Trout Unlimited encouraged us to vote YES on 7A and we did!
While the nation awaits final election results on a sharply divided vote, Colorado’s western slope voters showed a broad and bipartisan consensus of support for investment in the Colorado River. With approval from more than 70% of voters, Ballot Measure 7A easily passed and will provide much-needed funding to the Colorado River Water Conservation District. The measure was supported by a diverse coalition of interests – including Trout Unlimited.
The voter-approved measure will increase property taxes by a half-mill – or an extra $1.90 per year for every $100,000 of residential home value. While a modest cost for property owners, the measure will provide nearly $5 million annual for the River District to invest in securing western slope water. Funds will be used for projects across five categories: productive agriculture, infrastructure, healthy rivers, watershed health and water quality, and conservation and efficiency.
TU has partnered with the River District and other local water stakeholders across its boundaries on a range of projects that highlight the benefits the new funding can provide. From agricultural partnerships like those benefiting Tomichi Creek, to healthy river efforts such as restoring fish passage on key Colorado River tributaries like Elk Creek, Trout Unlimited has demonstrated the ways that collaborative water projects can benefit our fisheries, communities, and working lands across the western slope. With the passage of 7A, the River District will be able to continue to build on these partnerships for the benefit of all users within the basin.
In a period of great national divisiveness, it is great to see voters of all stripes joining together to support our Western Slope waters and the River District’s vital role in sustaining them. And Trout Unlimited is proud to be a part of those efforts building common ground around healthy and productive rivers and watersheds across western Colorado. Thank you to all of you who voted for 7A and who have helped support TU in our work to benefit west slope rivers!
Sincerely,
David Nickum
Executive Director, Colorado Trout Unlimited
Drew Peternell
Director, Trout Unlimited – Colorado Water Program
Colorado Legislators Environmental Voting Records
To see a detailed record of the environmental voting history for any of your representatives, go to the League of Conservation Voters website. Here’s a summary of how the LCV rates our state’s elected officials based on their lifetime pro-environment voting record from best to worst:
Joe Neguse 97%
Jason Crow 97%
Michael Bennet 89%
Cory Gardner 11%
Scott Tipton 7%
Ken Buck 3%
Doug Lamborn 3%
Why tu supported a YES vote on Question 7A
Dear Trout Unlimited Members and Supporters,
We are writing to urge you to vote in support of Question 7A on the November 3 ballot in 15 western Colorado counties.
Often referred to as the hardest working river in America, the Colorado River originates on Colorado’s West Slope and provides water supply to western Colorado families, businesses and farms and ranches. The Colorado River and its tributaries also offer endless environmental and recreational benefits enjoyed by locals and visitors alike. The Colorado River is the economic driver for western Colorado, and it is the foundation of the high quality of life we enjoy on the West Slope.
Though not widely known, the Colorado River Water Conservation District provides a hugely important service to western Colorado. Put simply, the River District works to protect the waters of the Colorado River for the benefit of Colorado’s West Slope. For over 80 years, the River District has delivered wide-ranging benefits to water interests in the 15 West Slope counties it serves.
But because of Colorado’s tax laws – which severely limit the ability to raise taxes, even for important purposes like protecting Colorado water – the River District has been forced to scale back its services to western Colorado in recent years. Without additional resources, the River District will need to make additional cuts.
Question 7A would allow the River District to increase its mill levy from .252 to .5 mills – or $1.90 per $100,000 of residential property value – with the median residential property tax increase sitting at just $7.03 per year. Expected to raise $4.9 million per year, Question 7A directs the River District to spend the new revenues for four specific purposes:
Fighting to keep water on the West Slope;
Protecting adequate water supplies for West Slope farmers and ranchers;
Protecting sustainable drinking water supplies for West Slope communities; and
Protecting fish, wildlife and recreation by maintaining river levels and water quality.
Trout Unlimited and its local chapters across western Colorado strongly support Question 7A. We have worked with the River District in the past on projects that provide mutual benefits to river health and agricultural producers. Some of these projects have involved modernizing irrigation infrastructure, while others have created programs that allow for innovative and flexible irrigation water use, with coincident benefits for stream flows or water quality. Question 7A will allow us to build on our past successes with the River District and provide even greater benefits to West Slope rivers in the future.
Please vote YES on Question 7A.
Best Regards,
Drew Peternell
Director, Trout Unlimited Colorado Water Program
&
David Nickum
Executive Director, Colorado TU