Leaking Cracks In The Dam | Special Districts

The cracks in the public funding dam are beginning to leak, and the first domino to fall may just be the Fraser Valley Metropolitan District. 

With the IRS auditing the bond issue as it pertains to some of the contractual agreements of the deal, it's possible this won't be a bump in the road, and could lead to some rather large and untimely sanctions to current bondholders. What that would mean to taxpayers, who fund the district through a mill-levy, is that their dollars are not being spent with the greatest care and diligence. We'll have to see how this plays out, but I will be watching it closely. 

The East Grand School District is another taxpayer-funded entity currently experiencing financial troubles. School closures and further cuts in overall programs are a near certainty within the next two years. This is an assessment year, and there is a high likelihood of a 20 percent or more devaluation to property values county wide. The next assessment in 2013 will most likely see more of the same.

The Kremmling Hospital District, if looked at in the aggregate, is going to experience a treacherous path. Millions of dollars have been committed to a project that might end up being a white elephant. From what I can see, the ~$800,000 dollars of taxpayer funding used to operate the Kremmling facility are in jeopardy as they will need to be rerouted to keep the new Granby facility on life support.

Grand County is home to numerous special districts--all who receive some sort of taxpayer subsidy. Some of the districts are only funded by people in their particular towns--others are funded by the county as a whole. No matter what the district, they are all facing the same revenue problems. Any improprieties during the boom years are going to be uncovered as people's wallets get thinner.