On Thursday, August 4, 2022, at 7 p.m. the Nederland Board of Trustees (BOT) met for a special meeting to discuss the draft ballot language for the November 8, 2022, election concerning tax increases and the implementation of a new Special Retail Marijuana Sales Tax.

The BOT met for a closed executive session at 6 p.m. before their scheduled special meeting. As stated in the agenda for the August 4 meeting, the executive session was scheduled “for a conference with legal counsel to receive legal advice and to consider and determine positions relative to an employment agreement.”

Personnel matters involving Town Staff are not subject to public purview and are deemed confidential by Colorado law, as are personnel files, which cannot be requested through the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA).

The BOT approved their Consent Agenda, including a Memorandum of Understanding with US Solar, an agreement between Nederland and the solar provider detailing the support and work associated with several solar initiatives.

On July 5, 2022, the BOT agreed to work with US Solar on three solar programs: signing residential customers up to existing solar gardens outside of Nederland, gifting solar subscription donations to low income families that apply, and developing a bid to Xcel Energy in November, 2022, for a solar garden specific to Nederland which would service local businesses.

A “priority period,” wherein US Solar will offer Nederland residents priority access to enough community solar garden capacity for 500 subscribers, will commence on September 1, 2022.

The Town applied for and received $12,000 from the 2022 Boulder County Economic Vitality Grant to be used to support local businesses financially impacted by COVID-19. A contract with Boulder County was signed and approved by the BOT on July 19.

Town Administrator Miranda Fisher and Nederland Downtown Development

(NDDA) Executive Director Kate Masingale developed the application which local businesses could fill out for access to the funds, which can be utilized to cover operating costs, provide employee bonuses, and purchase PPE. The funds will be split evenly based on how many applications are received by the September 9 deadline.

Trustees had no questions about the application and thanked Town staff for their work on developing the application process. Town staff will launch the process on Friday, August 12, and will be utilizing social media networks and word of mouth as outreach to business owners. Town staff will return to the BOT after September 9 when it’s time to distribute the funds.

On February 1, 2022, the BOT approved the Sustainability Advisory Board’s (SAB) bylaws, which allowed for the addition of one alternate position on the Board. The alternate position votes on Action Items only when the SAB does not meet quorum requirements of four present members or if one or more of their seven members are absent. The position was made vacant in June, 2022, when former alternate Alan Apt was appointed to the SAB as a regular Board Member.

Conservationist and former Yellowstone National Park Program Manager Patricia Dowd and sustainability specialist and former hospitality manager Gijs van Hartskamp applied for the vacant alternate position. The SAB voted at their July 28 meeting to recommend Dowd for the position.

The BOT moved to approve the appointment of Dowd to the SAB alternate position. Dowd plans to bring to the position her background and experience in renewable energy, energy efficiency as it relates to water, wildfire mitigation, climate change, and disaster relief.

On July 26, during their scheduled work session, the BOT requested that Town staff draft ballot language for November 8 ballot questions concerning raising sales and property tax and instituting a Special Retail Marijuana Sales Tax. During their special meeting on August 4, the BOT were tasked with the amount of the tax increases and approving the ballot language by Friday, September 9.

The sales tax in Nederland is assessed at 8.985%, with the total sales tax revenue for 2022 projected at $1,981,047, which includes $35,000 from marijuana sales. $1,009,292 from that revenue goes to the General Fund, which funds Health and Human Services as well as the NPD. Raising the sales tax by a quarter of a percentage point equals approximately $125,000 in revenue to the Town; a full 1% increase would equal $500,000.

Town staff, with assistance from NDDA Chair Barbara Hardt and The Mountain-Ear, released a survey for business owners in order to properly gauge the community temperature on the issue of raising the sales tax. So far the results have been inconclusive, with Trustees believing that the consensus points to the majority of those surveyed being in favor of a sales tax increase, though how much of an increase has yet to be discussed with business owners.

Trustee Karen Blakemore stated that the majority of responses from the survey spoke of concerns about the sales tax already being too high and, by raising it further, may ultimately result in Nederland businesses earning less revenue as customers may opt to shop elsewhere.

Retail marijuana is currently subject to Nederland’s 8.985% sales tax, as well as a 15% sales tax imposed by the state, with 10% of that collected state tax being returned to Nederland. With the projected marijuana sales for Nederland reaching $2,333,333, a 10% Special Retail Marijuana Sales Tax would provide an annual revenue increase of $233,333, on top of the $35,000 revenue from the state’s retail sales tax on marijuana.

The BOT was in agreement that placing the question of imposing a Special Retail Marijuana Sales Tax on the November ballot was a “no-brainer,” though it would have to be set as high as 8% or 10% to generate enough revenue to effectively fund Town departments, services, or infrastructure projects.

Revenue to Nederland from property taxes for 2022 is projected at $749,000, with the assessed valuation of property at $35,551,449 and the effective mill levy at 17.274. A 5 mill increase would amount to a $177,000 increase in property tax revenue to the Town.

The BOT discussed percentages for the tax increases but did not set definitive amounts at their August 4 meeting. Trustees briefly discussed how to properly identify to the public, whether in the ballot language or by earmarking funds in the 2023 town budget, where the money for each tax increase will be allocated.

Trustee Jonathan Baumhover suggested earmarking the revenue from the Special Retail Marijuana Sales Tax to the General Fund, sales tax revenue for bolstering Town Staff salaries, and the property tax revenue for infrastructure projects.

Trustees Baumhover and Tania Corvalan suggested that all three tax initiatives should be included as questions on the November ballot. Trustee Blakemore felt they may see better results with the voting public by including just one question of a tax increase, for Nederland’s “immediate needs,” on the ballot.

Town Accountant Rita Six addressed the BOT about the completed audit for 2021, indicating that Nederland’s revenue across all funds has increased from 2020. The General Fund has seen an increase of $300,000, with funds to the Nederland Community Center having increased by $89,000, and 2021 sales tax revenue up 18.5% from the previous year. Six reiterated that the huge revenue increases could also be due to Nederland’s yearly expenditures, such as Town Staff salaries, being too low.

Many Nederland residents made public comments at the August 4 meeting, with most comments centered on the current crisis with the Nederland Police Department (NPD). Residents questioned the BOT on the perceived lack of transparency and urgency concerning the NPD crisis, noting that the evening’s discussions were focused on long-term solutions as opposed to finding immediate short-term relief for Marshal Jennifer Fine-Loven and the NPD.

On the matter of the proposed tax initiatives for the November ballot, residents commented generally in favor of raising the sales tax, though with a desire for Trustees to continue reaching out to business owners on the matter of how much of an increase would be sustainable.

Residents also questioned why the matter of raising the occupation tax on short term rentals ($2 per bedroom per night) is “off the table” for the ballot, considering Trustees’ indicating sales tax as the only tax increase option that affect the tourists to Nederland. Trustees Baumhover and Corvalan agreed that the occupation tax wouldn’t accumulate enough revenue at this time without a much larger discussion on completely revamping short term rental regulations.

The BOT will continue to discuss in future meetings the specific tax increase percentages, and where, among Nederland’s many immediate needs, the revenue from these increases would be going.

The Nederland Board of Trustees meet on the first and third Tuesday of every month. Their next scheduled meeting is on Tuesday, August 16, 2022, at 7 p.m. and can now be attended online or in person at the Nederland Community Center. For more information go to: https://townofnederland.colorado.gov/ board-of-trustees