EXPANDING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL
Unemployment Down to 3.1%: The unemployment rate in Colorado has declined from 6.1% to 3.1% since 1993. 458,800 New Jobs: 458,800 new jobs have been created in Colorado since 1993 -- an average of 71,501 jobs per year, compared to an average of just 43,900 jobs per year in the previous administration. 427,400 New Private Sector Jobs: Since 1993, 427,400 new private sector jobs have been created in Colorado-an average of 66,608 jobs per year, compared to an average of just 37,050 private sector jobs per year in the previous administration. 17,600 New Manufacturing Jobs: 17,600 manufacturing jobs have been created in Colorado since 1993 -- an average of 2,743 jobs per year. In contrast, an average of 725 manufacturing jobs were lost each year during the previous administration. 59,500 New Construction Jobs: 59,500 construction jobs have been created in Colorado since 1993 -- an average of 9,273 jobs per year. In contrast, an average of only 4,850 construction jobs were created each year during the previous administration. Poverty Has Fallen: Nationally, the poverty rate has fallen from 15.1% in 1993 to 13.3% in 1997.In Colorado, the poverty rate has fallen from 9.9% in 1993 to 8.2% in 1997--down 1.7% under President Clinton. [Census Bureau] 75,000 Have Received a Raise: Approximately 37,000 Colorado workers benefited from an increase in the minimum wage-from $4.25 to $4.75 -- on October 1, 1996. They, along with about 38,000 more, received an additional raise-from $4.75 to $5.15 -- on September 1, 1997. A $500 Child Tax Credit to Help Families Raising Children: To help make it easier for families to raise their children, the balanced budget included a $500 per-child tax credit for children under 17. Thanks to President Clinton the balanced budget delivers a child tax credit to 409,000 families in Colorado. Home Ownership Has Increased In Colorado: Home Ownership in Colorado has increased from 63.5% to 66.4% since the fourth quarter of 1993. Home Building Up 11.8%: Home building in Colorado has increased an average of 11.8% per year since 1993. In contrast, new home building in the state decreased an average of 2.1% per year during the previous two administrations. Over $25,000 of Reduced Federal Debt for Every Family of Four: The national debt will be $1.7 trillion lower in FY99 than projected in 1993 -- that's $25,000 less debt for each family of four in Colorado this year. 4.1% Growth in Total Bank Loans and Leases: Colorado has seen a 4.1% average growth rate in total bank loans and leases per year since 1993. In contrast total bank loans and leases fell over 4.7% during the previous administration. 1.0% Growth in Commercial and Industrial Loans and Leases: Since 1993, Colorado has experienced a 1.0% annual growth rate in commercial and industrial loans and leases. In contrast, commercial and industrial loans and leases fell over 11.8% during the previous administration. EXPANDING ACCESS TO EDUCATION
Nearly 9,000 Children in Head Start: Nearly 9,000 Colorado children were enrolled in Head Start in 1998. In FY99, Colorado will receive $46.4 million in Head Start funding, an increase of $20.8 million over 1993. More High-Quality Teachers With Smaller Classes for Colorado's Schools: Thanks to President Clinton, the final FY99 budget provides for the first year of the President's new initiative to hire 100,000 new, well-prepared teachers, to reduce class sizes in the early grades to a national average of 18. Colorado receives $13.2 million in 1999 to hire about 339 new public school teachers. And, under President Clinton's proposal, Colorado would receive $ 15 million in FY00 to support a total of 418 teachers. $5.4 Million in Goals 2000 Funding: This year [FY99], Colorado receives $5.4 million in Goals 2000 funding. This money is used to raise academic achievement by raising academic standards, increasing parental and community involvement in education, expanding the use of computers and technology in classrooms, and supporting high-quality teacher professional development. Nearly $4 Million for Technology Literacy: This year [FY99], Colorado receives $3.9 million-doubling its funding over FY97 -- for the Technology Literacy Challenge Fund which helps communities and the private sector ensure that every student is equipped with the computer literacy skills needed for the 21st century. Connecting Colorado's Schools and Libraries to the Internet: The E-rate program is part of the Administration's effort to connect every classroom and library to the information superhighway, giving every child access to the resources and knowledge available online. This program helps schools and libraries by providing discounts of 20 to 90 percent on telecommunications services, internal connections and Internet access - with the largest discounts going to the poorest urban and rural schools. In the first year of funding alone, Colorado received over $13.9 million in E-rate discounts. Over $70 Million for Students Most in Need: Colorado receives $70.3 million in Title I Grants (to Local Educational Agencies) providing extra help in the basics for students most in need, particularly communities and schools with high concentrations of children in low-income families. [FY99] 50,400 Students Will Receive Pell Grants This Year: This year [FY00], Colorado will receive $92.9 million in Pell Grants for low-income students going to college, benefiting a total of 50,400 Colorado students. Expanded Work-Study To Help More Students Work Their Way Through College: The FY99 budget includes a significant expansion of the Federal Work Study program. Colorado will receive $11.7 million in Work-Study funding in 1999 to help Colorado students work their way through college. Over 1,000 Have Served in Colorado through AmeriCorps: Since the National Service program began in 1993, 1,347 AmeriCorps participants have earned money for college while working in Colorado's schools, hospitals, neighborhoods or parks. [through 11/98] Tuition Tax Credits in Balanced Budget Open the Doors of College and Promote Lifelong Learning: The balanced budget included both President Clinton's $1,500 HOPE Scholarship to help make the first two years of college as universal as a high school diploma and a Lifetime Learning Tax Credit for college juniors, seniors, graduate students and working Americans pursuing lifelong learning to upgrade their skills. This 20% tax credit will be applied to the first $5,000 of tuition and fees through 2002 and to the first $10,000 thereafter. 107,000 students in Colorado will receive a HOPE Scholarship tax credit of up to $1,500. 131,000 students in Colorado will receive the Lifetime Learning Tax Credit. [fully phased-in FY00 estimate] Expanded Job Training to Colorado's Dislocated Workers: Thanks to President Clinton, the FY99 budget includes a significant expansion in the dislocated worker program. Colorado will receive $7.2 million in 1999 to help 4,290 of Colorado's dislocated workers get the training and reemployment services they need to return to work as quickly as possible. FIGHTING CRIME AND VIOLENCE
Crime Falls 12% in Colorado: Since 1992, serious crime in Colorado has fallen 12%. Violent crime and property crime have also declined 30% and 11% respectively. In Denver, between 1992 and 1997, serious crime, as indicated by the crime index, has declined 24%, with a 27% drop in murder and a 31% drop in robbery. [1992 and 1997 Uniform Crime Reports] Juvenile Arrests Down in Colorado: Colorado's juvenile violent crime arrests have decreased 54% between 1992 and 1997, with Colorado's juvenile murder arrests dropping 33%. [FBI, Uniform Crime Report, 1992 and 1997] 1,108 More Police: The President's 1994 Crime Bill has funded 1,108 new police officers in communities across Colorado. [through 7/99] Reducing Crime with Drug Courts: Working to reduce drug-related crime in Colorado, the Clinton Administration has awarded Drug Court grants to the communities of Denver and Fort Collins. Drug courts use the coercive power of the criminal justice system to combine drug testing, sanctions, supervision and treatment to push nonviolent, drug-abusing offenders to stop using drugs and committing crimes. Over $5 Million to Combat Domestic Violence: Through the Violence Against Women Act, Colorado received $5.4 million in federal funds in FY98 to establish more women's shelters and bolster law enforcement, prosecution and victims' services. Over $800,000 in Grants for Battered Women and Children: In FY98, Colorado received over $800,000 in HHS's Family Violence Prevention Program grants to assist women and children fleeing domestic abuse, an additional $153,000 increase over FY97. Over $5 Million to Keep Drugs & Violence Out of Colorado's Schools: Colorado has received over $5 million in FY99 for the Safe & Drug Free Schools Program, which invests in school security and drug prevention programs. MOVING COLORADO RESIDENTS FROM WELFARE TO WORK
83,962 Fewer People on Welfare: There are 83,962 fewer people on welfare in Colorado now than there were at the beginning of 1993 -- a 68% decrease. [through 3/99] Child Support Collections Up 142%: Child support collections have increased by nearly $82 million-or 142% -- in Colorado since FY92. [through FY98] Encouraging Responsible Choices-Preventing Teen Pregnancy in Colorado: Since 1993, President Clinton and Vice President Gore have supported innovative and promising teen pregnancy prevention strategies, with significant components of the strategy becoming law in the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act. The law requires unmarried minor parents to stay in school and live at home or in a supervised setting; encourages "second chance homes" to provide teen parents with the skills and support they need; and provides $50 million a year in new funding for state abstinence education activities. Efforts are making a difference, adolescent pregnancy rates and teen abortion rates are declining. And between 1992 and 1997, teen birth rates declined 17.5% in Colorado. $21.2 Million for Colorado Welfare-to-Work: In 1998, Colorado received $9.9 million in Federal welfare-to-work state formula grants (the state matched $4.9 million in funding), helping Colorado welfare recipients get and keep jobs. In addition, $6.4 million in competitive grants were awarded to Colorado localities to support innovative welfare-to-work strategies. Part of the President's comprehensive efforts to move recipients from welfare to work, this funding was included in the $3 billion welfare to work fund in the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. Helping People Get to Work: Through the Access to Jobs initiative, the Clinton-Gore Administration is working with communities across the country to design transportation solutions to help welfare recipients and other low-income workers get to and from work. Fort Collins, Pueblo, Loveland, Frisco, Pagosa Springs, and Grand Junction have received a total of $729,274 this year to fund innovative transit projects. INVESTING IN COLORADO'S HEALTH
Health Care for Uninsured Children: The balanced budget included the largest single investment in health care for children since the passage of Medicaid in 1965 -- an unprecedented $24 billion over five years to cover as many as five million children throughout the nation. This investment guarantees the full range of benefits-from checkups to surgery -- that children need to grow up strong and healthy. It ensures that prescription drugs, vision, hearing, and mental health coverage now offered at the state level are extended to millions of uninsured children. To expand health coverage to 72,000 uninsured children in Colorado the balanced budget provided more than $41 million in 1998. This compares to the 1995 Republican plan vetoed by President Clinton that would have denied health care coverage to 50,200 children in Colorado. Helping Over 74,000 Colorado Women and Children with WIC: The Clinton Administration is committed to full funding in the Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). In FY98, Colorado received $39.8 million in total WIC grant funding, helping 74,700 women, infants and children in need receive health and food assistance, 6,000 more than in 1994. More Toddlers Are Being Immunized: As a result of the President's 1993 Childhood Immunization Initiative, childhood immunization rates have reached an historic high. According to the CDC, by 1996, 90% or more of America's toddlers received the most critical doses of each of the routinely recommended vaccines-surpassing the President's 1993 goal. In Colorado in 1997, 94% of two-year olds received the vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis; 88% received the vaccine for polio; 94% received the vaccine for measles, and 91% received the vaccine for Haemophilus influenzae B, the bacteria causing a form of meningitis. Increased Funding for Ryan White by $43.8 Million: Between 1993 and 1998, Colorado communities received $43.8 million in Ryan White formula and other HIV/AIDS program funds. This funding provides people living with HIV and AIDS medical and support services, including the AIDS Drug Assistance Program which helps those without insurance obtain much needed prescription drugs. [HHS, Health Resources and Services Administration, 12/98] Tobacco Plan Will Cut Smoking and Premature Deaths by 43% in Colorado: The Clinton Administration's tobacco proposal, combined with the recently enacted state tobacco settlements, will cut youth smoking and resulting premature deaths 43% in Colorado by 2004. Between 2000 and 2004, 54,500 of Colorado's youth will be kept from smoking and 17,400 will be spared a premature tobacco-related death. [Treasury Dept., 2/99] 1,810,000 Americans in Colorado Cannot Be Assured They Have Patient Protections: Even if Colorado enacted all the protections in the Patients' Bill of Rights, 1,810,000 people in Colorado cannot be assured they have the comprehensive patient protections recommended by the President's Advisory Commission. This is because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) may preempt state-enacted protections. That is why the President has called on Congress to pass a federally enforceable patients' bill of rights so that everyone enrolled in managed care may have a basic set of protections. Notably, 890,000 Colorado women are in ERISA health plans and are therefore not necessarily protected. Women are particularly vulnerable without these protections because they are greater users of health care services, they make three-quarters of the health care decisions for their families, and they have specific health care needs addressed by a patients' bill of rights. PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT
4 Toxic Waste Sites Cleaned Up: Since 1993, the EPA has completed 4 Superfund toxic waste cleanups in Colorado. The sites are located in Denver, Boulder, Commerce City and Aspen [through 6/99]. This is four times the number of sites cleaned up in Colorado under the previous two administrations. $11.3 Million in Safe Drinking Water Funding: This year [FY99], thanks to President Clinton, Colorado will receive $10 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds to provide low-interest loans to municipalities to build, improve, and prevent pollution of drinking water systems. In addition, Colorado will receive $1.27 million in Public Water Supply Supervision grants to help monitor drinking water quality and enforce health standards. Revitalizing Brownfields in Colorado: As part of the Clinton-Gore Administration's efforts to clean up Brownfields, the EPA has awarded grants to communities in Colorado-Englewood, North Stapleton, Lakewood and Sand Creek Corridor-for environmental clean-up and economic revitalization. These projects are intended to jump-start local clean-up efforts by providing funds to return unproductive, abandoned, contaminated urban properties to productive use. SPEARHEADING RURAL AND URBAN RENEWAL EFFORTS
Revitalizing Colorado's Communities: Denver was designated an Enterprise Community in December, 1994 and was awarded $3 million to create more jobs, housing, and economic opportunity for city residents. Expanding the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Will Help Develop 1,500 To 1,800 New Affordable Housing Units in Colorado Over the Next 5 Years: Last year, the President and Vice President pushed for a 40-percent expansion in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. This year, the President and Vice President will try again to enact tax incentives to develop affordable housing. In Colorado alone, this proposal would mean an additional 1,500 - 1,800 quality rental housing units for low-income American families during the next five years. Helping Rural Coloradans: Since 1993, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has invested more than $691 million in Colorado for rural economic development efforts including rural water and sewer, housing and business assistance.[through FY98] PROVIDING DISASTER RELIEF
$17.7 Million in Federal Emergency Assistance: Since 1993, Colorado has received $17.7 million in disaster relief. [FEMA, 12/98] EXPANDING FUNDS FOR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT
Over $1.4 Billion in Federal Highway Aid: Since 1993, Colorado has received over $1.4 billion in federal highway aid. Included in this funding is $15.6 million for emergency relief in response to natural disasters and $4.7 million for scenic byways. These funds have helped generate 59,428 jobs. [through FY98] Over $341 Million in Aviation Funds: From FY93-FY98 Colorado received over $341 million in Airport Improvement Program funds to help build and renovate airports, and, when necessary, to provide funds for noise abatement to improve the quality of life for residents who live near airports. Transit Funding: The Federal Transit Administration has provided approximately $238 million in funding since 1993 to support public transportation in the State of Colorado.
Last Updated August 1999
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