Letter to Representative Tipton regarding Secure Rural Schools Funding for FY2012 and future SRS reform

Dear Colleague Letter
Colorado Secure Rural Payments (SRS) Funds map
Colorado Counties SRS Payment summary table (.xls) file


Dear Representative Tipton,

As you are aware from learning about Payment-In-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILT) recently, many counties are compensated for the tax-exempt status of federal lands lying within their county.  Our county is approximately 50% federal public land (159,584 acres).  Another form of federal payments to counties to compensate for the tax-exempt status of these federal public lands are "Forest Payments", also known as Secure Rural Schools (SRS) payments.

A summary of SRS published by the Congressional Research Service (June 24, 2010) contains excellent background information:

"Counties with federal lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service as National Forest lands (such as we have the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre & Gunnison National Forest & San Juan National Forest) and with certain Bureau of Land Management lands have historically received a percentage of agency revenues from fees and sales of forest products generated by these lands." 

Since 1908 the USFS has paid 25% of its gross receipts to the states for use on roads and rural schools in the counties where the national forests are located.  This mandatory spending program was enacted to compensate local governments for the tax-exempt status of the national forests, but the compensation rate (10% of gross receipts in 1906 and 1907; 25% of gross receipts since) was not debated in 1906-1908.  This program is called "USFS Payments to States" because each state allocates the funds to road and school programs. --but the USFS determines the actual amount each county receives or uses.  As timber sales especially declined substantially, Congress enacted the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (SRS; P.L. 106-393) as a "temporary, optional program" based on historic revenues rather than current revenues. 

SRS expired at the end of 2006.  Congressional debates over reauthorization have considered several formulas.  Meanwhile, legislation with mandatory spending raises policy questions about increasing the federal deficit and thus poses a procedural barrier to enabling legislation.

There are many valid concerns about SRS, including: 1) a decline in USFS receipts of 83% since 1989; 2) annual fluctuations of payments (up and down) by more than nearly 30% annually (making it hard for the federal and local governments and schools to budget); and 3) linkage between competing management decisions and outcomes.  In the long-term the SRS system should be modified, with serious consideration of changing to more of a tax-equivalency compensation system for local governments and rural schools.

However, without a short-term action, our rural schools will lose the federal funds we need to offset the tax-exempt status of nearly half of Ouray County.  Over  75% of the SRS payments received by Colorado counties goes directly to local rural schools.  Ouray County distributed 75% of the SRS forest payments to our Ouray County local schools in 2010 and 2011.  The remainder goes to the County Road and Bridge Department, to help provide safe routes to the schools.

As a result of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, 38 Colorado counties received $17.2 Million in FY2008, $12.2 Million in FY2011, dropping to $5.0 Million in FY2012.  The funds received by these 38 Colorado counties affect 2,819,994 people & 480,000 Colorado school children.

As a result of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, Ouray County received $96,745 in FY2008; $86,066 in FY2009, $78,763 in FY2010, and $70,877 in FY2011. 

Rural schools in Representative Tipton's Third Congressional District are the most affected by the decrease in SRS Funds.  27 Third Congressional District counties, together totaling 667,373 people, received $14,231,847 in FY2008, $10,085,105 in FY2011, and this will dramatically drop to $4,159,396 in 2012; a loss of over $10 Million since 2008, with at least 75% of that money going to our rural schools (see attached map). 

For example, in Ouray County, by Resolution 2011-006, $59,097.26 was transferred to the Public School Fund, and " distributed to each school district in the County in proportion with which its pupil enrollment during the preceding school year bears to the aggregate pupil enrollment in all districts in the County during said preceding school year".

By Resolution 2010-014, $64,549.62 was transferred to the Public School Fund by Ouray County and distributed to the local rural public schools in the same manner. 

These funds covered one and a half to two teachers' salaries each year for the Ouray and Ridgway School Districts, directly contributing to our locals schools' abilities to have manageable class sizes and excellent performance ratings.  Both school districts are currently ranked among the best in the State.

During a luncheon on March 17 (yesterday) with Reggie Bicha, Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Human Services, Governor Hickenlooper, and Colorado Human Services Directors Association, and Casey Family Programs, emphasizing opportunities for increased State-Local Partnerships to benefit Child Welfare in Colorado. A reoccurring theme of the speakers was that healthy kids live in healthy families and in healthy communities.  It was acknowledged by the Child Welfare experts that 40% of American children are not fluid readers by 8th grade, with the statistics worse for those children who do not have a permanent and healthy living situation.  For these reasons very few foster children ever make it to college.  Ouray County schools produce excellent readers with a very high percentage of local children going on to college and higher educational opportunities.  Losing Secure Rural Schools funds, or leaving them at the FY2012 level, will have an impact on our schools and communities in Ouray County and the Third Congressional District.  These funds contribute to the health of our Ridgway and Ouray schools.  This comes at a time when schools are struggling for appropriate state and federal funding, at a time when our local schools have just made significant cuts from the loss of State funding, and as local property tax revenues are projected to fall which will reduce another funding source. 

Now, more than ever, the health of our children, families, and communities depends on full funding of SRS at the FY2008 levels to offset the tax-exempt status of federal public lands within their counties. 

I urge you to sign the "Dear Colleague" letter by March 18th (attached)!  It is essential to support full funding of the Secure Rural Schools forest payments at FY2008 levels next year and to work with your colleagues toward an appropriate long-term compensation system for rural schools and local roads.

Sincerely,

Lynn Padgett,

Ouray County Commissioner, District 1

Press Release for NACo Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C.

Commissioner Padgett Addresses Federal Funding for County Programs at NACo Legislative Conference

Works to Help Carry Rural County Government Message to Washington D.C.

Washington, D.C. -- By some federal accounts the recession may have officially ended months ago, but not as far as Ouray County and other Colorado Counties local governments and schools are concerned.  That was the message delivered to Capitol Hill by Ouray County Commissioner Lynn Padgett (District 1) and more than 1,500 fellow county officials from across the country during the National Association of Counties' (NACo) 2011 Legislative Conference, March 5-9, in Washington, D.C.  Colorado Counties had a pre-conference caucus on March 4 and ended their conference after a full day on Capitol Hill meeting with Colorado Senators and 6 Colorado Representatives on March 10.

The San Juan Mountains were well represented by Commissioner Padgett (Ouray County), Commissioner Art Goodtimes (San Miguel County), and Commissioners Wally White and Kellie Hotter (La Plata County).  Altogether, the Colorado Counties delegation had 42 County Commissioners and 10 County Staff or other Elected County Officials, for a total of 52 NACo Legislative Conference attendees.

Colorado Counties are well known at NACo for their organization and team spirit, by holding the Colorado Counties state caucus the night before the start of the conference to determine group positions on NACo resolutions and federal policies affecting county governments. 

During the Conference attendees attend leadership seminars, Steering Committee meetings, Caucus meetings such as the Colorado caucus, Western Interstate Region caucus, and Rural Action Committee caucus.  Commissioner Padgett attended all of these.  Schedules are crammed, with sessions or meetings starting as early as 7am and going until 5:30pm. 

Steering Committees have members from states including Alaska and Hawaii throughout the U.S.  These committees help shape federal policies affecting County governments and send communications in the form of letters and resolutions to federal legislators, departments such as the Interior Department, and the President on matters affecting counties.   Commissioner Padgett was elected to a two-year term by her Colorado Commissioner peers on the Public Lands Steering Committee.  Her term is from January 2011 to January 2012.  Her conference fees, travel, and hotel during the conference were paid by the Public Lands Steering Committee at no cost to Ouray County tax payers.

Resolutions contemplated by the Public Lands Steering Committee during this conference included the recent discussion and a split vote on communicating opposition to Secretarial Order #3310 on Wild Lands; supporting a change in Forest Service personnel organization to place law enforcement officers under the direction of Forest Supervisors (timely based on Ouray County's recent discussion with our local USFS regarding the backcountry ranger for jeep roads); and supporting the exemption of renewable biomass combustion emissions from the EPAs "Greenhouse Gas Tailoring Rule".

Presentations at the Public Lands Steering Committee included one on illegal marijuana growing operations in western National Forests and development of an "All Lands, All Hands" Natural Resource Academy to help community-based collaborative approaches to natural resource planning, project design, and implementation across jurisdictional boundaries.  Subcommittee meetings focused on federal land payments to counties including the Payment-In-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILT) and Secure Rural Schools (SRS) payments, federal land management, and gateway communities.

Educational sessions offered the opportunity to learn about federal grant opportunities and gain greater understanding of emerging federal issues, and key NACo initiatives including the County Works, Veterans and Military services, and Restoring the Partnership campaigns.

Commissioner Padgett met with the NACO Prescription Drug Card Program administrators.  Ouray County will be rolling out this free program around April 1st.  It will allow residents to use a free card to obtain many of their prescriptions at a discount.   Arapahoe County stated it has saved their citizens hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Educational sessions were recorded this year, so that Commissioners could listen to recordings of sessions they missed while attending other concurrent sessions.  Sessions attended by Commissioner Padgett included presentations and discussion on foreclosure; changes to the Clean Water Act; issues on siting of Renewable Energy components; and cutting-costs of County Government with technology.

Other highlights of this conference were speakers that included U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Admiral Mike Mullen, MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Joe Scarborough, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), House Natural Resources Committee Chair Doc Hastings (R-Wash.), Representative Greg Walden (R-Ore.), and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chair John Mica.

Many of the speakers publically concurred with NACo President Judge Glen Whitley's recent letter to President Obama and NACo Resolution on the federal deficit.  Key points made by President Whitley and NACo were that Congress and the President cannot solve budget deficit by only cutting domestic, non-military discretionary spending that makes up 12% of the annual federal budget "on the backs of the American people and local governments".  One speaker said that in the 1970s non-miliatary, discretionary spending was 55% of the annual federal budget.  Several speakers acknowledged that the war in Iraq & Afghanistan is costing over $2 billion per week, and is using borrowed money to be financed.  They said that it was impossible to balance a budget if "entitlements are off the table, revenues are off the table, and defense is off the table".  The repeated theme from both the Republican and Democrat speakers was that not investing in education, infrastructure, and innovative research and development is foolish. 

The Conference concluded with a long day on Capitol Hill for the Colorado county officials.  Leaving at 6:45 am they first had "the most expensive bagel you will ever buy" with Senators Bennet and Udall.  County attendees had to pay $31 in cash each to cover shared transportation to the Hill ($9), and shared orange juice, coffee, and bagels ($22) for themselves and the Senators.  However, the opportunity to have an intimate discussion with the Senators and their staff's for a half-hour each, is productive at making county priorities known and strengthening relationships and partnerships with our federal legislators and their staffs.  Thus, while steep, it is the price of doing business in Washington, D.C.

Colorado Commissioners discussed 6 topics that had been voted on by the Colorado counties as being important, and presented each Senator and Representative with talking points on each topic, an executive summary on PILT with maps of how Colorado's funds are allocated, and a map of SRS fund allocations.  The 6 topics discussed were:

·         the importance of not imposing unfunded mandates on counties; the importance of PILT and SRS funding for counties at 2008 levels to counties and rural schools for at least 10 years;

·         supporting a multi-year transportation bill that would identify a new, sustainable funding source to support highway and transit projects;

·         adequate funding for the USFS for campground and trail maintenance, forest health, and wildfire protection needs as bark beetles continue to destroy at least 100,000 trees a week in Colorado;

·         support for Child Welfare funding flexibility, especially supporting IV-E waivers that would allow counties to use preventative services to prevent more expensive foster care arrangements;

·         support of Clean Colorado Coal technologies.

Commissioner Padgett worked with Colorado Counties Inc. (CCI) staff to develop colorful maps to highlight the importance of PILT and SRS funds for counties.  The SRS map, which highlights a loss of $10 million dollars of funds for FY2012 compared to FY2008, was impressive to both of the Senators and especially Representative DeGette, whose district receives no PILT or SRS funds.  In speaking on the SRS issue, Commissioner Padgett said, "The fact that Colorado will lose $12.2 million dollars in FY2012, and that 75% of more of that money is distributed by the counties directly to local rural school districts affecting 480,000 Colorado school children, is an issue for all of Colorado.  I hope you will all [all Colorado legislators] discuss this at your joint breakfast next week.  To turn this around it will require immediate action with the ongoing House Resolution. Summit County and Eagle County are each reporting declines in property valuations by 30-35%.  Half of the property tax revenues go to the schools.  This is dire.  The remainder of the SRS funds go to rural county Road and Bridge Departments to provide safe routes to schools."

Commissioner Padgett highlighted to Representative Tipton that his congressional district, the 3rd Congressional District, is going to lose $10 of that $12.2 million. 

"Representative Tipton was very gracious and sincere about strengthening local-federal partnerships," Commissioner Padgett shared after a dinner at America's Restaurant in Union Station with Representative Tipton and his staff.  Rep. Tipton invited the Colorado county officials to dinner on March 9th, and it was attended by over 25 county officials, primarily from the 3rd Congressional District.

Commissioner Padgett can be reached about this conference or any other county matter at lpadgett@ouraycountyco.gov or 970-258-0836.

PILT Amendment Results

Greetings,

Official results on the passage of the PILT amendment #333 to H.R.1 proposed by the Gentle Congresswoman Kaptur from Ohio were not close:

The amendment was defeated by a margin of 394 to 32. Since there was no exact time set for this amendment to be heard we had CSPAN on via laptop all day yesterday. They got to it in the late afternoon/early evening.

Please thank our Colorado Congressional Members who showed their support for county governments by voting no on amendment #333. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2011/roll117.xml

While we should all be pleased that this was not a close vote, PILT was only first fully funded by Congress in 2008—and that full funding which was part of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 is going to be a big topic for the 2012 budget. This proposed amendment offered an opportunity to have a strong response to start educating many new Representatives and those Representatives from the east that simply do not understand western rural counties, that full funding of PILT is essential now and for the future. Full funding of PILT is not just to benefit local governments, it is a matter of national interest. These lands are federally owned for reasons that have been deemed to be important for all Americans – lands with unique mineral or water resources, wildlands, critical habitats, cultural resources, most of which are open for all the public to experience and enjoy.

Thank you for mobilizing on this issue. I heard from NACo staff that the materials supplied by Ouray County were the best they had ever received from a county – because they were very clear as to what PILT was used for, and what loss of PILT would cut. We were clear about the services our local governments provide (road maintenance, emergency response, search and rescue, sanitation cost-share, back country ranger cost-share, etc.) because of these public lands. NACo staff shared the materials you received widely with staffers and lobbyists across Capitol Hill, and I am sure they made a difference in this vote. We still need to be watchful and participatory on this issue in the near future.

I will be travelling to Washington D.C. in March for the NACo legislative conference as part of the Colorado Counties Public Lands Steering Committee. We are developing a brochure that will be handed out to explain to each Representative what PILT means to their state and local governments.

I appreciate the opportunity to serve such a dedicated group of citizens.

Warmest Regards,

Lynn Padgett

970-258-0836

p.s.

For more information on resources for economic development and sustainability of Gateway Communities – portals like Ouray, Ridgway, Silverton, Durango, Telluride, Montrose, Gunnison, Crested Butte – to popular public lands, check out these links:http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/sustainable/about_gateway_communities.html

http://www.allacademic.com//meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/0/8/7/8/3/pages87835/p87835-1.php

If this topic interests you, I would like to know. I think it would be a great “happy hour” round-table discussion topic.

Action Needed -- PILT in jeopardy!

Greetings,

As an active member of the Public Lands steering committees at National Association of Counties (NACo) and Colorado Counties, Inc. (CCI), I have just been made aware this afternoon by staff of both NACo and CCI, that Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) will be offering an amendment to the Continuing Resolution (H.R. 1) which would cut PILT funding for FY2011 by 75% in the current fiscal year!

I and other active Colorado County Commissioners were advised this afternoon to contact all the members of Colorado's Congressional Delegation to:

• Request that our Colorado Congressional Delegation representatives vote NO to any amendment which would cut the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program.

First, some compelling background information that I compiled in July 2010 in a letter to the Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar:

Ouray County, Colorado is roughly 50% federal public land (159,584 acres). In 2008, PILT funding was "fully appropriated" for the first time in several decades. PILT is federal funds to compensate counties since counties must provide services to its citizens and those who use these non-taxable public lands. Services provided by the county include emergency services and mountain rescue, maintenance/plowing of forest access roads, sanitation, and other services. The federal government should offer counties compensation because federal lands will never be part of the local tax base.

We have been very grateful for the PILT funds we received during this period of full funding due to passage of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. In 2008 Ouray County received approximately $334,000 in PILT funds. In 2009 Ouray County received approximately $344,000 in PILT funds. Much of these funds have been utilized by our Road and Bridge Department.

Since PILT has been fully funded the County has increased the amount of other federal public lands payments, namely Secure Rural Schools (SRS) payments, that has gone to our local school districts (Ouray School District, Ridgway School District, and Montrose School District). In fact Ouray County worked with our local school districts) to adopt Ouray County Resolutions 2010-014 (attached) which allocated 75% of our FY2009 SRS payments to our local schools this March. Thus of the $86,000 Ouray County recently received for SRS payments, $64,500 was immediately passed through to our local schools.

The PILT funds we receive are extremely important for not just our schools but also our Road and Bridge Department. Without these funds we would have to forgo crushing rock to use on our County roads, which alone cost $110,000 in 2010. The rock is applied to our soft surface county roads to keep them passable. Ouray County has over 200 miles of soft surface county roads and less than 20 miles of paved or chipsealed County Roads. Without the crushed rock being applied each year, the roads would be natural clay material and would be impassable when wet. We crush rock in the later winter/early spring so that our County roads can be mended, graded, compacted and finally, have a dust control agent applied in time for the summer tourist season. Most of our County roads are the primary access for popular public land areas such as the Alpine Triangle, Sneffels Wilderness, Owl Creek Pass, etc.

The PILT funds also allow us to plow through 12 to 20 feet of snow to have the high country jeep roads in the Alpine Triangle and Yankee Boy Basin open before July 4 for the outdoor recreation enthusiasts that come from all over the country. If these roads are not open to allow access into the Uncompahgre National Forest for 4-wheel drives, OHV’s, and hikers, then people won’t come. Our regional economy has evolved over the last 50 years from primarily ranching and mining to recreational tourism. If visitors do not come to enjoy the unparalleled beauty, pristine wild areas, and heritage tourism opportunities that Ouray, San Miguel, San Juan, and Hinsdale Counties are gateways for, the whole San Juan Mountain region suffers.

Receiving reduced PILT funds will cause Ouray County to reduce or stop funding the following programs which are a matter of federal interest with respect to maintenance and access of public lands.

Examples:
* Applying road base and crushed rock to County roads that are the primary access roads to public lands in our county ($150,000/year);
* Grading, compacting, and applying magnesium-chloride for dust control on County roads that are public lands access roads ($60,000/year);
* Spring snowplowing to open the 4-wheel drive roads in the Alpine Triangle, Yankee Boy basin, and other popular public lands areas ($70,000/year);
* Providing funds and in-kind work for weed control along USFS and BLM roads ($20,000/year);
* Providing funds for portapotties and the backcountry ranger in Yankee Boy Basin area ($6,000/year);
* Providing funds and in-kind administration and legal research into historic trails and rights-of-way crossing public and private lands--in partnership with the BLM and USFS, as part of the Public Access Group, $25,000/year);
* Providing funds, staff, and emergency coordination services for backcountry rescues ($10,000/year).

PILT payments help gateway communities provide important resources that are critical to the operation and maintenance of our federal public lands. Without the County providing volunteers and county services these public lands would certainly be negatively impacted. County Road 361, a rugged dirt road for high clearance traffic only, leading to Yankee Boy Basin, has experienced over 20,000 4-wheel drive vehicles in a 10-day period spanning the 4th of July. Summer monsoons can and have washed this road out in a matter of minutes. It is the County Road and Bridge Department that responds to washouts and makes emergency repairs to reopen the road for stranded backcountry enthusiasts.

In summary, the 56 counties that receive PILT payments in Colorado believe it is in the best interest of the U.S. Department of Interior to make full and timely PILT payments to counties. We are the gateway communities for these public lands. Our citizens work very closely in cooperative and collaborative partnerships with our public lands management agencies, including the BLM and U.S. Forest Service building and maintaining trails, providing portapotties, facilitating alpine hosts for backcountry campgrounds, providing signage and barriers to keep closed areas closed, providing weed management services along U.S. Forest Service and BLM roads, and finally we and adjacent counties provide funding to the Forest Service to employ a backcountry ranger in a Jeep, to patrol the 4-wheel drive roads in the summer.

Some of our Colorado counties are over 90% federal public lands, and reduced funds would cause an immediate local recession by causing local governments to immediately lay off critical staff. Please fully fund the PILT payments to Colorado's counties. In 2010 Colorado Counties received a collective total of $24,267,593 out of a total of $367 million PILT payments made nationwide. In 2009 Colorado Counties received $28,660,622.

In anticipation that reducing PILT payments would be a topic taken up by the House of Representatives and the Senate, I have been working with CCI and the CCI Public Lands Steering Committee, to compile information about how PILT funding is used by the 56 Colorado Counties that receive it and deliver the information on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. in March.

In 2010, the 3rd Congressional District represented by Congressman Tipton, 29 counties received $14,151,801 in PILT funds for the 17.7 million acres of federal public lands and 706,000 people within this district.

I am attaching a PILT fact sheet, although prepared by CCI in 2007, it is still a good primer on the subject. I am also attaching a letter sent from the Ouray County BOCC to former Congressman Salazar and then Congressman-elect Tipton in December 2010.

Here is a link to the contact information, web sites, and phone numbers for Colorado's Congressional Delegation: http://www.contactingthecongress.org/cgi-bin/newseek.cgi?site=ctc&state=co

Click here for State by State PILT figures: http://www.nbc.gov/pilt/pilt/search.cfm

When you call our Colorado Congressional Delegation, ask to speak to the staff member most knowledgeable about PILT and public lands issues.

Key talking points:

1. It is in the best interest of the federal government to make full and timely PILT payments to counties. For local governments to continue to provide these essential services, we need a public commitment from members of Congress to support long term funding at full authorized levels.

2. It would be far more expensive for the federal government to provide the essential services that the local governments and volunteers in gateway communities provide.

3. To make up for a severe reduction in PILT, counties would be forced to consider raising the property taxes of residences and businesses in the gateway communities or reduce county services like maintaining roads and providing public safety. Either way this will certainly cause local jobs to be lost, and ultimately result in driving away those that care most for our important public lands and national treasures.

4. PILT payments at levels authorized under P.L.103-379 are critical for local governments.

5. Ask your Congressman/Senator's office to contact the Kaptur office immediately and request that the amendment be withdrawn.

6. Request that our Colorado Congressional Delegation representatives vote NO to any amendment which would cut the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program.

Last, please know it is very important for you to contact our Colorado Congressional Delegation. Eagle County Commissioner Peter Runyon had this comment tonight via email:

"You may all not see eye to eye with Eagle County (and me) as much as we all would like. But I would ask you to do your very best to make your representatives aware of this issue. Jared Polis’ office has promised that he would speak to the poor misguided Representative from Ohio.

PILT payments is very important to our budget and after laying off 77 people over the past 2 years it is positively squeaking it is so tight.

So anything you can do for the Forest communities by making your representatives aware will be most appreciated. Polis’s office said that they were not aware since there have been over 500 amendments to the continuing resolution. So I guess the message is don’t assume that your representative knows about this. Please give them a call."

Thank you for your consideration and diligence in these matters. Please do not hesitate to contact me about this or any other County matter.

Sincerely,

Lynn Padgett,
Ouray County Commissioner, District 1Click Here for a printable pdf verion of this post

Bottom-up Economic Development Meeting with Governor Hickenlooper--Jan 14th

On January 14, 2011 Governor Hickenlooper and staff held the second event in a series of 8 economic development meetings following Executive Orders he signed on his first day in office that are directed at promoting economic development and increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of state government.

All Ouray County Commissioners, Town Council Members and City Council Members were invited along with representatives of the Ouray Area Chamber of Commerce, Ridgway Area Chamber of Commerce, Community Development Committee, Region 10, Ouray County Multijurisdictional Housing Authority, and Town/City Managers.

Included in those attending the meeting from Ouray County were Gary Hansen, Ouray City Council Member; Jennifer Smith, President of the Ouray Community Development Committee, Jennifer Mandeville, Development Coordinator of the Ridgway Area Chamber of Commerce (RACC), Brian Scranton, RACC Vice President, who also serves on the Ridgway Planning Commission.  Lynn Padgett, Ouray County Commissioner, was present at the table of county representatives with Governor Hickenlooper,  Lt. Governor Joe Garcia, Head of the Colorado Department of Tourism, Al White;  Head of the Department of Local Affairs, Reeves Brown; Region 10 Director Paul Gray; and Beth Taylor, who is the Western Colorado Business Development Representative for Ouray County and other western Colorado counties out of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.  San Miguel County Commissioner Elaine Fischer, Hinsdale County Commissioner Allen Brown, and Gunnison County Commissioner Paula Swenson were also present at the table.

The Governor spoke about cross-promoting Colorado’s businesses, landscapes and small-business innovation as a key to driving economic development during hard times.  He also spoke about the need for creating and retaining jobs in our counties and the need for a regional economic development plan and state economic development plan that includes county economic development plans by May 15.  The Governor views this as a "bottom-up" "county driven" process.  He said that the State could be more business friendly but not at the expense of natural landmarks and land use regulations. 

Around the table, Commissioners and other representatives took turns highlighting the challenges and some successes of economic development in the 11 counties that comprise Region 10 and Region 11.

Commissioner Padgett discussed with the Governor how important tourism, including heritage tourism, adventure tourism, recreational tourism, and family tourism was to our county.  Commissioner Padgett discussed how hard it is for a county as small Ouray to have “shelf-ready” projects to go after grants which pop up with tight timelines, and that Ouray County needs assistance and resources to do strategic planning and economic planning, and to accomplish the projects local business owners and leaders know will be beneficial to our economy by enhancing and diversifying it.  Commissioner Padgett gave the examples that enhancing trails systems, bike paths, and having the resources to follow through with Ridgway’s Streetscape Plan will be beneficial for economic development. 

Others at the table vocalized concerns that Ouray County has brought up to this Governor (as Governor-elect in December) and continues to share—the importance of sustaining the Enhanced Rural Enterprise Zone incentives, the need for broadband bandwidth and redundancy to attract more entrepreneurs and businesses that depend on the internet, the importance of having our popular State Parks (such as Ridgway State Park) be open year-round, and the importance of looking at state regulations to see if they can be streamlined or simplified for local governments and businesses, and the need for working capital for small businesses. 

Former State Senator Al White was introduced as the new head of the Colorado Department of Tourism.  He explained that when Colorado quit promoting tourism as a state in 1992, Colorado lost ⅓ of its market share.  "Tourism is the number 2 industry in Colorado."  White stated that for every $1 the State spends on promoting tourism, $6.75 is returned to the State in the form of revenue and $193 goes to Colorado businesses.  The floor was opened up to comments from the 100 or so people in attendance. 

For next steps Commissioner Padgett thinks,  “A state-wide economic development plan that supports what locals know they need is very exciting.  To have the State Tourism office appropriately funded and marketing Colorado beyond our state borders again is going to be very helpful.  We need to form a core group of countywide stakeholders’ representatives, including the two Chambers, governments, businesses, and schools, to look at the existing strategic plans within the county, look at recent plans of similar counties, and synthesize the key ideas into a strategic plan outline to present to our citizens and businesses for input. The Governor wants to get strategic plans, in any form, from counties in May.”  Padgett goes on to explain, “If we have an outline in early April, we could have a plan to present for incorporation into the statewide plan in early May.“

Ouray County's Enhanced Rural Enterprise Zone Status is Good For All

Ouray County is part of 6-county Enterprise Zone that includes Delta, Montrose, Gunnison, Ouray, San Miguel and Hinsdale Counties. Ouray County has also been designated by the State of Colorado as an Enhanced Rural Enterprise Zone (EREZ) since 2003. Being designated as an Enterprise Zone allows businesses access to lucrative tax benefits designed to encourage business growth. Being located within an Enhanced Rural Enterprise Zone provides even greater financial incentives to businesses of all sizes to promote and encourage new job creation in designated economically lagging rural Enterprise Zone counties. Many of these credits can be back-claimed up to 5 years, but in January 2012 businesses will need to be precertified BEFORE claiming credits. Download the linked brochures for moe info. 

Some significant incentives that Ouray County businesses may take advantage of include:

* New job credit for EREZ: $2,500 total state tax credit per each new job over 20 hours/week;

* New Ag job credit for EREZ: $3,500 total state tax credit per each new agricultural product processing job;

* Investment tax credit: 3% of qualified equipment purchases (can include computers and vehicles);

* Job Training tax credit: 10% of qualified training expenses (can include travel, tuition, meals);

* Vacant Building Rehabilitation tax credit: 25% of rehab expenses (hard costs) for buildings 20+ years old and that have been vacant at least 2 years prior to the rehabilitation;

* Research & Development tax credit: 3% of increased R&D expenditures;

* Manufacturing and Mining Sales and Use tax credit: Expanded State sales and use tax exemption;

* Health insurance credit: for employers paying a portion of employees' health insurance premiums -- $400 for each additional new job

A huge Enterprise Zone benefit to citizens of Ouray County is that additional tax incentives to those who give charitable donations are available if the donations are given to qualified organizations and projects that successfully apply to become an Enterprise Zone Contribution Project.  Examples of groups and project that are already qualified through Region10 and the State of Colorado are Wright Opera House Foundation (Ouray), Museum of the Mountain West (Montrose), (Habitat for Humanity Re-Store) and 17 others in the 6-county Enterprise Zone.  To qualify projects are subject to review and approval by the Economic Development Commission.  Those present at the happy hour thought local museums and even the Ridgway Streetscape Plan could be good fits.  A Colorado taxpayer who contributes to a Enterprise Zone Contribution Project can receive a 25% state tax credit for cash donations and 12.5% state tax credit for in-king contributions, in addition to any federal tax deductions they qualify for.  This encourages greater contributions to these projects and significantly greater tax incentives for those making donations.  The first step for an organization or project to get this designation is to contact the Enterprise Zone Coordinator, Rhona Keckler at Region 10.

Besides business tax incentives and contribution project incentives there also is an Enterprise Zone Marketing Grant program administered by Region 10.  In the past the Ridgway Area Chamber of Commerce has applied and received funds to help pay for advertorials and advertising among other marketing tools.  Grant funds can be used for preparation, production, and distribution of market research, printed materials, advertizing, web promotions, and other items.  The Ouray Resort Chamber Association used these funds to bring in prominent national newspaper travel writers to highlight the area to potential visitors.  The grant program typically accepts grant proposals between November 1 and November 30.  Rhona Keckler of Region 10 is the contact person for those interested.

Region 10 also coordinates small business loans available to Ouray County businesses.  The funds used by Region 10 for the loan program come from both federal and state programs including Colorado Development Block Grants, Small Business Administration Microloan Program, "Revolved" Loans, and participation loans with financial institutions.  Applications and eligibility requirements vary between  funding sources.  Loan interest rates vary between very low to low.  Due to the various options, Ouray County Businesses desiring a loan for working capital, equipment, inventory, real estate, or other supportable expenditures should contact Paul Gray at Region 10, 970-249-2436 for a custom-fit loan. 

All of these programs are designed to promote economic development of the Region 10 Enterprise Zone and Ouray County as an Enhanced Rural Enterprise Zone.  If any of these programs sound like something a Ouray County business could have utilized in the past, please still contact Region 10, as many incentives can be still captured if the qualifying activities are five or less years ago.

Region 10 reported that over 4.6 million dollars in tax credits had been realized by businesses just in the 6-county Enterprise Zone during a portion of 2009.  These incentive programs really help our businesses and circulate dollars in our region.

For full information about your specific situation please call Rhona Keckler at 970-249-2436x10 and visit Region 10's EREZ page.  Brochures are linked to this post.

Small Business Happy Hour at Colorado Boy on January 8th @ High Noon

PLEASE SAVE THE DATE AND FORWARD TO ANY SMALL/MICRO BIZ IN OURAY COUNTY:

SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, COLORADO BOY BREWERY, AT HIGH NOON!

>>Poster

I am hosting a experimental small/micro business happy hour at the Colorado Boy this Saturday, Jan 8, from noon to 2pm.  Paul Gray, Executive Director of Region 10 will be there.

The purpose of the happy hour is to reach out to our Ouray County, Ridgway & Ouray small and micro businesses and highlight the opportunities such as tax credits, job training reimbursements, and other incentives to doing business in Ouray County that are currently available right now.  The entire County is an enhanced rural enterprise zone, and this does not seem to be commonly known. Also, Region 10 has enhanced its Small Business Loan program recently, so those who may have had trouble in the past, should come and learn what's new and if they could benefit.

In addition Beth Taylor, Western Colorado Business Development Representative of the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade, will either be present or will have info for us to give out about free business development and enhancement programs that are available to small businesses such as help with marketing plans, business plans and more.

We also hope to hear from our small and micro businesses what barriers and challenges we have, and what local government's role should be in encouraging economic development.  I will be carrying the take-home messages and action items from those present to the Governor's economic development team later this month, and to Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. in March.

I apologize that this event conflicts with the Ice Festival this weekend.  It is my hope that the happy hour concept can be repeated in the future at various small businesses and venues around Ridgway and Ouray, to really reach out to those who might not be able to attend a forum, may not be Chamber members, and may not be using a CPA. 

This happy hour is free, and open to all.  I hope to see you there, and that you will forward this info to your friends and colleagues, even if they are working as a consultant out of a home office.  These are opportunities for us all.

Sincerely,

Lynn Padgett

Lynn Padgett | 970-417-9901

Ouray County Commissioner, District 1

Bin C, Ouray, CO 81427

lpadgett@ouraycountyco.gov

alt email: d1bocc@mtngeogeek.com

Official County web site:  http://www.ouraycountyco.gov Lynn's web site:  http://www.lynnpadgettforouraycounty.org