Lawmakers are approving more bills now compared to 2012

The Colorado General Assembly is passing more bills than ever — and those bills are getting longer and more complex.

Lawmakers approved 487 bills during the 2025 legislative session. That’s a 56 percent increase in legislative output compared to 2012, according to a new report from the Common Sense Institute.

The increase ranks Colorado fourth in the nation for legislative growth, trailing only Wyoming, Utah and Montana.

The report also found that bills themselves have become more complicated. On average, the length of legislation — measured by word count in the annual Digest of Bills — has grown by 26 percent over the past decade.

At the same time, voters are seeing more issues on the ballot. The number of statewide ballot initiatives quadrupled between 2012 and 2024, increasing from four to 16.

While 487 bills were passed in 2025, the previous year set an all-time record. During the 2024 session, lawmakers approved 527 measures — the most in state history.

Nearly three-quarters of the bills passed in 2025 had bipartisan sponsorship. About 26 percent were sponsored only by Democrats. No bills sponsored solely by Republicans made it through both chambers.

Researchers with the Common Sense Institute say the growing volume of legislation may create challenges for individuals and businesses trying to keep up with changing laws, even as some policies produce positive outcomes for the state.