DENVER | Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper says he will not call lawmakers back for a special legislative session to address the state’s multibillion-dollar backlog of infrastructure projects.
The governor announced his decision Friday, about a week after they concluded their annual session with modest advancements on road funding, energy and health care. He had warned them not to make any vacation plans for May.
Hickenlooper has called the most recent legislative session productive, but he wanted lawmakers to come up with more money for roads, a centerpiece topic of the term.
Colorado has an estimated $9 billion backlog of infrastructure projects, but lawmakers couldn’t agree on a plan to pay for upgrades with a sales-tax hike. The resulting transportation deal allocated $1.8 billion — an amount that includes mortgaging state buildings.