Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie appointed Rep. Kyle Brown to the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee.

Brown, a Louisville Democrat, was chosen to replace Rep. Shannon Bird, D-Westminster, who announced on Friday that she would be stepping down from the committee effective immediately, House Democrats announced Monday.

Bird is running in the Democratic primary for the 8th Congressional District for the chance to face U.S. Rep. Gabe Evans, a Republican.

“Representative Bird is an exemplary leader who has focused her work on making life in Colorado more affordable,” said McCluskie. “I’d like to thank her for her commitment to Coloradans and her dedicated service on the JBC, where she boosted investments in higher education, health care and public safety.”

A Louisville native, Brown has served in the legislature since 2023. Prior to that, he served on the Louisville City Council. As a former deputy commissioner of the Colorado Division of Insurance, he has worked on health financing policy.

“I’m honored to begin serving on the Joint Budget Committee and working alongside my colleagues to protect education funding and the core services hardworking people rely on,” said Brown. “From improving Colorado’s reinsurance program and expanding health care access, to lowering the cost of prescription drugs, my focus has always been saving you money on health care. We will have a difficult budget year ahead as we deal with the fallout of H.R.1, but I am prepared to do the work and defend our most vulnerable communities.” 

Democrats have routinely blamed the congressional budget for Colorado’s fiscal woes, while Republicans have countered that the state’s budgetary problems preceded the adoption of the federal budget and that the party in charge has overspent for years.

McCluskie also appointed Rep. Lindsay Gilchrist, D-Denver, to take over Brown’s role as the chair of the House Health and Human Services Committee. Prior to being elected to the legislature in 2024, Gilchrist spent time as an advisor for the Congressional Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health.