In a ruling that could have multi-billion dollar consequences for Colorado's budget, a Denver judge ruled the state's school funding system is not "thorough and uniform" as mandated by the state constitution.

The state's school funding system "is not rationally related to the mandate to establish and maintain a thorough and uniform system of free public schools," District Judge Sheila Rappaport said in her 183-page ruling in which she called the system "unconscionable."

"It is also apparent that increased funding will be required," Rappaport said in her ruling, saying lawmakers would be given time to remedy the situation.

The case, Lobato vs. State of Colorado, was filed in 2005 by a group of parents from around the state and school districts from the San Luis Valley. The suit alleges the state's current school-funding system fails to provide a "thorough and uniform" system of education as outlined in the Colorado Constitution.