Colorado: New Report: Polis Administration Delivered Key Funding and Policies Over the Past Year to Meet Climate Goals and Make Coloradans Healthier

DENVER - The Polis administration's final Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Report shows that under Governor Polis's leadership, Colorado cut greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution despite damaging federal action to take Colorado and the country backwards. This is the report's eighth update in compliance with the Governor's executive order.

"Eight years ago, Colorado made a commitment to build a cleaner, healthier, more affordable energy future for every family across our state. This report is proof that we are delivering on that commitment and our progress will save people money and protect our clean mountain air for generations, long after my administration. Clean energy like wind, solar, geothermal and more save Coloradans money, make energy more reliable, and reduce pollution, making Coloradans and our communities healthier," said Governor Jared Polis.

This edition highlights work achieved between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026, across a broad range of sectors and addresses planned actions outlined in key documents such as the first and second Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmaps and the Colorado Transportation Vision: 2035.

"Addressing the root causes of climate change makes Coloradans healthier and has been a cornerstone of the Polis administration over nearly eight years of work," said Colorado Energy Office Executive Director Will Toor. "This report is a great reminder that Colorado has never wavered when it comes to confronting this issue head on, and that we continue to make meaningful headway in cutting greenhouse gas emissions, which impact all of us."

The report was a joint effort between the Colorado Energy Office (CEO), Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE), Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), Department of Labor and Employment (Office of Just Transition), the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), and the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA).

Notably, the report highlights how agencies pursued final actions identified in the second Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap and remained on track to advance a majority of these priorities before the end of the Polis administration. During this period, the state also released its third statewide GHG inventory. With the actions the state committed to by the end of 2023, Colorado is projected to achieve 84% of its 2030 emissions reduction goal. With the additional Near Term Actions from the second Roadmap, Colorado is projected to achieve its 2030 goal by the end of 2032.

In addition to proactive efforts, the state also worked to defend legally established policies and federal funding impacted by federal government action. Colorado is participating in at least 10 federal lawsuits to ensure that the Trump administration acts lawfully in funding programs and adopting regulations that are cost-saving, climate-related action. These include:

• Joining a coalition of states and local governments in a lawsuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) decision to rescind its 2009 GHG Endangerment Finding and repeal all federal GHG emission standards for light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles, undoing almost two decades of federal regulations.
• Joining a coalition of state and local governments challenging the legality of the EPA's termination of the Solar for All program. The Colorado Solar for All (COS4A) program is focused on accelerating widespread adoption of rooftop and community solar in Colorado, moving the state closer to the goal of 100% clean energy by 2040.
• Filing a Petition for Review at the D.C. Circuit opposing the Department of Energy's order requiring the Craig Unit 1 coal-fired power plant to remain open after its planned closure date of December 31, 2025.

Sector-by-sector highlights from the past reporting year include:

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Transportation

• The Community Access to Electric Bicycles Grant Program, which supports local governments and non-profit organizations in establishing e-bike share or e-bike ownership programs, awarded four projects funding.
• The Clean Transit Enterprise Board approved capital grants applications totalling $30 million, which will result in 17 zero-emission transit vehicle purchases.
• The Clean Fleet Enterprise's Clean Fleet Vehicle and Technology Grant Program awarded $15.2 million to support the deployment of 109 new vehicles across 13 Colorado counties.
• The Vehicle Exchange Colorado (VXC) program, which provides rebates to income-qualified Coloradans to recycle and replace their old or high-emitting vehicles with battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, increased its rebate amounts.
• Seventeen transit agencies completed a summer of free fares during the ozone season as part of the Zero Fare transit program. During that time, approximately two-thirds of the participating agencies recorded their highest August ridership of the last four years.
• The state's Direct-Current Fast-Charging (DCFC) Plazas program announced $5 million in grant awards. These grants, which come exclusively from state funds, will support 56 new fast charging ports at nine different sites across the state.
• The Clean Transit Enterprise (CTE) approved its first award from the Local Transit Operations Formula Grant Program to support and expand local transit service across the state.

Residential, Commercial and Industrial Fuel Use

• CEO awarded the first round of its Large Building Decarbonization (LBD) Showcase Grant program, which targets large commercial buildings covered by the Building Performance Colorado (BPC) requirements and is designed to showcase buildings that can meet or exceed building performance standards ahead of the 2030 deadline through innovative design.
• The Energy Code Board published the Colorado Model Low Energy and Carbon Code (MLECC). The code, which improves energy efficiency to reduce consumers' utility bills and encourages electrification of HVAC and water heating appliances in new construction to eliminate emissions from fossil fuel equipment, becomes the state's new minimum energy code beginning July 1, 2026.

Oil and Gas

• The Energy and Carbon Management Commission (ECMC) launched the Marginal Well Plugging Program (MWPP) (https://ecmc.colorado.gov/regulation/marginal-wells), awarding $11 million to 24 applicants in its first application round to plug and abandon 104 marginal wells, which are known to have disproportionately high methane emissions.

Local government action

• The state awarded more than $13.3 million total from the inaugural Transit Oriented Communities Infrastructure (TOCI) grant (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/department-of-local-affairs-announces-inaugural-transit-oriented-communities). CEO awarded $21.6 million through the federally funded Local IMPACT (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/polis-administration-awards-21.6-million-to-support-local-climate-action) Accelerator Grant program (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/local-impact-accelerator) to help local governments adopt policies that enhance resilience, reduce emissions, and advance other priorities such as clean air, lower energy costs, and affordable housing. An additional $30.1 million in grants (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/polis-administration-awards-21.6-million-to-support-local-climate-action) was awarded to 18 local and Tribal governments through the second and final funding round of this program.

Waste

• The Air Quality Control Commission adopted Regulation 31 (https://www.sos.state.co.us/CCR/DisplayRule.do?action=ruleinfo&ruleId=3469&deptID=0&agencyID=7&deptName=1000%20Department%20of%20Public%20Health%20and%20Environment&agencyName=1001%20Air%20Quality%20Control%20Commission&seriesNum=5%20CCR%201001-35) to reduce methane pollution from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) (https://cdphe.colorado.gov/apcd/landfill-methane-reductions) landfills.

Industry and Manufacturing

• The Clean Air Program (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/cap-grants) awarded more than $5.2 million and conditionally awarded $2.9 (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/energy-office-awards-5.2-million-to-support-innovative-technologies-that-reduce) million to support industrial and manufacturing air pollution reduction projects across Colorado.
• CEO also announced $32.8 million in awards for industrial emissions (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/polis-administration-invests-32.8-million-to-reduce-air-pollution) reduction projects and studies through the Colorado Industrial Tax Credit Offering (CITCO). (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/citco?utm_source=MarketingCloud&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Press+Release+CITCO+June+2026+Awards&utm_content=Colorado+Industrial+Tax+Credit+Offering+(CITCO)

Carbon Management

• Colorado and Wyoming entered into a Memorandum of Understanding, (https://www.colorado.gov/governor/news/colorado-and-wyoming-announce-agreement-coordinate-carbon-storage-efforts) fostering regional cooperation and ensuring consistent oversight of cross-border carbon sequestration operations.

Geothermal

• CEO announced $12.4 million to support seven geothermal projects (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/press-releases/polis-administration-awards-12.4-million-to-further-develop-geothermal-energy-in) across Colorado through the Geothermal Energy Grant Program (https://energyoffice.colorado.gov/geothermal-energy-grant) (GEGP) and Geothermal Energy Tax Credit Offering (GETCO). Earlier in this period, CEO also announced $7.3 million in awards through GETCO.

Natural and Working Lands

• As an update to the state's Strategic Plan for Climate-Smart Natural and Working Lands (https://ag.colorado.gov/conservation/strategic-plan-for-climate-smart-natural-and-working-lands#:~:text=climate%20resilient%20Colorado.-,The%20Strategic%20Plan%20for%20Natural%20and%20Working%20Lands%20was%20a,from%20natural%20and%20working%20lands), the Natural and Working Lands Taskforce published a two-year update on progress and priorities through 2028.

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