Colorado lawmakers on Aug. 25 passed a bill to allow the continued reintroduction of wolves in the state this fiscal year while reallocating some general funds toward Colorado’s health insurance fund.
The bill as originally introduced would have paused the reintroduction program for a year. A special session was held to address a $1.2 billion loss of revenue. Lawmakers introduced Senate Bill 25B-005 to decrease the wolf program’s budget by $264,268. The reduction amount would have been reallocated to Colorado’s Health Insurance Affordability Enterprise.
While the amended version of the bill removes about $260,000 for reintroduction efforts, it allows other funding sources to be used for procuring wolves for a third release. Gov. Jared Polis (D) was expected to sign the bill shortly after its passage.
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