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HB26-1078 • 2026

Off-Campus Courses & Concurrent Enrollment Programs

The act allows off-campus courses to be included in concurrent enrollment programs when the off-campus courses meet the requirements for concurrent enrollment programs and the requirements of an accre

Budget Education
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Rep. E. Hamrick, Rep. L. Smith, Sen. B. Kirkmeyer, Sen. J. Marchman, Sen. S. Bright, Rep. K. Brown, Rep. S. Camacho, Rep. M. Carter, Rep. C. Clifford, Rep. M. Duran, Rep. R. English, Rep. L. Goldstein, Rep. J. Jackson, Rep. J. Joseph, Rep. S. Lieder, Rep. M. Lindsay, Rep. K. McCormick, Rep. K. Nguyen, Rep. A. Paschal, Rep. J. Phillips, Rep. N. Ricks, Rep. G. Rydin, Rep. E. Sirota, Rep. K. Stewart, Rep. T. Story, Rep. B. Titone, Sen. J. Amabile, Sen. A. Benavidez, Sen. J. Carson, Sen. M. Catlin, Sen. J. Coleman, Sen. L. Cutter, Sen. J. Danielson, Sen. L. Daugherty, Sen. T. Exum, Sen. J. Gonzales, Sen. N. Hinrichsen, Sen. I. Jodeh, Sen. C. Kipp, Sen. K. Mullica, Sen. R. Pelton, Sen. M. Snyder, Sen. K. Wallace, Sen. M. Weissman
Last action
2026-06-01
Official status
Governor Signed
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The effective date for Section 2 (funding reductions) depends on whether the annual general appropriation act for fiscal year 2026-27 becomes law.

HB26-1078: Off-Campus Courses in Concurrent Enrollment Programs

This law allows off-campus courses to be part of concurrent enrollment programs if they meet program requirements and standards from a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency, while setting funding rules for future course approvals.

What This Bill Does

  • Allows off-campus courses in concurrent enrollment programs only if the courses meet all article requirements and those of an accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
  • Stops approval of additional eligible courses after July 1, 2028, unless the General Assembly confirms sufficient funding for course audit and oversight via a footnote in the annual general appropriations act starting with fiscal year 2028-29.
  • Ensures that courses approved before July 1, 2028, keep their status even if future funding is not confirmed.
  • Appropriates $66,056 from the general fund to the Department of Education for administration during the 2026-27 state fiscal year.
  • Reduces appropriations by $80,178 for the College Opportunity Fund program and related reappropriated funds if sufficient funding exists in the annual budget.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Students taking off-campus courses within concurrent enrollment programs.
  • Institutions of higher education offering these off-campus courses.
  • The Colorado Department of Education, which receives new funding and oversight duties.
  • School districts involved in public school finance administration related to student pathways.

Terms To Know

Concurrent Enrollment
A program where high school students take college-level courses for both high school and college credit, governed by Article 35 of the state statutes.
Accrediting Agency
An organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education that checks if schools meet quality standards required for these programs.
General Appropriations Act
The annual state budget law where funding levels and footnotes regarding course approval are recorded.

Limits and Unknowns

  • New courses cannot be approved after July 1, 2028, unless the General Assembly confirms sufficient funding in a footnote.
  • The reduction of $80,178 from other funds only happens if those specific appropriations exist and are large enough to cover the adjustment.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

J.002

HOU Appropriations

Passed [*]

Plain English: This amendment changes the funding for off-campus courses by cutting $80,178 from one program and adding $66,056 to another department.

  • It reduces money in the College Opportunity Fund Program by $80,178 if that fund exists in the budget.
  • It cuts a matching payment of $80,178 for the University of Colorado system from fee-for-service contracts.
  • It provides new funding of $66,056 to the Department of Education for administrative work and student pathways programs.
  • The cut in Section 2 only happens if the main budget bill includes enough money for that specific program; otherwise, no reduction is made.
  • Section 3 funding depends on assumptions about needing extra staff time (FTE) to manage these programs.
L.001

HOU Education

Passed [*]

Plain English: This amendment changes the rule for off-campus courses to require that they be recognized specifically by the U.S. Department of Education instead of just being recognized under federal law.

  • The bill now requires off-campus courses in concurrent enrollment programs to be recognized directly by the United States Department of Education.
L.010

SEN Appropriations

Passed [*]

Plain English: This amendment adds a rule that after July 1, 2028, no new off-campus courses can be approved for concurrent enrollment unless the state has enough money to check and oversee them.

  • New off-campus courses cannot start being offered in concurrent enrollment programs after July 1, 2028, if there is not enough funding for audits and oversight.
  • Courses that were already approved before July 1, 2028, will keep their approval status even if new ones are blocked due to lack of funds.
  • Starting in the budget year for 2028-29, lawmakers must add a note to the state budget explaining whether there is enough money to allow more courses.
  • The amendment does not explain exactly how much funding is needed or what specific audit tasks will be performed.
  • It is unclear which department receives this funding, though it mentions 'the Department' without naming it in the text provided.
L.003

Second Reading

Passed [**]

Plain English: This amendment changes when parts of the bill become active, making most rules start immediately but delaying one specific section until a certain condition is met.

  • The entire act will take effect as soon as it passes into law.
  • The amendment text cuts off before explaining what must happen for Section 2 to take effect, so the specific requirement or condition is unknown.
  • Because the sentence ends abruptly with 'only if the', we cannot explain exactly when Section 2 would start.

Bill History

  1. 2026-06-01 Governor

    Governor Signed

  2. 2026-05-29 Governor

    Sent to the Governor

  3. 2026-05-29 Senate

    Signed by the President of the Senate

  4. 2026-05-29 House

    Signed by the Speaker of the House

  5. 2026-05-07 House

    House Considered Senate Amendments - Result was to Concur - Repass

  6. 2026-05-06 Senate

    Senate Third Reading Passed - No Amendments

  7. 2026-05-05 Senate

    Senate Second Reading Special Order - Passed with Amendments - Committee

  8. 2026-05-05 Senate

    Senate Committee on Appropriations Refer Amended to Senate Committee of the Whole

  9. 2026-04-29 Senate

    Senate Committee on Education Refer Unamended to Appropriations

  10. 2026-04-23 Senate

    Introduced In Senate - Assigned to Education

  11. 2026-04-21 House

    House Third Reading Passed - No Amendments

  12. 2026-04-20 House

    House Third Reading Laid Over Daily - No Amendments

  13. 2026-04-17 House

    House Second Reading Special Order - Passed with Amendments - Committee, Floor

  14. 2026-04-17 House

    House Committee on Appropriations Refer Amended to House Committee of the Whole

  15. 2026-02-25 House

    House Committee on Education Refer Amended to Appropriations

  16. 2026-02-02 House

    Introduced In House - Assigned to Education

Official Summary Text

The act allows off-campus courses to be included in concurrent enrollment programs when the off-campus courses meet the requirements for concurrent enrollment programs and the requirements of an accrediting agency recognized by the United States department of education.
The act provides that additional concurrent enrollment courses shall not be approved after July 1, 2028 unless the general assembly indicates in a footnote in the general appropriations act that the department of education (department) has sufficient funding for course and audit oversight requirements to allow approval of additional concurrent enrollment courses.
For the 2026-27 state fiscal year, the act appropriates $66,056 from the general fund to the department and reduces the general fund appropriation for the college opportunity fund program by $80,178 with a corresponding decrease in reappropriated funds for the regents of the university of Colorado.
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HOUSE BILL 26-1078
BY REPRESENTATIVE(S) Smith and Hamrick, Brown, Camacho,
Clifford, Duran, English, Goldstein, Jackson, Joseph, Lieder, Lindsay,
McCormick, Nguyen, Phillips, Sirota, Stewart K., Story, Titone, Carter,
Paschal, Ricks, Rydin;
also SENA TOR(S) Marchman and Kirkmeyer, Bright, Amabile, Benavidez,
Carson, Catlin, Cutter, Danielson, Daugherty, Exum, Gonzales J.,
Hinrichsen, Jodeh, Kipp, Mullica, Pelton R., Snyder, Wallace, Weissman,
Coleman.
CONCERNING INCREASING THE NUMBER OF OFF-CAMPUS COURSES OFFERED
BY INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION TO STUDENTS IN
CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS, AND, IN CONNECTION
THEREWITH, MAKING AND REDUCING AN APPROPRIATION.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 22-35-110, amend (1)
as follows:
22-35-110. Exclusions -limitation.
(1) (a) Except for courses offered as part of the TREP program
Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material added to existing law; dashes
through words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law and such material is not part of
the act.
pursuant to section 22-35-108.5, This article 35 does not apply to any A
course that is offered as part of a program of off-campus instruction
established pursuant to section 23-1-109 (1) to (5) UNLESS THE COURSE
OFFERED MEETS ALL REQUIREMENTS OF THIS ARTICLE 35 AND THE
REQUIREMENTS OF AN ACCREDITING AGENCY RECOGNIZED BY THE UNITED
STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
(b) AFTER JULY 1, 2028, ADDITIONAL COURSES THAT ARE ELIGIBLE
PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION FOR PARTICIPATION IN CONCURRENT
ENROLLMENT COURSES SHALL NOT BE APPROVED PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE
3 5 UNLESS THE APPROPRIATION MADE BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO THE
DEPARTMENT IS SUFFICIENT FOR THE DEPARTMENT TO COMPLY WITH COURSE
AUDIT AND OVERSIGHT REQUIREMENTS. COURSES THAT ARE ELIGIBLE
PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION FOR PARTICIPATION AS CONCURRENT
ENROLLMENT COURSES AND ARE APPROVED PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE 35
BEFORE JULY 1, 2028, RETAIN THEIR APPROVED STATUS. BEGINNING IN THE
ANNUAL GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT FOR THE 2028-29 STATE FISCAL
YEAR, THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SHALL INDICATE VIA FOOTNOTE TO THE
ANNUAL GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT WHETHER THE FUNDING FOR THE
DEPARTMENT IS CALCULATED TO PROVIDE SUFFICIENT FUNDING FOR COURSE
AUDIT AND OVERSIGHT REQUIREMENTS TO ALLOW ADDITIONAL COURSES TO
BE APPROVED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
SECTION 2. Appropriation - adjustments to 2026 long bill.
(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, to implement this
act, appropriations made in the annual general appropriation act for the
2026-27 state fiscal year to the department of higher education are adjusted
as follows:
(a) The general fund appropriation for the college opportunity fund
program to be used for fee-for-service contracts with state institutions
pursuant to section 23-18-303.5, C.R.S., is decreased by $80,178; and
(b) The reappropriated funds appropriation for the regents of the
university of Colorado received from the fee-for-service contracts with state
institutions pursuant to section 23-18-303.5, C.R.S., under subsection (l)(a)
of this section is decreased by $80,178.
(2) Subsection (1) of this section does not require a reduction of an
appropriation in the annual general appropriation act for the 2026-27 state
PAGE 2-HOUSE BILL 26-1078
fiscal year if:
(a) The amount of the general fund appropriation made in the annual
general appropriation act for the 2026-27 state fiscal year to the department
of higher education for the college opportunity fund program to be used for
fee-for-service contracts with state institutions pursuant to section
23-18-303.5, C.R.S., is less than the amount of the adjustment required in
subsection (l)(a) of this section; or
(b) The annual general appropriation act for the 2026-27 state fiscal
year does not include an appropriation to the department of higher
education for the college opportunity fund program to be used for
fee-for-service contracts with state institutions pursuant to section
23-18-303.5, C.R.S.
SECTION 3. Appropriation. ( 1) For the 2026-27 state fiscal year,
$66,056 is appropriated to the department of education. This appropriation
is from the general fund. To implement this act, the department may use this
appropriation as follows:
(a) $21,685 for use by school district operations for administration
related to public school finance, which amount is based on an assumption
that the division will require an additional 0.2 FTE; and
(b) $44,371 for use by student pathways for postsecondary
workforce readiness administration, which amount is based on an
assumption that the division will require an additional 0.4 FTE.
SECTION 4. Effective date. This act takes effect upon passage;
except that section 2 of this act takes effect only if the annual general
appropriation act for the 2026-27 state fiscal year becomes law, in which
case section 2 takes effect upon the effective date of this act or of the annual
general appropriation act for state fiscal year 2026-27, whichever is later.
SECTION 5. Safety clause. The general assembly finds,
determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for
PAGE 3-HOUSE BILL 26-1078
the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state
institutions.
Ju~ ~
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES
v~ ~
Vanessa Reilly
CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES
PAGE 4-HOUSE BILL 26-1078
James Rashad Coleman, Sr.
PRESIDENT OF
THE SENATE
Esther van Mourik
SECRETARY OF
THE SENATE