axios.com · Alayna Alvarez · September 8, 2026
How Trump deportations impact Colorado's economy - Axios Denver [Skip to main content](#main-content) [Sign up for the newsletter](https://www.axios.com/signup/denver) login 47 mins ago - [Politics](https://www.axios.com/local/denver/politics) # Trump deportations ripple through Colorado's economy  * [Alayna Alvarez](https://www.axios.com/authors/aalvarez) * email (opens in new window) * sms (opens in new window) * facebook (opens in new window) twitter (opens in new window) linkedin (opens in new window) bluesky (opens in new window) nextdoor (opens in new window) [Add Axios on Google](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=axios.com) Add Axios as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. [Add Axios on Google](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=axios.com) [](https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/rgILK/1/)Data: [Economic Policy Institute](https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.epi.org/publication/the-cost-of-deportations-calculator-technical-documentation/__;!!Al82Z4c!zGCtGf6A1L6OBeIAE5cnsaN6K9cuMfO-6FYELzRo4tMhXaWFrKYiRigCOGsV_65F2dFpHwD3Lcvt3Sdq7tzs90BUOgVIOw$); Map: Danielle Alberti/Axios President Trump's [mass-deportation campaign](https://www.axios.com/2026/04/15/ice-deportations-us-immigration-trump-biden-2025) is costing Colorado — straining taxpayers and construction workforce that's already short on workers. **Why it matters:** The numbers reveal the immigration crackdown's ripple effects reaching far beyond those directly targeted. **By the numbers:** Colorado is estimated to contribute $5.4 billion toward federal deportation and detention funding — roughly $2,400 per taxpayer — a [new tool](https://www.axios.com/2026/08/05/trump-deportation-costs-taxpayers) from the Economic Policy Institute calculates. **Zoom in:** That average swings hard depending on how much federal income tax residents pay: * In Denver, that's $3,081. In Aspen, it's $12,540. **Driving the news: **New data shows Colorado's construction industry is feeling the immigration enforcement squeeze firsthand. * Of 28 firms [surveyed](https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://news.agc.org/workforce-development/construction-workforce-shortages-remain-acute-despite-soft-market-conditions-as-data-centers-strain-labor-supply-survey-finds/__;!!Al82Z4c!0w22aKKi3ELBlaBUT2gQ7bL_6dQWGOrMRRoU2tzDfcQlwr9M6-S7-GYgs1Vm_n6HUZrvT3e1oiGQbMhbF_McEDo$) this year by the Associated General Contractors of America, 14% reported a job site visited by immigration agents. * 11% said workers vanished amid real or rumored enforcement; 14% said subcontractors lost workers, too. **The big picture:** That's landing on an industry that's [already stretched thin](https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2025/09/17/colorado-construction-industry-trump-tariffs-immigration) — half of firms say hiring has gotten harder over the past year — raising risks of slower project timelines and spiking costs, per AGCA, including for the affordable housing Colorado [desperately needs](https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2026/06/25/denver-affordable-housing-crisis-three-generations). * email (opens in new window) * sms (opens in new window) * facebook (opens in new window) twitter (opens in new window) linkedin (opens in new window) bluesky (opens in new window) nextdoor (opens in new window) [Add Axios on Google](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=axios.com) ## More Denver stories