For 28 years, McPhee dam and reservoir have been serving Dolores and Montezuma Counties, plus the Ute Mountain Ute tribe, with municipal and irrigation water.
The Dolores Water Conservancy District operates the complex water delivery systems using property tax funds derived from a 0.483 mill levy.
Ballot Issue 4A asks permission from voters in Montezuma and Dolores counties to permanently set the mill at the current rate of 0.483. A future mill levy increase would require voter approval.
If passed, the measure would freeze the current mill levy rate and effectively avoid the ratcheting-down effect on the district’s budget because of fluctuating property values.
Setting a permanent tax mill levy allows the district to stabilize its income relative to area growth and retain any additional income it receives.
The funding would be used to maintain legal vigilance protecting local water rights and supplies, conduct in-depth drought planning, maintain critical infrastructure, and prevent McPhee Reservoir from contamination by quagga mussels, wildfire and toxic spills.
According to the district, “changing laws and regulations at the federal and state levels, including BLM and Forest Service management plans, require increased vigilance, negotiation and legal involvement to protect established District water rights.”
It’s a proposed waiver to the Taxpayer Bill of Rights.