CCI Foundation Summer Conference Attracts 300-Plus...

Summer Issue 2016

County Lines

In This Issue Page 3 Budget-Balancing

Page 5 Ballot Issues

Page 6 Broadband

Pages 11-14 District Meetings

Summer Issue 2017

CCI Foundation Summer Conference Attracts 300-Plus Leaders With over 300 participants, the CCI Foundation’s 2017

Summer Conference was one of the best-attended in

years. Summit County Commissioner Karn Stiegelmeier

welcomed everyone to Keystone and shared the county’s

colorful history with attendees. She spoke of the

conflicts and opportunities that exist in resort

communities which led perfectly to the opening session

on how to engage the public on contentious issues.

Liz Joyner, founder of The

Village Square in Tallahassee, FL,

and Bryan Desloge, president of

the National Association of

Counties and a Leon County (FL)

Commissioner, kicked off back-to

-back general sessions on civil

discourse and leadership. Joyner

and Desloge emphasized the role

elected leaders play in convening

discussions among people of

differing opinions and perspectives around controversial

topics.

Recognizing the human tendency to associate with people who share similar views, Joyner and Desloge explained that groups grow more extreme when they

keep like-minded company and they start to deny factual reality. The Village Square, an entity that specializes in convening groups to discuss controversial topics, has years of experience facilitating dialogues. One event they offer is known as “speed dating your elected leader” that requires elected leaders to move from one table of citizens to another and field constituent questions. While elected officials might not always have a response readily available to questions spanning from “why am I paying so much for trash pickup” to “when will my road get paved,” it is a great way to connect with constituents and hear what’s on their minds. Citing a quote from Thomas Jefferson – “ I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend” – Joyner and Desloge stressed the importance of seeking out the opinions of those who disagree with us and the dangers of demonizing those who hold different views. Leadership expert and author of Leading Through Conflict, Mark Gerzon of the Colorado-based Mediators Foundation, built on the importance of civil discourse by speaking to the skills leaders need to transform conflicts into opportunities. Among other skills, Gerzon explained

Continued on next page

CCI President and

Larimer County

Commissioner Lew Gaiter

III (left) welcomed NACo

President and Leon

County (FL)

Commissioner Bryan

Desloge to the Summer

Conference.

Bryan Desloge (left) and Lew Gaiter III (right) were joined during back-to-back

sessions by leadership experts Liz Joyner (second from left) of The Village Square

and Mark Gerzon (second from right) of the Mediators Foundation.

Page 2 C O U N T Y L I N E S

that a good leader subscribes to “systems thinking” where all dimensions of the issue and all stakeholders who are affected by it are included. From here, leaders wishing to transform conflict to opportunity need to be fully present and apply all of their mental, emotional and spiritual resources to witnessing their community and asking questions that elicit vital information about their community and world. The next step involves becoming aware of the full range of choices about how we speak and listen. Gerzon remarked that every time someone speaks, they are either building trust or losing trust. Is the leader debating an issue, which generally elicits a low level of trust among constituents? Or, is the leader engaged in a dialogue, which generally elicits a high level of trust among constituents? Gerzon concluded by asking attendees, when there is a controversial issue being debated in their community, are they on “Side A” or “Side B” or are they holding both sides? Good leaders choose to hold both sides or, in other words, chose the third side. This is the point in which differences are transformed into oppor-tunities and solutions.

The panel on affordable housing at the Summer Conference included, from left

to right, Tom Smith, Representative Faith Winter, Senator Steve Fenberg,

Summit County Commissioner and panel moderator Thomas Davidson, and

Senator Rachel Zenzinger.

The current population growth of Colorado has dramatically outpaced the number of available housing units throughout the state, prompting both county-elected officials and legislators to pursue sustainable solutions to the current statewide housing crisis. During CCI’s pre-conference sessions, CCI members

Affordable Housing Panel

Legislators, Local Leaders Seek Solutions to Statewide Problem

had the opportunity to attend a roundtable discussion on affordable housing with Representative Faith Winter (Adams), Senator Rachel Zenzinger (Jefferson), Senator Steve Fenberg (Boulder), and Tom Smith, attorney to the Aspen/Pitkin Housing Authority. During this discussion, each legislator and Smith outlined their efforts to address affordable housing challenges. Senator Fenberg began the discussion by acknowledging that Colorado’s population continues to grow at an astonishing rate, forcing housing prices to far exceed the affordability of many Coloradoans. Ironically, the Senator includes himself in that category as someone who qualified and used an affordable housing program to purchase his current home in Boulder. With such an important issue hitting so close to home, Senator Fenberg attempted to run legislation during the 2017 legislative session (SB17-086) clarifying that rent-controlled units and inclusionary zoning are two separate issues. However, SB 86 died in the Senate State Affairs Committee. Senator Fenberg noted that despite defeat during the session, the affordable housing crisis will not be resolved if “we just wait for the market to resolve itself.” During her campaign for office, Senator Zenzinger said she heard countless stories from the “missing middle,” individuals who do not qualify for housing assistance because they average approximate annual incomes of $40,000-$80,000 but are still unable to purchase a home. These stories drove Sen. Zenzinger to run SB17-085, which would have increased the documentary fee that is assessed on real estate transactions and created a statewide fund for affordable housing assistance. The bill failed in the legislature but prompted Senator Zenzinger to ask, “What policies can better enable affordable housing while still addressing the specific needs of individual counties?”

Like her colleagues, Representative Winter also noted

that affordable housing is a statewide issue which

negatively impacts business recruitment and retention,

and contributes to poor K-12 student performance.

Noting this, she added that Colorado is one of 16

states that does not have a statewide trust fund for

affordable housing.


With this in mind, Representative Winter also attempted to run legislation (HB17-1309) that would have increased the documentary fee on real estate transactions and establish a statewide affordable housing trust fund. The dollars collected by the trust fund would also then be redirected back to the local level for affordable housing projects. HB 1309 died in the Senate State Affairs Committee. Tom Smith rounded out the discussion by reminding commissioners that while affordable housing is currently an issue at the forefront of many agendas, this is certainly not a new phenomenon. Pitkin County has been faced with an affordable housing crisis since the 1970s, and only through political will of residents has the Aspen/Pitkin Housing Authority been able to mitigate the problem. Specifically, two funding sources have been approved by voters – a Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT) (note that TABOR prohibits the adoption of new RETTs) as well as a portion of sales tax (one half of one percent). Additionally, Pitkin County contributes county General Fund dollars to the housing authority. The establishment of the Aspen/Pitkin Housing Authority has allowed seasonal and full-time employees to live within the community and in large part resolved the housing crisis in Pitkin County. During the interim period between legislative sessions, CCI will be conducting a survey of counties’ affordable housing efforts and with a view towards hosting an idea forum for commissioners and legislators to continue conversations and help identify impediments and potential solutions to the current affordable and attainable housing crisis in Colorado. If you have questions or interested in participating in this discussion, please email Brandy DeLange at [email protected].

Speakers at the budget-balancing workshop were Clear Creek County

Administrator Keith Montag (left) and Arapahoe County Finance

Director Todd Weaver.

Advanced Budget-Balancing Techniques

Speakers Montag, Weaver Stress Need for Long-Term Planning For most counties, budgeting for the 2018 calendar

year will begin in the next couple of months. With that

in mind, Todd Weaver, Finance Director for Arapahoe

County, and Keith Montag, Clear Creek County

Administrator, shared some budget “land mines” and pointers on how to navigate them with Summer Conference attendees. Weaver began by explaining that in Arapahoe County, property tax revenue is still limited by TABOR. In 1995, voters “de-bruced” the county’s non-tax revenues but not the county’s property tax. And while the county saw an average of 5 percent revenue growth per year before the recession, the post-recession revenue growth rate has averaged 2 percent per year. This level of growth has not kept pace with the county’s population growth, state and federal mandates, and the community’s needs. One of the bigger challenges Arapahoe now faces is a backlog of deferred expenditures for items such as roadway maintenance, maintenance at the courthouse and detention facility, and expansion of facilities.

Providing a small county budget narrative, Montag shared Clear Creek County’s situation with conference attendees. He explained that like most counties, property tax is the major source of revenue for Clear Creek. Seventy percent of the county’s General Fund is generated from the Henderson Molybdenum Mine near Empire. In 2016, the mine announced substantial reductions in production and stated that it was possible the mine would close. With this in mind, Clear Creek County reduced its 2017 General Fund budget by 10 percent and plans to make an additional 30 percent


mailto:[email protected]


reduction in expenditures and/or revenue increases over the next 4 years. Both Weaver and Montag stressed the importance of long-term financial planning. Regular review of fiscal projections and reliance on historical trends and con-servative assumptions help both counties stay on track financially. County departments have also been asked to identify areas for reduction that minimize the impact to services and programs. Another approach counties can use to reduce expenditures is to reduce staff through attrition and to enter into energy performance contracts. On the flip side, counties can also explore revenue options when feasible. Fee increases can help keep programs solvent. Both Weaver and Montag concluded by emphasizing the importance of engaging county departments and employees in the budget pro-cess. Maintaining open lines of communication is criti-cally important to ensuring that everyone knows the challenges and expectations.

Assuring the Health of Colorado’s Forests

Counties Can Play a Key Role To Protect a Vital Resource

Ouray County Commissioner Ben

Tisdel was one of the speakers who

addressed the vital need to preserve and

protect Colorado’s forests.

Colorado’s forests face serious natural and environmental risks, but conference attendees learned about the opportunities and resources for commissioners to mitigate fire risk, protect and restore watersheds, increase forest health, and conduct appropriate forest planning. Ouray County Commissioner Ben Tisdel kicked off the session by highlighting the important role of county

commissioners in gathering people together and creating partnerships with state and federal government agencies, legislators, the timber industry, biochar developers, landowners, homeowners’ associations, fire departments, real estate professionals, and any other stakeholders. Tisdel also discussed the benefits of preparation and prevention activities, such as preparing and supporting emergency management staff, anticipating probable fire modeling and understanding fire behavior, and updating land use codes to reduce possible ignition sources. Finally, Tisdel highlighted the importance of encouraging homeowners to manage their own defensible space. Molly Pitts of Pitts Resource Consulting, LLC discussed the role of industry in forest health. In Colorado, primary forest products companies exist in 25 counties, employing over 2,000 people and annually producing products valued at more than $91 million. Pitts highlighted how healthy forests, through partnerships with industry, help with quality hunting, healthy wildlife populations, and local economic vitality. Pitts also emphasized the importance of the role of county commissioners in forest plan development, the designation of wilderness areas, and travel management planning. She encouraged attendees to reach out to their federal representatives about the issues of fire funding and appropriations for timber management, as well as utilize the power of CCI to appeal to state representatives. Jonathan Bruno of Fire Adapted Colorado (FACO) wrapped up the session by explaining the process of developing a fire adapted community and the benefits of taking responsibility for wildfire risk. Fire adapted communities include six important pieces: 1) home preparedness of homeowners, developers, and builders; 2) collaborative partnerships; 3) government participation and planning using building codes and ordinances or providing resources; 4) fire department planning and training; 5) business resilience through the use of pre- and post-disaster redevelopment plans, reducing wildfire risks, and purchasing wildfire insurance coverage; and 6) maintaining healthy forests through activities such as prescribed fires. The overall objective of FACO is to engage in and grow the statewide directory of wildfire-centric organizations to keep Colorado’s forests healthy.


Ballot Issues

Commissioners Learn Limits Of Electioneering in Counties

County attorneys Amy Folsom of El Paso and Todd Starr of Archuleta

provided their legal insights on ballot issues at the Summer Conference.

At this popular conference session, El Paso County Attorney Amy Folsom and Archuleta County Attorney Todd Starr walked commissioners through the permissible and the impermissible when it comes to ballot issues. Starr opened with a brief review of the constitutional underpinnings of the Fair Campaign Practices Act (FCPA) and its underlying purposes to ensure that campaign participants and contributions are transparent to the public. Starr also editorialized that, while free speech concerns color the rules applicable to “government speech” on ballot measures, he is of the opinion that participation by public officials in the debate on ballot issues enhances the public discourse the First Amendment is intended to protect. Folsom outlined the FCPA prohibitions on government campaign contributions and on spending public funds to urge votes for or against a ballot measure. She noted that these prohibitions apply to more than just cash contributions; they include any county resources including staff time, website links, and Facebook posts. She also pointed out that there is no de minimis exception for candidate campaigns, like for ballot issues. Folsom walked through a three-part analysis that included whether there is a ballot issue, whether public funds were spent, and whether voters are urged to vote a particular way. Fact patterns included: using

the flat-fee, contract county attorney to prepare the TABOR-required “pro” statement (no additional public money spent); providing a public meeting space for a campaign event (only if the space is generally available for public use); and hiring a consultant to evaluate and describe the county’s financial situation (presentation found to support ballot measure on taxes). Starr wound up this portion noting that a candidate is a “candidate” when they announce and a ballot measure is a “ballot measure” when the county adopts the resolution submitting it to voters (county) or when it is submitted for title setting (state). To illustrate this point, he described a resolution submitting a county sales tax to fund a new courthouse. Prior to the time the resolution was submitted to voters, FCPA was not implicated; however, once the BOCC adopted the resolution, all expenditures have to comply with FCPA even if they are for services rendered prior to the adoption of the resolution. With respect to pending ballot issues, Folsom reminded attendees that their counties can dispense summaries (without conclusions or opinions), pass resolutions in support or opposition, and answer unsolicited questions about pending measures. Resolutions adopted by the BOCC may articulate reasoning for support or opposition and an adopted resolution may be reported on and distributed by ordinary and customary means. Both Folsom and Starr said that answering questions can be tricky, especially on camera, and it is most important that they be unsolicited – not planted in advance. Questions from the audience in this session concerned election expenses of a term limits ballot question for a single official (ordinary county expense), the propriety of a commissioner restating their position every time there is an opportunity for comment (judgment call about propriety), and hosting candidate debates (perhaps, on consistent terms, including all candidates).

To access Summer Conference workshop PowerPoint presentations, visit the Library section at ccionline.org.


USDA Rural Development

Wide Range of Loan Programs Can Improve Quality of Life

Director Tedd Buelow, second from right, and his team from USDA Rural

Development explained how they can help counties in a number of areas. The

program was moderated by Cheyenne County Commissioner Rod Pelton (far

right).

With seven mission areas, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides a wide variety to support and assistance to rural counties. At the Summer Conference, the focus was on the USDA Rural Development program which offers several affordable housing programs including the 502 Guaranteed Home Loan Program, the 502 Direct Home Loan Program, the 504 Home Repair Loan and Grant Program, and multi-family housing loans and grants. The 502 Guaranteed Home Loan Program is a zero-down payment, private lender originated loan that may be used for the purchase of an existing home or the construction of a new home. Applicants must meet the location and income eligibility guidelines but are not limited on the loan amount or home size. Applicants without a traditional credit score may use alternative methods to prove credit history and worthiness such as proof of utility or cell phone payments. Similar to the 502 Guaranteed Home Loan Program, the 502 Direct Loan Program requires zero down payment and is location and income driven. Applicants without formal credit history may use alternative methods to prove credit history and worthiness. Loan amounts and house size are limited and are set for a 38-year term, with qualifying payments being subsidized to one percent. All loans under the 502 Direct Loan Program are originated by a non-profit packager and processed and underwritten by USDA.

In addition to affordable housing purchasing programs, USDA also provides single-family home repair grants and loans for health and safety repairs and energy efficiency repairs and improvements. Grants are made available to those who are 62 years or older, location and income eligible, and own their home. Applicants may receive up to a total of $7,500 in grants. Loans can be made for up to $20,000 and have no age restrictions, but applicants must own their own property and be income and location eligible. USDA Rural Development also provides direct loans and grants for farm labor housing and multi-housing units, guaranteed loans for multi-housing units, loans and grants for housing preservation and revitalization, and multi-housing rental assistance. USDA also provides loans, grants and loan guarantees for projects that are essential for rural community development. Projects include hospitals and health clinics, daycares, schools, community centers, fire houses and first responder vehicles and equipment. Eligible applicants must either be a public entity, federally recognized tribe, or non-profit. Total community population must be 20,000 or fewer. Providing water and waste disposal loans and grants for the constructor or improvement of infrastructure and support of public health is also a top priority for Rural Development. Finally, Rural Development also provides business development programs including: loan guarantees for businesses wanting to purchase and develop land, purchase equipment, supplies or inventory, convert, modernize or redevelop a business, business development grants, a rural microentrepreneur program, and an intermediary relending program.

Broadband Expansion into Rural Areas

Internet Provides Key Link To Economic Development

CCI President Lew Gaiter III (a Larimer County Commissioner) moderated a Summer Conference session on the challenge of bringing high-speed


Internet (a.k.a. “broadband”) to the rural areas of the state. Gaiter recognizes that without high-speed Internet, smaller communities will continue to struggle to compete in the modern global market and find themselves at a disadvantage on issues like economic development, telemedicine and distance learning. The session provided some different county approaches to improving service. Tony Neal-Graves, the newly-appointed executive director of the Colorado Broadband Office, kicked things off with some state-level updates. He told commissioners and staff that there was no over-arching state plan coming forward to solve the broadband problem. This issue is going to take a community-by-community approach, as solutions are elusive and each county and city has a unique set of circumstances and factors that will play into the solution. On its face, Neal-Graves believes the broadband problem is a money problem – there just aren’t enough dollars out there to build out the networks. He does see the state High Cost Support Mechanism as a partial solution to the money problem. Dollars in that fund are supposed to be moving to the Broadband Fund for deployment in rural areas of the state. This transfer has bogged down, and legislative changes are probably necessary. Neal-Graves pledged to continue talking to stakeholders over the interim in hopes of finding consensus.

Anthony (Tony) Neal-Graves, the new director of the Colorado

Broadband Office, explains the strategies his agency will employ to

bring Internet to the rural areas of the state.

Commissioner Norm Steen (Teller County) outlined the challenge of improving service in your community without committing public dollars. In the case of Teller County, there was not support for using county funds to improve the infrastructure. The county has looked to commercial investment and state and federal

grants as potential sources of funding. Like many communities, the county has formed a Local Technology Planning Team to guide the process and study existing market conditions in the region. Teller is moving forward with developing a plan using community leaders to drive the need for project completion. The county has also worked closely with the existing Internet providers in the county to make sure they are up-to-date and motivated to help. Drew Davis, Senior Business Analyst for Larimer County, reported on his county’s approach to improving service. Larimer County has been very aggressive in its efforts. It worked hard on developing messaging and branding to build support for better service: “Larimer Broadband: Everywhere is Somewhere.” Larimer County’s SB 152 opt-out question passed by a whopping 72 percent and the county has used that public support as a springboard for service enhancement. One thing Larimer realized very quickly was that broadband is NOT a stand-alone issue; it has bearing on a whole host of other county needs: transportation, public safety, economic development, planning and community resiliency. The county is currently in study mode, doing research and meeting with the members of the community to identify who the current providers are, where the gaps in service exist, and what the willingness is to pay for improvements throughout the county.

Funding Transportation Infrastructure

SB 267 Provides Just One-Tenth Of Funds Needed Over 20 Years

CCI Transportation and Telecommunications Steering Committee Chair Sean Conway (a Weld County Commissioner) moderated a Summer Conference session on the future of transportation funding in Colorado. He noted in his introductions that while transportation funding was one of the most high-profile issues during the recent legislative session, only one bill (SB17-267) of the seven introduced actually ended up passing and being signed into law. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) Commissioner Ed Peterson focused his remarks on SB 267, a bill ostensibly designed to sustain rural Colorado roads and schools.



Through lease-purchase agreements on state buildings, the bill will generate new revenue to allow CDOT to undertake $1.8 billion in priority transportation projects around the state. While a good start, Peterson noted that this amount of funding is only 10 percent of CDOT’s 20-year need. CDOT will begin prioritizing projects for funding later this year and is in the process of designing selection criteria to guide this prioritization. Part of that challenge will be a requirement in the bill that says at least 25 percent of the funded projects must be in rural counties (defined as having populations less than 50,000).

Weld County Commissioner Sean Conway (center) moderated an expert panel on funding transportation infrastructure that included (left to right), Tony Milo, Jon Caldara, Christian Reece, and Ed Peterson.

Christian Reece, Executive Director of Club 20, spoke about rural perspectives on the transportation funding issue. She noted that Club 20 was founded in response to the need for better guidance and perspective on transportation funding issues at the state capitol. Club 20 was a strong supporter of HB17-1242, another transportation funding bill that would have asked the voters to approve a sales tax increase to fund local and state transportation projects. That bill was killed in a Senate committee. Reece advocated for an additional bipartisan funding solution in addition to SB 267 – one that is long-term, sustainable and statewide in nature. She is concerned that if the General Assembly does nothing, the metro area will move to solve its own funding issues and rural Colorado will be left behind. Jon Caldara, president of the Independence Institute, insisted that instead of asking the voters for more money, we should be asking where the state is spending our current money. He pointed out that state spending on transportation has not increased in the last ten years, while spending on Medicaid has gone up 300 percent during that time. Caldara’s group is seeking to

place a measure on the November ballot entitled “Fix Our Damn Roads.” The ballot measure would grant $3.5 billion in debt authority to CDOT, but would re-quire the General Assembly to find the money for bond debt repayment (roughly $350 million a year) in the state budget with no new revenue. Tony Milo, executive director for the Colorado Con-tractors Association and lead spokesman for a coalition group called Fix It Colorado, told workshop partici-pants that he believes the new state AND local funding is needed to begin to solve the state’s transportation backlog. His organization backed HB 1242 and is con-sidering bringing a ballot measure that would probably look a lot like HB 1242. However, Fix It Colorado has decided to NOT move forward with a ballot measure in 2017. They cite two reasons for waiting until 2018; 1) there isn’t enough time to mount a serious campaign before November, and 2) any proposed ballot language must compliment SB 267.

Marijuana Legalization Impacts

Policies, Strategies Are Evolving Four Years after Amendment 64

Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock outlined the enforcement challenges of

legalized marijuana and the adoption of plant caps.

Commissioner Sal Pace (Pueblo County) moderated a session on recent developments in marijuana regulation in Colorado. In his introduction, Pace said that in the four years following the passage of Amendment 64, there have been a dizzying number of policy changes both at the state and local level. These policies and strategies have had to change in order to address the myriad community impacts (both positive and negative) of legalization in Colorado. Pace also mentioned that Pueblo County is using some of its


excise tax revenues from retail marijuana to fund a study at CSU Pueblo on health impacts of marijuana usage. Commissioner Ben Tisdel (Ouray County) talked about the evolution of retail marijuana policy in his county and its “go slow” approach. Ouray initially had only five licensed premises, but has now increased that to eight. The county has new draft regulations that are in the process of being adopted that would allow outdoor growing (current regulations require an enclosed space). The county also got permission from the voters in 2015 to assess and collect an excise tax on retail marijuana. That tax brought in approximately $48,000 in 2016, and the county estimates that it will bring in $125,000 in 2017. Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock detailed some of the law enforcement challenges around the state as a result of Amendment 64. There have been a marked increase in the number of illegal grow operations, primarily in residential dwellings. Public safety concerns grew after a house that had its electrical system illegally retrofitted to accommodate a large-scale marijuana grow burned to the ground. Douglas County fought back by enacting a 12-plant cap limit on home grows – the first of its kind in the state. The Douglas County model was the impetus for HB17-1220 – legislation enacted this past session that establishes a statewide default plant cap of 12 plants in all residences (unless the local jurisdiction has a different cap adopted). Christian Sederberg, a partner at the law firm of Vicente Sederberg and one of the authors of Amendment 64, said his firm has been working with Canada – which is poised to legalize marijuana on a nationwide scale there. He agreed with Sheriff Spurlock that grey and black market sales are still a problem. He said he was pleased to see HB 1220 and HB17-1221 become law this year. The measures establish a new grant program at The Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) to assist local law enforcement and district attorneys in investigating and prosecuting illegal grow operations. Sederberg lamented that a bill establishing a definition in statute for “open and public use” was killed on the last day of session.

New Commissioner Orientation

Experienced Panel Shared Insights with First-Termers

Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer (far left) moderated a panel

of seasoned commissioners who shared their knowledge with newly-elected com-

missioners. The panel, left to right, included Commissioners Rose Pugliese

(Mesa), Darius Allen (Alamosa), Steve Moreno (Weld), and Terry A. Hart

(Pueblo).

It is quickly becoming a biannual tradition for new commissioners to have a free-wheeling Q&A at the Summer Conference, once they have about six months of experience under their belts. This year, in Part III of their CCI-presented orientation, the not-so-new commissioners had an opportunity to interact with some veteran commissioners about the challenges they are facing and strategies for overcoming them. The veteran commissioners each opened with a few general comments, including a reminder that it can be as long as a year before commissioners develop a real comfort with their county role, the importance of cultivating a relationship with the county administrator, and remembering that the county attorney is the BOCC’s advisor, with a built-in tendency to identify hurdles and legal obstacles of various proposals. Two of the veterans, who also served in other county elected roles, also emphasized the importance of developing good working relationships with other county elected officials. They pointed out that working with other elected officials requires persuasion and diplomacy and that commissioners get sued even when another elected official is the object of a lawsuit. New commissioners were reminded that they wear all three hats of government – legislative, executive and judicial – and that they control the county budget, have the last word on county contracts and policies, and manage all county property.


To access Summer Conference workshop PowerPoint presentations, visit the Library section at ccionline.org.


A few counties submitted questions for the panel to consider in advance. On a question about implementing a county mission, some counties reported that they do a strategic planning process every time the BOCC membership changes substantially in order to ensure that everyone understands what the county mission is. On making difficult budget reductions, veteran commissioners described their process for identifying core functions of county government, other functions that assist residents who cannot help themselves, and finally other discretionary functions. The veteran commissioners described multiple processes for doing this, recognizing that any function has defenders who will be upset if they are cut. One option that a few counties have tried is to include other county elected officials soon after a shortfall is identified. On the topic of snow-related road closures, it was noted that counties can close roads for safety purposes in a bona fide emergency but that counties should be cautious about acting without clear authority outside of an emergency situation. Several veteran commissioners described the willingness of neighbor counties to help when disasters and emergencies arise. Other questions the panel fielded were on: dealing with hostile media (use social media options, work with county staff on the message, try to develop media relationships before issues arise); using seizure funds to buy equipment (still subject to BOCC approval, potential personal liability if a county official buys without authorization); managing challenging relationships with other BOCC members (disagreement does not have to mean dislike, be careful about putting county staff in between two commissioners); and purchasing additional insurance as a commissioner (if a member of CTSI, you are already covered unless your behavior is criminal or willful and wanton). The panel concluded by describing the value of CCI to

keep commissioners connected to legislative action, to

watch out for county interests at the Capitol, and to

give commissioners a way to be engaged and be heard

in state policy debates. Veterans also promoted the

opportunities at CCI to network with other

commissioners and policymakers, to tap into historic

institutional knowledge, and to identify other counties

who have been through whatever issue a new commis-sioner is going through. The veteran commissioners conveyed that there isn’t a problem the new commis-sioners are dealing with that someone hasn’t dealt with before and wouldn’t be happy to help with today. (Note: Part III of the New Commission Orientation at

the Summer Conference featured CDOT 101 present-

ed by Herman Stockinger of the Colorado Department

of Transportation. To view the PowerPoint, visit the

Library at ccionline.com.)

CCI Business Meeting

District Presidents, VPs Elected to Serve in 2017-2018

CCI President Lew Gaiter (Larimer County Commissioner) welcomed commissioners and called the June 6, 2017 CCI Summer Business meeting to order at the Keystone Conference Center. President Gaiter recognized and thanked the 2016-2017 district officers for their service. The following commissioners were elected to serve as district leaders for 2017-2018. Eastern: Rod Pelton, Cheyenne, President and Byron Pelton, Logan, Vice President

Front Range: Sam Taylor, City and County of Broomfield, President and Roger Partridge, Douglas, Vice President

Mountain: Dan Gibbs, Summit, President and Merrit Linke, Grand, Vice President

Southern: Pete Dawson, Baca, President and Helen Sigmond, Alamosa, Vice President

Western: Ben Tisdel, Ouray, President and Don Suppes, Delta, Vice President Hinsdale County Commissioner Cindy Dozier and

Pitkin County Commissioner Rachel Richards provided

background information on their proposed

transportation funding resolution.

Before the failure of HB17-1242 and the decision by Fix It Colorado to wait until 2018, both commissioners were interested in preserving the opportunity for CCI membership to discuss and take a position on a ballot


measure to expedite projects, generate additional revenue, and assure adequate maintenance of the transportation system. With the demise of 1242 and the decision by Fix It Colorado to wait until next year, the resolution was no longer germane to anything pending and was withdrawn by Commissioners Dozier and Richards.

Eastern District Meeting

Hart Honored as Peltons Take Leadership Roles

After many years of leading CCI’s Eastern District, Washington County Commissioner Terry G. Hart stepped down from serving as the District’s President on June 6, 2017 at the Summer Conference in Keystone. Thank you, Terry, for your leadership and service to the nine counties that make up CCI’s Eastern District! Congratulations to the Pelton Cousins on their new leadership appointments to the Eastern District. Rod Pelton, Cheyenne County Commissioner, was elected to serve as President and Byron Pelton, Logan County Commissioner, was elected to serve as Vice President. Eastern district commissioners spent the majority of their time discussing traffic studies and wind energy development. Ted Spaid, Safety and Traffic Engineer with the Colorado Department of Transportation, spoke about the statutory requirement to base changes to speed limits on traffic studies. These studies protect local governments from liability. They are also a professional expectation of civil engineers and as such, all states require some sort of traffic study to justify changes in statutorily set speed limits. Spaid provided copies of CRS 42-4-1101 (speed limits) and CRS 42-4-1102 (alteration of speed limits) for eastern district attendees. A panel of wind energy experts from Xcel and

Invenergy also joined the Eastern District. Tim

Kawakami, Director of Purchased Power, and Hollie

Velasquez Horvath, Director of Community Relations,

explained that Xcel is planning to spend billions to

build a network of wind farms across Colorado and six

other states between now and 2020. A leader in renewable energy, Xcel’s investment over the next few years is fueled by the competitive prices for wind energy, the decreasing cost of wind turbines and the increased efficiency of wind turbines. Given these three factors, and the fact that customers are demanding more renewable energy sources, wind is anticipated to remain competitive for the foreseeable future. Krista Jo Mann, Senior Business Development Manager with Invenergy, then explained what her firm looks for when they are developing wind farms. She explained that the following six factors must all be in place for wind farm development to occur: 1) the presence of a strong wind resource; 2) the presence of transmission lines (preferably owned by the entity wishing to build the wind farm); 3) willing land owners; 4) the absence of environmentally sensitive areas; 5) favorable local regulations and 6) a receptive community. The Eastern District meeting wrapped up with a brief overview of the 2017 legislative session and a discussion about whether or not the counties in the 13th Judicial District would be seeking voter approval in 2017 to extend term limits for their district attorney. Eastern District commissioners will meet again on Friday, September 15 from 10 am to 2 pm. at the Washington County Event Center in Akron.

Front Range District Meeting

Taylor, Partridge Elected President, Vice President

The Front Range District meeting convened at Noon on June 6, 2017 at the Summer Conference in Keystone. Vice President Sam Taylor, City and County of Broomfield, began a discussion on oil and gas. Tami Yellico, City and County of Broomfield, commented on a handout that was prepared and distributed to all members. She also commented on the fact that Broomfield has a moratorium on new wells and that they have passed an ordinance to not allow the taking



of mineral interests without owner approval. In addition, Broomfield has established a comprehensive committee on oil and gas development that also includes citizens. The committee began meeting in March of 2017 and is having discussions that include noise readings inside and outside of well sites, and air modeling to detect emissions at sites. They are meeting on the Governor's Oil & Gas Task Force Recommendations #20 (drilling and production facilities) and the committee will draft recommendations to the city council. The city has also hired a petroleum engineer to monitor Extraction (an oil/gas company) and advise the committee. President Nancy Sharpe then asked what has been done since the Firestone incident and the response was as follows: 1) there may be legislation to clean up well sites, plug wells, and provide a 50-foot by 100-foot setback on each well site; 2) map and record flow lines as developers are cutting flow lines on old wells that have no easements and/or are not well marked; 3) Fire districts may not have the proper equipment to handle emergencies; and 4) Senator Marble and Representative Saine may have 2018 legislation on forced pooling issues. President Sharpe then moved into elections of president and vice president. Sam Taylor, Broomfield County, was nominated to be the next president and was approved by acclamation. Roger Partridge, Douglas County, was nominated and approved by acclamation to be the vice president. President Taylor then began a transportation discussion. Douglas County spoke about issues on C470 and Highway 85 and the impacts of increased development. The general consensus is that counties need to take control of transportation funding because the state and federal spending will not be sufficient to meet the need. There was also discussion about how Broomfield finished the northwest parkway to DIA and how US 36 was finished by implementing public-private partnerships (P3's). There was agreement that P3's are the only way to go for future transportation projects in Colorado. President Taylor then moved on to a discussion of affordable housing. There was a brief discussion of

how the phrase "affordable housing" has a negative stigma. It was generally agreed that affordable housing is housing for teachers, fire fighters, police officers, and nurses, to mention a few. The cost of building a home in the Denver area is more than $300,000. The new construction defects laws may lower construction costs. Local building codes prohibit sharing of homes. The developmentally disabled community was also mentioned and one group is partnering with a substance abuse agency to share 140 units to house those who need them. The members agreed that this is definitely an important issue for counties. The meeting then switched to "other business" prior to adjournment. Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer asked if there could be a discussion regarding how to handle CORA requests in reference to SB17-040 that passed this year. She also asked the group to hold off on committing to MOU's with the state on work participation rates.

Mountain District Meeting

Gibbs, Linke Win Reelection To Second One-Year Terms Mountain District President Dan Gibbs (Summit County) and Vice President Merrit Linke (Grand County) presided over the CCI Mountain District meeting on June 6, 2017 during the CCI Summer Conference in Keystone. Representatives from twelve of the thirteen counties in the district were present at the meeting and they reelected Commissioners Gibbs and Linke to another one-year term. Congratulations to both! Following the elections, commissioners engaged in a discussion about the challenges in resort regions from short term rentals – also known as “Vacation Rental By Owner” or VRBO. Short term rentals commonly generate complaints to local officials about the “Four P’s” (partying, parking, pets and pot) and are a concern across the state. Grand County, which has an estimated 1,700 short term rental properties, recently convened a series of eight public meetings that culminated in the adoption of new regulations on


short-term rentals. Property owners who wish to rent their homes must register them via a phone app and a company called Host Compliance will serve in the enforcement mode, responding to complaints and levying fines if necessary. During a county roundtable discussion, commissioners gave short updates on current issues in their counties. Issues discussed included: affordable/workforce housing needs, broadband infrastructure improvements, tourism and economic development efforts, continuing concerns about district attorney salaries, healthcare cost and availability of doctors, regulation of off-highway vehicles, transportation projects, open space acquisitions, marijuana regulation and taxation (including local ballot questions on excise taxes), “welcoming community” status, relationships with the US Forest Service, and status updates on county manager hires in several mountain counties. The summer Mountain District meeting will be held on Thursday, August 24. Location has yet to be determined.

Southern District Meeting

Dawson, Sigmond Assume New Leadership Positions Commissioner Jason Anderson (Saguache) called the Southern District meeting to order on June 6, 2017 at the Summer Conference in Keystone and initiated the election of a new district president and vice president. A motion was made to elect Commissioner Peter Dawson (Baca) as president and Commissioner Helen Sigmond (Alamosa) as vice president. Both commissioners were elected by acclamation. Commissioner Dawson also reminded commissioners that the 2018 Legislative Priority Requests are due to CCI staff no later than June 30, 2017. As landfill compliance and closure remains a high

priority issue for the Southern District, members

invited Keith Siemsen, Environmental Health Liaison

for the Department of Health and Environment

(CDPHE) to present and dialogue with district

members. During this discussion, Siemsen outlined

the long history of noncompliance by small landfills and lack of enforcement by the department, as well as the goals of the CDPHE to either bring these landfills into compliance or have them shutdown. Additionally, Siemsen noted that CDPHE was successful in securing $1.6 million in state general fund dollars to help assist small landfills with the installation of ground water monitoring wells. Commissioners expressed frustration with CDPHE and the lack of flexibility and transparency. Commissioners also expressed concern about the unintended consequences of forcing small landfills into unattainable compliance or shutting down. Some of the consequences identified included illegal dumping, the cost of illegal dumping to the counties, and the loss of jobs. Commissioner Dawson concluded the Southern District meeting by asking counties with specific landfill concerns to draft and send letters to CDPHE. Copies of letters sent to CDPHE should also be sent to Brandy DeLange ([email protected]). Commissioners will re-visit next steps at the September 8, 2017 Southern District meeting.

Western District Meeting

Tisdel, Suppes Take Over Top Leadership Assignments Western District President Tom Jankovsky (Garfield) and Vice President Ben Tisdel (Ouray) called the district meeting to order on June 6, 2017 during the Summer Conference in Keystone and welcomed county commissioners from 14 counties. Elections for District President and Vice President were held. Commissioner Tisdel was elected as President and Commissioner Don Suppes (Delta) was elected as Vice President. The meeting proceeded with a round table discussion of current happenings in each county. Some of the most shared remarks from counties

showed a gratitude for the Department of Local

Affairs (DOLA) and the ability to partner with them


mailto:[email protected]


on so many issues and projects. For example, many counties discussed the problem of funding courthouse capitol construction and maintenance, but several counties expressed how their partnerships with DOLA provided some assistance to address these issues. The importance of partnerships with other counties, cities, and special districts was also emphasized; and in particular, partnerships for broadband and affordable and attainable housing were highlighted. Routt County, for example, has partnered with Steamboat Springs and their school district in order to work with providers to increase access to broadband but reduce costs. Hinsdale County discussed the importance of partner-ing with fellow counties on a CCI Affordable Housing Summit to address the different needs of all counties. The need to increase partnership efforts was also a point of concern for some counties. For example, while it was generally stated that conservation easements can serve important goals, there was a strong desire from commissioners that the impacts of easements on local economics and the growth of communities be consid-ered more carefully. Counties also highlighted their frustrations with the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Planning 2.0 Initiative and the importance of making sure that the voice of Colorado’s counties is heard. Commissioners also discussed new opportunities for

economic development in their communities. Several

counties are working to learn more about the hemp

industry, while other counties are working together on

a growing trail network between counties to bring addi-

tional tourism to the Western slope. Additionally, San

Miguel County mentioned how increasing recycling and

composting could bring new jobs to their county, and

Delta County is hoping to utilize their stone quarry in-

dustry to bring marble cutting and polishing jobs to the

county.

Summer Conference Photo Highlights

State Senator Rachel

Zenzinger (left) was

welcomed to the Summer

Conference by Jefferson

County Commissioner

Casey Tighe.

First-term commissioners

Sarah Mudge (left) of

Lake County and Randy

Wheelock of Clear Creek

enjoyed the Summer

Conference networking

opportunities.

Gilpin County was well-represented at the Summer Conference by (left to right)

Commissioners Linda Isenhart, Gail Watson, and Ron Peters.

SAVE THE DATES

CCI Foundation Winter Conference

November 27-29, 2017 El Paso County, CO


Left to right, veteran Commissioners Rose Pugliese (Mesa) and

Mark Roeber (Delta) share a Summer Conference moment with

CCI Executive Director John (Chip) Taylor.

Sharing ideas that can benefit their respective counties were Summer

Conference Commissioner-delegates Garrison Ortiz (left) of Pueblo

and Longinos Gonzalez, Jr. of El Paso.

The Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS) used the

occasion of the CCI Foundation Summer Conference to present its

2016 C-Stat Distinguished Performance awards to counties and indi-

viduals that do exceptional work in the area of human services.

CDHS Executive Director Reggie Bicha (top row, far left) honored

the following 15 CCI-Member counties: Arapahoe, Delta, Dolores,

Eagle, Fremont, Huerfano, Jackson, Lake, Mineral, Pitkin, Rio

Blanco, San Miguel, Sedgwick, Summit and Yuma.

Tom Krushensky (center) of CCOERA hosted the June 7,

2017 breakfast at the Summer Conference where he welcomed

Kit Carson County Commissioner Gary Koop (left) and Logan

County Human Services Director Dave Long; and sponsored a

putting contest and prizes for county leaders including (below)

Washington County Commissioner Lea Ann Laybourn.

Chris Castilian of Great Outdoors Colorado is a CCI Associate

Member and sponsor of the coffee breaks at the Summer

Conference.


CCI Staff at Your Service John (Chip) Taylor Executive Director Kristin Dunn Deputy Director Allison Daley Policy and Legislative Advocate Eric Bergman Policy Director Jeanne DeHaven Administrative Associate

Brandy DeLange Policy and Legislative Advocate Gini Pingenot Legislative Director Linda Tiehen, Administrative Associate Paul Thompson Outreach and Education Manager

Colorado Counties, Inc. 800 Grant Street, Suite 500 Denver, CO 80203 303.861.4076 www.ccionline.org

Gold Level sponsor CTSI held

its annual cash drawing at the

Summer Conference with

Commissioners Darius Allen

(Alamosa) and Mark Glenn

(Lake) among the lucky

winners.

Silver Level sponsor Geralyn Gorshing of CPS HR Consulting welcomed

City and County of Broomfield Councilman Sam Taylor to her table-top

display at the Summer Conference.

Gold Level sponsor American Fidelity was represented at the Summer

Conference by Jeff McNeilly (right) and Stephen Anthis.

Platinum Level sponsor Nationwide Retirement Solutions was represented

at the Summer Conference by Burt Burrows.

Fourteener Level CCI Associate Member Anadarko Petroleum

Corporation was represented at the Summer Conference by Kimberly

Mendoza-Cooke.

http://www.ccionline.org


Herman Stockinger of the Colorado Department of

Transportation presented an informative CDOT 101 to

newly-elected commissioners as Part III of the CCI-sponsored

New Commissioner Orientation.

Karn Stiegelmeier, Chair of the

Summit County Board of County

Commissioners, welcomed Summer

Conference delegates to her county and

the beautiful Keystone Resort.

San Miguel County Commissioners Kris Holstrom (left) and Hilary Cooper

were among the more than 300 delegates to the Summer Conference.

Ray Garcia (left) and Gerald Cisneros, Huerfano County Commissioners, participated in the CCI Business Meeting at Keystone.

First-term County Commissioners Jay Printz

(left) and Donna Hood of Custer County

gleaned important information during Part III of

the New Commissioner Orientation.

Teller County Commissioner

Norm Steen poses a question to a

speaker during the Lightning

Round after the CCI Business

Meeting.


Dino Ioannides, Executive Director of the Colorado Independent

Ethics Commission, gave an enlightening Lightning Round

presentation.

CCI Policy Director Eric Bergman presented a Lightning Round topic on SB 40 and the changes to the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA).

Alamosa County Administrator Gigi Dennis (left)

won a gift basket from Bronze sponsor RMMI,

represented by Chuck Hensel, at the table-top

display area of the conference.

Weld County Commissioner Julie Cozad was one of many leaders

who enjoyed the breakfast sponsored by CCOERA – The

Retirement Association.

CCI thanks the over 30 counties that provided distinctive, locally-flavored Gift

Baskets to be given away at the Summer Conference.


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