(1) (a) The general assembly finds and
declares that:
(I) Colorado has prioritized early learning through its investments in the
Colorado preschool program, established in 1988, and full-day kindergarten,
adopted in 2019;
(II) Since establishing the Colorado preschool program, Colorado has
steadily increased its investment in high-quality preschool programming, securing a
significant return on investment by improving child outcomes year over year by
expanding access to preschool for children in low-income families and those who
are at risk of entering kindergarten without being prepared to learn;
(III) State and national research demonstrate the positive and long- and
short-term impacts of high-quality preschool, including improved early literacy,
reduced grade retention, decreased probability of developing a significant reading
deficiency, improved performance on statewide standards-based assessments, and
increased rate of high school graduation;
(IV) Research demonstrates that economically disadvantaged children derive
greater benefits from preschool programs in states that offer universal programs
than in states that offer preschool programs specifically for economically
disadvantaged children;
(V) In the 2020 general election, the voters of Colorado approved proposition
EE by a nearly two-to-one margin, establishing a dedicated source of funding for
statewide, voluntary, universal preschool programming for children in the year
preceding kindergarten and for additional preschool programming for children in
low-income families and children who are at risk of entering kindergarten without
being prepared to learn. With the passage of this measure, Colorado voters in rural,
urban, and suburban communities have demonstrated their strong commitment to
expanding access to quality preschool for children regardless of their economic
circumstances.
(VI) Creating a statewide mixed delivery system of preschool providers to
make preschool programming universally available to children throughout Colorado
compounds the benefits for children who are in low-income families and increases
the ultimate social and economic benefits of high-quality preschool programming
for the state as a whole.
(b) The general assembly finds, therefore, that it is in the best interests of
the state and consistent with the will of the voters of Colorado to establish the
Colorado universal preschool program to provide high-quality, voluntary preschool
programming through a mixed delivery system for children throughout the state in
the year preceding kindergarten enrollment and to provide for additional preschool
services for children who are in low-income families or who meet identified
qualifying factors.
(2) (a) The general assembly further finds and declares that:
(I) In 2000, the voters approved section 17 of article IX of the state
constitution, which requires the general assembly to annually increase, by at least
the rate of inflation, the statewide base per pupil funding, as defined by article 54
of title 22, for public education from preschool through twelfth grade;
(II) In the 2001-02 fiscal year and in every fiscal year since, the increases to
statewide base per pupil funding have automatically applied to funding for
preschool services provided by school districts, because the funding for preschool
services has been calculated through the school finance formula established in
article 54 of title 22, which applies to funding for public elementary and secondary
education;
(III) To effectively and efficiently provide preschool services through a mixed
delivery system of school- and community-based preschool providers, and to
ensure that funding calculations account for the unique standards and features of
preschool programs, state funding for preschool services, including preschool
services for children with disabilities, must be appropriated and allocated
separately from the funding for public elementary and secondary education, and,
beginning in the 2023-24 fiscal year, the statewide base per pupil funding amount
set annually for public elementary and secondary education will no longer apply to
funding for preschool services;
(IV) To continue to meet the intent of section 17 (1) of article IX of the state
constitution with regard to funding for preschool services, it is appropriate for the
department of early childhood to establish a per-child constitutional compliance
rate for the 2023-24 fiscal year that equals the portion of the statewide base per
pupil funding amount established for the 2023-24 fiscal year that applies to the
number of hours of universal preschool services provided to an eligible child, and to
increase the per-child constitutional compliance rate annually by the rate of
inflation.
(b) The general assembly, therefore, declares that, by establishing a per-child constitutional compliance rate and ensuring that the per-child rate that the
department annually establishes for universal preschool services and for preschool
services provided to children who are three years of age or younger meets or
exceeds the per-child constitutional compliance rate, funding for the Colorado
universal preschool program substantially complies with the requirements of
section 17 (1) of article IX of the state constitution.
(3) (a) The general assembly further finds and declares that:
(I) In approving proposition EE, the voters supported funding for ten hours of
high-quality preschool programming for all Colorado children in the year preceding
kindergarten enrollment, as well as additional preschool programming for children
who are at risk of entering kindergarten without being prepared to learn, including
children in low-income families;
(II) Research demonstrates that participating in high-quality preschool
programs helps to ensure that children in low-income families are able to enter
kindergarten on par with their peers in higher-income families; and
(III) For the preschool program to serve children equitably, the state must
invest in additional hours of preschool programming for children in low-income
families, in addition to funding the ten hours of universal preschool services.
(b) The general assembly finds, therefore, that it is in the best interests of
the state to allocate the amount appropriated for the Colorado universal preschool
program to provide adequate funding for both a high-quality universal preschool
program and additional preschool programming for children in low-income families.
(4) The general assembly recognizes the requirement of the federal
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. sec. 1400 et seq., as
amended, to provide educational services to every three- or four-year-old child with
a disability, in accordance with the child's individualized education program. The
general assembly declares that, for purposes of section 17 of article IX of the state
constitution, meeting the obligation of serving all three- and four-year-old children
with disabilities through the Colorado universal preschool program is an important
element of expanding the availability of preschool programs and may therefore
receive funding from the state education fund created in section 17 (4) of article IX
of the state constitution.