Colorado bill to establish migrant welcome grant program passes House

The Colorado House approved a bill on Wednesday to give financial support to groups assisting the thousands of migrants who have made their way to the state in recent months, continuing an effort this legislative session to help respond to the situation.

Nearly 40,000 migrants have arrived in Denver since December 2022, many on buses from Texas and other border states. Many have remained in the Denver metro area or continued on to another state, though some have traveled to other cities, such as Carbondale, in search of opportunity. Most of the migrants fled economic and political turmoil in central and South American countries.

The stream of migrants has strained city and state resources as leaders work to provide shelter and related emergency services. With increased demand, a lot of that work to help new arrivals integrate, find housing and achieve some sense of stability has fallen on nonprofits and organizations outside of government.

“Compassion means that we do what we can to support those that have the expertise, to ensure that we are not leaving families on the streets or under bridges, that we’re not keeping babies in two-day-old diapers,” bill sponsor Rep. Lorena Garcia, an Adams County Democrat, said. “This bill is funneling dollars to the organizations that have the history in supporting and navigating and helping this community.”

House Bill 24-1280 would establish a grant program for organizations that are supporting the recently-arrived population. Grant money could be used for efforts like housing-related services, public school placement assistance, English classes, financial orientation, immigration legal help, emergency supplies and assistance navigating the complex federal processes for immigrants to seek legal status.

It would appropriate $2.5 million for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1, from the state’s general fund.

It was sponsored by Garcia and Democratic Rep. Elizabeth Velasco of Glenwood Springs. It is also sponsored by Democratic Sens. Rhonda Fields of Aurora and Lisa Cutter of Littleton.

The bill passed the House with a 44-20 vote mostly along party lines. It now heads to the Senate, which has until May 8 to approve it.

The bill’s final vote came nearly two weeks after its initial floor debate, atypical from the chamber’s usual timeline. During that debate, Democratic leadership repeatedly asked Republicans to refrain from using language they deemed pejorative towards immigrants, including “illegal alien” and equating migrants to criminals or “invaders.” In response, Republicans accused leadership of censorship.

That tension over allowable words spilled into Wednesday, with a few Republicans saying “censored word” in place of the actual term.

In general, opponents of the bill said it would entice migrants to come to Colorado, expanding the amount of state resources spent on their support.

“The expenditure is much greater than the amount the bill considers,” said Rep. Richard Holtorf, an Akron Republican. “This kind of legislation can be a fiscal cliff that we all drive off.”

The number of migrants has put Colorado hospitals under more stress due to uncompensated care and strained public schools that have too few Spanish-speaking instructors. Lawmakers approved $24 million in one-time funding earlier this session to support schools with high migrant populations, and they have sent multiple cash infusions to Denver Health.

Republicans also argued that people, migrants or otherwise, deserve “hand-ups” not “handouts” from the government.

“I lifted myself up with all the opportunities that this country provided. I was never given medical by the government. I was never given a check. I had to go through the system being fresh off the boat,” Republican Rep. Ron Weinberg of Loveland said during initial debate on the bill on April 20. Weinberg is an immigrant originally from South Africa.

Supporters said that whether welcomed or not, migrants participate in Colorado’s society, pay taxes and deserve help.

“This bill is not the boogeyman,” Garcia said. “This bill intends to support nonprofit organizations that are in our communities, ensuring that individuals who are new to this state are able to have access to the resources that exist for them.”