Study: Colorado 4th Highest Prison Spender in U.S.

A new study shows that Colorado spends a higher percentage of public money on prisons that 46 other states.

The study, conducted by the Pew Center on the States, says that Colorado spends 8.8 percent of its general fund revenues on corrections. Oregon, Florida and Vermont are the only states that spend a higher proportion of revenues on corrections than does the Centennial State.

The study also concluded that Colorado spends 78 cents on corrections for every dollar the state spends on higher education and that Colorado spent more than a half-billion dollars on prisons in 2006.