The Colorado Economic Security Act starts from one idea. When a family's health, income, housing and food are steady, everything else gets easier, for them and for the state.
CESA is a full, written bill, not a wish list. The current master is version 16.2, and it runs 431 pages. Every version starts with a list of exactly what changed, so anyone can follow how it got here. Read the whole thing (PDF).
What it would do for a family
Healthcare: Care Without Fear
One statewide health system that covers everyone who takes part. The bill moves Colorado to single-payer by Year 3, with private insurance shifting to extra coverage on top. What you pay is a slice of your income, on a sliding scale:
- Below 138% of the Colorado Cost of Living Standard: $0
- Then 2%, 4%, 5% and 6% as income rises
- The top band pays 7%, capped at $15,000 a year
The bill's own comparison puts a typical family's yearly savings against today's premiums in the thousands, often more than $10,000.
Childcare
Free for families below 100% of the Cost of Living Standard. Above that, families pay 3%, 5% or 7% of income depending on their band, and never more than 10%.
Housing, work and the rest
The seven pillars run through the whole bill: Health, Income, Family, Housing, Food, Economic Opportunity, and Protection from Disruption. That covers a plan to end homelessness, help for workers pushed out by AI, a state bank, veterans' programs, a cap on predatory loans, broadband treated as a basic utility, and more. It's a lot. That's on purpose.
How it's paid for
CESA runs on enterprise funds. That's the same kind of structure Colorado already uses for things like unemployment insurance. People and businesses pay in and get specific services back. The main money sources:
- The sliding-scale healthcare fee above.
- An employer healthcare assessment that replaces premiums. Businesses with under $500,000 in payroll pay nothing. Above that it's 6%, 8% or 9% of payroll depending on size. The bill estimates that's roughly 30 to 40% less than what those employers pay in premiums today.
- Hospital and insurance-company assessments, plus savings from cutting paperwork.
The honest part about taxes
The healthcare core is built on fees, with no income tax increase. But CESA is not tax-free, and I'm not going to pretend it is. Alongside the fees, it proposes four health-impact taxes: 5 cents per ounce on sugary drinks, and extra sales taxes of 8% on high-sugar, high-fat foods, 5% on ultra-processed foods and 3% on chain-restaurant meals. The bill estimates they'd raise $630 to $870 million a year, and puts that money toward healthcare and making healthy food cheaper. An income tax shows up only as a last-resort backup, and only if Colorado voters approve it. Under TABOR, any new state tax goes to voters.
Nothing switches on by itself
This is the part people miss. No program starts automatically. Each one has to pass an independent money check first (an actuarial certification), prove its funding is actually coming in, show it has the staff and systems ready, and get a formal sign-off. A permanent, nonpartisan council of 11 reviews the whole thing, publishes plain-language reports, and puts every program through a review every five years.
The hard parts
- It's big. The bill's own estimate is about $9.8 billion in Year 1. The bill's case is that much of it replaces what families and employers already spend on premiums. Either way, it's a big lift.
- "Voluntary" has fine print. Employers are in by default. They can opt out each year, but they give up CESA's benefits and preferences if they do.
- It will draw a single-subject challenge. Colorado bills have to cover one subject. CESA's subject is life stability for Colorado residents, and every section is written to serve it.
Why it stays one bill
I get asked to break CESA into pieces all the time. I won't. The pieces lean on each other. Healthcare savings help pay for the rest, and stable housing makes healthcare cheaper. Almost every piece is already working somewhere in the world. What CESA does is put those proven pieces together into one plan built to last. Split it up and you get seven half-measures that each lose on their own.
We're looking for a sponsor for the 2027 session. If you're a lawmaker, or you know one, let's talk.
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