Posts tagged Boulder County Commissioners
Boulder county commissioners take oil and gas panel to task over water-testing
Jan 7th
Boulder County – Earlier today, the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC ) adopted a new rule for groundwater testing that has been deemed one of the weakest in the nation by citizens and environmental advocates:
“The Boulder County Commissioners are extremely disappointed that the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has decided against putting in place a science-based groundwater protection plan to ensure oil and gas development will not have a detrimental impact to the state’s groundwater resources.
This is especially true in the Greater Wattenberg Area, a large geographic area that includes parts of eastern Boulder County and is exempted wholesale from the statewide rule, making this significant expanse of land subject only to a cursory testing requirement despite having some of the most intensive drilling activity in the state.
This type of rulemaking at the state level is a prime example of why local governments should be able to respond directly to their citizens’ concerns and provide for their community’s request for more protection.”
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Boulder County budget released
Dec 13th
The county’s mill levy and general operating budget to remain flat for 2013
Boulder County, Colo. – The Boulder County Commissioners have adopted a budget of $319.6 million for 2013, down from $321.7 million in 2012.
The 2013 budget represents a nearly flat comparison to the one adopted in 2012, based largely on the fact that the county is in its second year of a biannual property reappraisal cycle. With property values assessed only every other year, the second year in the cycle rarely reflects much of a change in the property tax portion of the county’s projected revenue stream.
The real difference in the budget this year is reflected through a reduction in carryover funds from the year prior and the annual adjustment of revenues in funds other than the General Fund (such as the Road & Bridge Fund and Capital Expenditure Fund) which fluctuate year-to-year based on their designated purpose and funding sources.
In keeping with a flat budget, the County Commissioners have worked hard to bring expenses in line with revenues for 2013, all the while continuing to support programs popular with county residents.
As in past years, the careful and deliberate process of evaluating program requests by elected offices and departments in a public forum has led to sound fiscal decisions that allow the county to function at a high level and continue to provide excellent service to county residents with essentially no increase to the General Fund.
“The 2013 budget is a culmination of more than six months of productive discussion and input from our non-profit leaders, elected officials and department heads who work closely every day with members of the public to figure out how best to meet the needs our community,” said Cindy Domenico, Chair of the Board of County Commissioners. “We are pleased to adopt this fully balanced budget which serves as a guiding document for carrying out the values of our residents.”
Commissioner Deb Gardner said she was pleased to adopt a budget that “balances the long and short term needs of the county and works within a sustainable context to make sure that the county will stay on track for years to come in responding to the priorities set forth by the residents of Boulder County.”
Commissioner Will Toor remarked on the complexity of the county budget and praised the efforts of county leaders and staff for continuing to implement and expand on highly-desired programs for residents, even within a fiscally-constrained framework.
“Whether we look at the strong support for our non-profit community and our human services safety net programs, or the extension of the popular EnergySmart program,” which faces an end to its federal grant in mid-2013, “or the continued improvement of our county’s transportation network, including all modes of transportation, we’re very pleased with the ability to support incremental expansions of these programs despite the fiscal constraints we’re under,” said Toor.
The County Commissioners thanked staff and everyone from the public who participated in the budget process, acknowledging that the collaborative effort in creating next year’s budget made for a much better document through their efforts.
Commissioners certify mill levy
The Commissioners also today certified a mill levy of 24.645 mills, the same as the last two years, which is projected to generate property tax revenues of $134,612,456 in 2013 (up only slightly from $134,408,021 in 2012). The county’s mill levy amount represents roughly 29 percent of a property owner’s total average property tax bill within Boulder County. Other taxing entities that receive property tax revenues include (from 2012 data): school districts (53%), cities and towns (11%), and “other” fire, water and special districts (7%).
For a copy of the funding package for 2013, visit: www.bouldercounty.org/gov/budget.
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Local residents win Home Energy Makeover with EnergySmart
Nov 1st
Reichert family will receive $20,000 worth of energy upgrades
Boulder County, Colo. – John Reichert and his family received a pleasant surprise today when the Boulder County Commissioners and EnergySmart staffers visited to award them the Grand Prize in the EnergySmart Home Energy Makeover.
The Home Energy Makeover grand prize, valued at approximately $20,000, includes a new energy efficient furnace, air sealing and insulation upgrades to the attic and crawlspace/basement, an energy efficient water heater, cooling system upgrades, and $4,000 to use for recommended energy upgrades of the homeowner’s choosing.
John and Kathleen Reichert live in Boulder with their son, James, 6. They purchased their home intending to make it a more sustainable place to raise their family. “Have you ever been caught by a six-year-old for putting an aluminum can in the trash?” John said. Shortly after moving in, however, John’s position at work was eliminated and Kathleen’s hospice-care salary didn’t allow for the planned upgrades.
The Reichert family made it through three rounds of selection to win the grand prize. In round one, their home was identified as one of the top fifteen poorest performing homes having received an EnergySmart assessment.
In round two, the Reicherts submitted a short essay explaining why they needed a Home Energy Makeover, which was selected as one of three finalists by a panel of local energy expert judges. In round three, the three finalists were interviewed and the Reicherts were chosen as the best fit for the award.
Earlier this week, four homes won equal second place prizes, including a new energy efficient furnace, home air sealing and insulation upgrades, and $1,500 to use toward a recommended energy upgrade of the homeowner’s choice.
Contest prizes were largely donated by local contractors:
• Grand Prize package: Solar City
• Insulation/air sealing: EcoHandyman, ThermalCraft Insulation, EcoSmart Homes, ERC Insulation.
• Furnace installations: Service Experts, SAC Mechanical
EnergySmart focuses on improvements that will reduce energy waste, improve comfort, and produce cost-savings for both residential and business participants. Services include energy assessments and expert advisor assistance with finding contractors and all available rebates and financing options for energy efficiency upgrades.
Since the program’s launch in January 2011, EnergySmart has helped more than 6,600 residents and 2,200 businesses throughout Boulder County.
EnergySmart is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act through the U.S. Department of Energy’s BetterBuildings grant program and is sponsored in partnership by Boulder County, the City of Boulder’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) tax, the City of Longmont, Xcel Energy and Platte River Power Authority. For more information, visit www.EnergySmartYES.com or call 303-544-1000 (for homes) or 303-441-1300 (for businesses).
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