Committee advances bill to phase out TREP after families plead to grandfather seniors
April 07, 2026 | 2026 Legislature CO, Colorado
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The House Appropriations Committee moved House Bill 13‑57 as amended to the Committee of the Whole, advancing a sponsor proposal to phase out the Teacher Recruitment and Education Program (TREP) and reduce the programunding rate.
Madam Vice Chair, the bill sponsor, told the committee TREP was created in 2021 to create an educator career pathway through concurrent enrollment and that enrollment grew from about 43 students in its first year to 193 this year. She said the bill would allow students already in the program to finish but would not enroll new students for the 2026‑27 school year and would change the per‑student payment from $10,721 to $7,104 to align more closely with community college rates.
Families and students testified in opposition to the phase‑out or asked the committee to grandfather current seniors. "It is fundamentally unfair for the students that have upheld their end of the bargain to be stripped of this program without the ability to prepare," said Lehi Heaster, who identified herself as an educator, asking the committee to amend the bill to allow the class of 2026 to access TREP. Senior student Milo Houston said he had declined other scholarships and now faced losing a pathway he had planned around: "I felt both betrayed and devastated when I found out that the legislature would be cutting funding for this program," he said.
Others noted precedent in last yearor the Ascent program, when students already enrolled were allowed to complete their coursework. Parent witnesses asked for similar treatment. The sponsor acknowledged the families' concerns but cited budget constraints, including the need to implement a new school funding formula and limits on state education fund resources. "We are challenged in this budget year to fully implement our new school funding formula," the sponsor said, adding that budget pressures required painful choices.
An appropriations amendment (J001) adding the bill
ppropriations clause was adopted without objection. Madam Vice Chair moved the bill as amended to the Committee of the Whole; Representative Taggart seconded. The committee approved the motion on a roll call vote, 9 to 2.
Next steps: HB 13‑57 will be considered by the Committee of the Whole. The committee did not adopt an amendment to preserve eligibility for the entire current class; witnesses and sponsors said they would continue to seek ways to soften impacts.
Sources: Public testimony from program participants and family members; sponsor presentation to the House Appropriations Committee.
Madam Vice Chair, the bill sponsor, told the committee TREP was created in 2021 to create an educator career pathway through concurrent enrollment and that enrollment grew from about 43 students in its first year to 193 this year. She said the bill would allow students already in the program to finish but would not enroll new students for the 2026‑27 school year and would change the per‑student payment from $10,721 to $7,104 to align more closely with community college rates.
Families and students testified in opposition to the phase‑out or asked the committee to grandfather current seniors. "It is fundamentally unfair for the students that have upheld their end of the bargain to be stripped of this program without the ability to prepare," said Lehi Heaster, who identified herself as an educator, asking the committee to amend the bill to allow the class of 2026 to access TREP. Senior student Milo Houston said he had declined other scholarships and now faced losing a pathway he had planned around: "I felt both betrayed and devastated when I found out that the legislature would be cutting funding for this program," he said.
Others noted precedent in last yearor the Ascent program, when students already enrolled were allowed to complete their coursework. Parent witnesses asked for similar treatment. The sponsor acknowledged the families' concerns but cited budget constraints, including the need to implement a new school funding formula and limits on state education fund resources. "We are challenged in this budget year to fully implement our new school funding formula," the sponsor said, adding that budget pressures required painful choices.
An appropriations amendment (J001) adding the bill
ppropriations clause was adopted without objection. Madam Vice Chair moved the bill as amended to the Committee of the Whole; Representative Taggart seconded. The committee approved the motion on a roll call vote, 9 to 2.
Next steps: HB 13‑57 will be considered by the Committee of the Whole. The committee did not adopt an amendment to preserve eligibility for the entire current class; witnesses and sponsors said they would continue to seek ways to soften impacts.
Sources: Public testimony from program participants and family members; sponsor presentation to the House Appropriations Committee.
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