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Residents Vote on Tax for Wildfire Mitigation and Response

Boulder County, Colo., has witnessed several major wildfires recently, including the Marshall fire in December, which destroyed and damaged more than 1,000 homes and over 30 commercial buildings.

A house consumed by flames.
A home burns after a fast-moving wildfire swept through the area in the Centennial Heights neighborhood of Louisville, Colorado on Thursday, Dec. 30, 2021.
(Marc Piscotty/Getty Images/TNS)
(TNS) - Ballot measures that would introduce two new sales taxes and allocate tax funds to wildfire mitigation, emergency response and transportation will appear on the November ballot in Boulder County.

The wildfire mitigation measure would establish a 0.1 percent countywide sales and use tax to fund mitigation efforts such as strategic forest and grassland management projects. Residents would be taxed a penny for every $10 they spend on goods or services if the measure passes.

Boulder County has witnessed several major wildfires recently, including the Marshall fire in December, which destroyed and damaged more than 1,000 homes and over 30 commercial buildings.

Colorado’s Joe Neguse leads policy package to address wildfires, droughts nationwide.

“Following the Marshall Fire, it’s not surprising to see that wildfire mitigation and wildland emergency response are at the front of residents’ minds,” County Commissioner Marta Loachamin said in a statement.

Residents will also vote on an emergency funds measure that would establish a 0.1 percent countywide sales and use tax to increase public safety. The tax would decrease to 0.05 percent after five years.

“The Emergency Response and Fire Mitigation ballot measures would help fund emergency services like search and rescue, ambulance service, and wildfire response in the mountain and rural areas of Boulder County, and provide a funding stream for fire mitigation efforts,” Sheriff Joe Pelle said in a statement.

The transportation measure is “a proposal to extend the existing 0.1 percent countywide transportation sales and use tax for the purpose of continuing to fund multimodal transportation needs,” county officials said.

Earlier this month, the County Commission agreed to place the measures on the November ballot.

©2022 The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Preparedness