Dolores County moves down salary tier under new state law

Dolores County’s elected leaders will be paid less under a new state law that drops the county from salary category V-C to V-D, trimming statutory pay for the commissioner, sheriff, treasurer, assessor, clerk and part-time coroner when the change takes effect Aug. 12.

SB26-092 became law May 21 and was signed without a safety clause, which means the lower salary tier does not kick in immediately. Once it does, the county commissioner salary falls from $67,360 to $61,236, the sheriff salary drops from $75,511 to $68,646, and the treasurer, assessor and clerk salary also falls from $67,360 to $61,236. The part-time coroner salary moves from $15,225 to $13,841.

Colorado sets county officer pay by statute and revisits the salary brackets every two years for inflation. The A-through-D subcategories were added in 2015, with subcategory D carrying no increase. SB26-092 was sponsored by Sen. Cleave Simpson and Reps. Larry Don Suckla and Elizabeth Velasco.

For Dolores County, the change lands in the middle of a broader budget question rather than a narrow payroll adjustment. The county is run by a three-member board of county commissioners, and that board adopts the annual budget for county departments and funded agencies. With a 2020 Census population of 2,326 and an estimated July 1, 2025 population of 2,466, even a statutory pay cut of several thousand dollars for each office can shape how residents view county spending and how commissioners explain their budget priorities.

The county’s own recent discussions show how tight those priorities have become. In a July 14, 2025 special commissioners meeting, Chair Eric Stiasny, Vice Chair Linda Yellowman, Commissioner Phyllis Davis, County Administrator Margret Daves and Deputy Clerk Shayla Oliver were present as officials worked through staffing and office-hour adjustments. The public minutes show the board made the Road and Bridge office manager position part-time on a trial basis, underscoring the pressure on local operations long before the new salary tier was set.

County officials sought the reclassification because of CPI updates, budget pressures and equity between offices. The state fiscal note says the bill does not affect state revenue or spending, but for Dolores County the effect is local and immediate: lower statutory salaries, a leaner budget line and a fresh test of whether residents see the pay cut as fiscal restraint or a sign that county government is being asked to do more with less.