colorado legislature races to the finish line of May 13 with their heavy-handed bills, we pray that our families will be left with their rights intact and some of their own gold to rule over.

 *See JBC recording from April 22, 2026 at the 11:37 time stamp.

What you can do

1. Call and email your state representative and state senator.
   • Ask them to protect Colorado families.
   • Tell them to vote against HB26-1292 and HB26-1335.
   • Ask them to vote for a responsible budget.
2. Vote for new Colorado leadership this fall!

In Him,

Colleen Enos
CHEC Director of Government Relations
Colleen@CHEC.org

About the Author: Colleen Enos