Ouray County faces $1.5 million budget deficit
Ouray County is in a bit of a budget crisis. Finance Director Jason Schrock presented a 2027 budget overview showing a structural general fund deficit of roughly $1.5 million. The fund balance is projected to fall to about $400,000 in reserves for 2027, far below the target of three months of operating spending. Commissioner Michelle Nauer’s responded, "in my history i've seen i've seen the the ups and downs and this is gosh this is like the worst I've ever seen the budget.”
About 70% of the general fund pays personnel. Commissioners and county staff say that given that figure, reductions in force are likely unavoidable. County Manager Antonio Mendez said, “It's a $1.5 million deficit, and a lot of the funding is... It's being spent on personnel. This will result in reduction in force. It's a harsh truth.”
Departments were asked to submit reduction scenarios, to determine if cuts in operating costs might be possible. Shrock said that combined cuts departments were willing to take only amounted to about 3% of operating costs— far short of the 10-15% Shrock said would be necessary.
Delta County School Board selects new legal council
The Delta County School Board held a special meeting last week, and selected a new firm for legal counsel. The board put out a request for proposals earlier this summer, and there was some speculation that the controversial firm Miller Farmer Carlson Law, which represents the Montrose School Board, would throw its hat in the ring. The firm has been accused of asserting a right-wing agenda on school districts it represents, but Delta School Board president Beth Suppes previously told KVNF that she believes the firm helps conservative school boards push back against liberal state-level control. In the end, Miller Farmer Carlson did not submit a proposal.
The district did receive proposals from Denver-based Semple Farrington Everall & Case, Grand-Junction based Hoskin Farina & Kemp, and current counsel – Boulder-based Kaplan & Ernest.
A committee was formed to review the proposals, including two board members and three executive team members.
The committee unanimously recommended Semple Farrington Everall & Case, which received a near-perfect score on a published rubric. The high score was due, in part, to the fact that the firm is focused solely on education law. Other reasons included strong references, affordability, and experience representing similarly sized districts. Current counsel Kaplan & Ernest scored lower partly due to concerns over rotating assigned counsel.
The board voted to accept the recommendation.
University of Colorado, Boulder honors World War II code talkers
A new residence hall at the University of Colorado, Boulder, is honoring the Native American servicemembers who used their languages to create military codes during World War Two.
Code Talker Hall opened last month on the site of a former veterans’ housing community.
For Rocky Mountain Community Radio, KGNU's Aramis Loma-Guzman brings us the story.
