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Colorado personal finance standards and requirements

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Colorado requires public high school students to complete a course containing all of the state's high-school financial literacy standards as a condition of graduation. The requirement is in effect beginning in the 2025-26 school year. Colorado does not require the course to be named financial literacy or delivered as a separate stand-alone class: a district may place all five standards in an existing graduation-required course such as social studies, mathematics, or economics. State law does not assign a uniform credit amount.[1][2][3]

Last reviewed September 20, 2026

View official sources
Stand-alone course
No
Graduation requirement
Yes
Credit / duration
Completion of one locally designated graduation-required course containing all high-school financial literacy standards; no statewide credit amount specified
Effective / cohort
2025-26

What Colorado requires

Colorado's financial literacy graduation requirement is a course-completion rule, not merely a set of optional learning standards. HB 25-1192 amended state law to direct each school district to incorporate all high-school financial literacy standards into a course that every student must complete to graduate.[1][2]

The required course does not have to be called financial literacy. Colorado Department of Education guidance says districts may use an existing graduation requirement, including social studies, mathematics, or economics, as long as one course contains all five high-school standards. A district may instead create a stand-alone required financial literacy course.[2][4]

Colorado's 2022 standards make personal financial literacy a separate social studies standard. At high school, the five expectations address reliable decision-making, income and career preparation, budgeting and credit, investing, and risk management. The standards were adopted in November 2022 and scheduled for district implementation by fall 2024.[3]

The course requirement is in effect for the 2025-26 school year, but the law does not establish a statewide credit value or name a first graduating class. Beginning in 2027-28, each student's Individual Career and Academic Plan must also include exposure to financial-aid eligibility tools and practice completing the FAFSA or Colorado state-aid application, subject to statutory exceptions.[1][2]

All five high-school standards must be taught within one course required for graduation. A district may use an existing required course or a stand-alone financial literacy course and retains broad discretion over implementation and which existing local requirement the course fulfills.[1][2][4]
Grades / placement
High school
Responsible agency
Colorado Department of Education
Assessment required
Not located
Evidence
5 primary sources

Implementation timeline

  1. Milestone 01

    The State Board adopted the current Colorado Academic Standards for personal financial literacy.[3]

  2. Milestone 02

    District implementation of the 2022 social studies standards was expected by fall 2024.[3]

  3. Milestone 03

    The governor signed HB 25-1192.[1]

  4. Milestone 04

    HB 25-1192 took effect, with the course requirement operating in the 2025-26 school year.[1]

  5. Milestone 05

    The financial-aid exposure and application-practice component becomes part of each student's ICAP, with allowed opt-outs and feasibility exceptions.[1]

Colorado personal finance standards

The complete list below contains all 5 required personal finance topics currently identified in the controlling state materials. Each topic remains separate so educators and search engines can find the exact requirement.

Official standards document

Colorado Academic Standards: Financial Literacy

Adopted by Colorado State Board of Education on 2022-11.

Open the official document

High-school personal financial literacy standards

HB 25-1192 requires all five high-school standards to be taught within a single course required for graduation.

  1. 01
    FL.HS.5.1High school graduation-required coursePDF page 19

    Reliable financial decision-making

    Apply reliable information to systematic personal financial decisions; recognize consequences and responsibilities, protect personal information, keep financial records, and compare institutions and products.[3]

  2. 02
    FL.HS.5.2High school graduation-required coursePDF pages 20-21

    Income, careers, and postsecondary choices

    Analyze income sources, economic conditions, education and training costs, financial aid, student-loan repayment, employee benefits, and sustainable household income across career choices.[3]

  3. 03
    FL.HS.5.3High school graduation-required coursePDF pages 22-23

    Budgeting, spending, saving, and borrowing

    Apply consumer skills to budgets, inflation, saving, credit histories, borrowing choices, payment accounts, and major purchase or lease decisions.[3]

  4. 04
    FL.HS.5.4High school graduation-required coursePDF page 24

    Investing for financial goals

    Explore diversified investment strategies aligned with goals, risk tolerance, life stage, retirement choices, and changing market conditions.[3]

  5. 05
    FL.HS.5.5High school graduation-required coursePDF pages 25-26

    Risk management and consumer protection

    Choose strategies addressing lost income, damaged property, health costs, insurance, identity fraud, data protection, consumer rights, and financial information credibility.[3]

Relevant law, rule, or board action

HB 25-1192 / C.R.S. § 22-32-135(4)

Financial Literacy Graduation Requirement

Requires districts to incorporate all high-school financial literacy standards into one course required for graduation while preserving local control over course design and placement.[1]

Notes for teachers and curriculum leaders

  • Place all five high-school financial literacy standards in one graduation-required course. The course may be an existing requirement or a new stand-alone class, but distributing the standards across unrelated courses would not match CDE's single-course guidance.[2][3]
  • Colorado does not prescribe a statewide textbook, curriculum, course name, or credit value for this requirement. Districts choose materials and determine which local graduation requirement the course fulfills.[2][4]

Official sources

  1. 1
    HB25-1192 Financial Literacy Graduation Requirement, Enrolled ActColorado General Assembly · bill · published 2025-05-23 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Sections 1 and 3; C.R.S. § 22-32-135(4); effective-date clauseSupports: enactment, effective date, graduation-required course, district discretion, 2027-28 ICAP requirement
  2. 2
    House Bill 25-1192, Financial Literacy RequirementsColorado Department of Education · agency guidance · published 2025-11-13 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: PDF pages 1-2, Overview and RequirementsSupports: 2025-26 implementation, single-course rule, integrated delivery, stand-alone option, local discretion
  3. 3
    Colorado Academic Standards: Financial LiteracyColorado Department of Education · standards · published 2023-01 · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Adoption and implementation statement, PDF pages 1 and 5; high-school standards FL.HS.5.1-FL.HS.5.5, PDF pages 19-26Supports: November 2022 adoption, fall 2024 implementation, complete high-school standards, five grade-level expectations
  4. 4
    Financial LiteracyColorado Department of Education · agency guidance · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Required High School Financial Literacy Course; Financial Literacy Standards; Curriculum SupportSupports: current requirement overview, standards context, local curriculum authority
  5. 5
    Graduation GuidelinesColorado Department of Education · agency guidance · accessed 2026-09-20Locator: Purpose, local graduation requirements, and Menu of OptionsSupports: local graduation framework, district implementation responsibility

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Frequently asked questions

Does Colorado require financial literacy to graduate?

Yes. Beginning in the 2025-26 school year, students must complete a graduation-required course that contains all five Colorado high-school financial literacy standards.[1][2]

Does Colorado require a stand-alone personal finance course?

No. Districts may create a stand-alone course, but they may also place all five standards in one existing course already required for graduation, such as mathematics, social studies, or economics.[2]

How much personal finance credit does Colorado require?

State law requires completion of a course but does not specify a statewide credit amount. Local districts determine the course structure and which existing graduation requirement it fulfills.[1][2]

What do Colorado's high-school financial literacy standards cover?

The five standards cover informed financial decisions, income and career preparation, budgeting and credit, investing, and risk management with consumer protection.[3]

When does Colorado's financial-aid planning requirement begin?

Beginning in 2027-28, a student's ICAP must include exposure to financial-aid eligibility tools and practice completing the FAFSA or Colorado state-aid application unless an allowed opt-out or feasibility exception applies.[1][2]