Montezuma County advances 1% sales tax ballot measure with 60/40 sheriff split

Montezuma County commissioners agreed at their March 3–4 meeting to draft ballot language for a countywide 1% sales tax to appear on the November 2026 ballot, and settled on a 60% allocation to the Sheriff’s Office and 40% to the Road and Bridge Department, with an exemption for sales of agricultural equipment only. Commissioner Gerald Koppenhafer, who proposed the 60-40 split, called it "the better split."

County Administrator Travis Anderson told commissioners that earlier assessments estimated a 1% sales tax could generate "a little more than $8 million" annually, while county budgeting documents and officials place the Sheriff’s Office and jail operating costs at about $7.3 million this year — a 5% increase from last year and roughly 44% of the general fund. Commissioner Jim (James) Candelaria argued those jail standards and operating demands help justify a split favoring public safety: "The S.O. (Sheriff’s Office) is a higher amount with the jail standards and stuff they are going to have to deal with, I agree with them that it shouldn’t actually be 100% equal." Candelaria also cautioned that revenue may fluctuate from year to year.

The board’s move follows an earlier Jan. 27 decision to allocate $45,000 to Magellan Strategies for a phased public-education and survey effort tied to the possible sales-tax measure; that allocation passed by voice vote. David Flaherty, CEO and founder of Magellan Strategies, participated by Zoom in a workshop commissioners held in early March, and county staff emphasized the $45,000 funds an initial interview and survey phase only. The board explicitly paused broader public-alignment or advocacy work pending legal review of what a public body may lawfully undertake and said any additional contracts would return to the board for approval.

Commissioners revisited a prior 50/50 proposal that Commissioner Candelaria said echoed a 1997–98 comprehensive plan, but settled on 60/40 after reviewing current department budgets and differences in mill levies. Koppenhafer questioned whether an even split reflected "current fiscal realities" and pushed the shift toward public safety funding during the March discussion.

Fiscal context factored heavily in deliberations: Assessor Leslie Bugg has said overall oil and gas production accounts for about 43% of county tax revenues, and Commissioner Candelaria noted Kinder Morgan CO2 production represents roughly 34% of commercial tax revenues. KSJD reporting and county officials have flagged declining CO2 revenue, unfunded state mandates, and reduced federal funds as pressures on Montezuma County’s budget — a backdrop for commissioners who highlighted the urgency of identifying stable revenue sources.

Former county attorney Bob Slough’s decades-old warning surfaced during the workshop as a historical note: "The first hogs to the trough get the feed," cited by KSJD as an observation on earlier missed opportunities to enact a county sales tax. The board directed staff to draft the ballot language incorporating the exemption for agricultural equipment and to return with legal guidance and any recommended contract approvals before moving to broader outreach or advocacy.