BoCo pilot project to give parents cash
Applications are open for a program that will give 725 Boulder County families $300 a month for two years. There are no restrictions on how the money can be spent.
To apply, a family must have at least one child under 4 years old and have a family income under 30% of area median income (AMI) — $43,800 annually for a family of four. The Nurturing Futures program is open to all, regardless of immigration status.
The program is the latest of several guaranteed income projects in the region. Earlier this year, the City of Boulder launched a pilot to provide 200 households with $500 monthly for two years.
An enrollment event will be held Monday, Aug. 26 at St. Vrain Community Hub, 515 Coffman St., Longmont, Room 112. Participants will be selected through a lottery system, and applications are open through Tuesday, Aug. 27. Learn more or apply here.
BVSD to oppose two state property tax ballot initiatives
Boulder Valley School District’s board agreed at an Aug. 13 meeting to oppose two state property tax initiatives set to appear on the ballot in November’s election.
Initiative 50 would limit property tax growth to 4% statewide, and Initiative 108 would reduce property tax revenue to local governments by $3 billion in 2026.
“I don’t want to be wishy-washy, this is not good for K-12,” BVSD Board Vice President Beth Niznik said at the meeting.
The board said it would oppose the initiatives through formal resolutions and through encouraging the legislature to convene a special session to get them taken off the ballot.
Thursday, Aug. 15, Gov. Jared Polis called a special session that will start Aug. 26 and last at least three days, Colorado Sun reported. In the session, legislators will work to cut property taxes in order to reach an agreement with Initiative 50 and 108 backers to remove them from the ballot. The deadline to remove the items from the ballot is Sept. 6.
In other news…
- Two suspects were arrested and charged with arson, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment in connection with the July 31 Panorama Point fire, according to an Aug. 14 Boulder County Sheriff’s Office press release. At the time of the fire, the county was under Stage 1 fire restrictions, which prohibit fireworks, “yet they still recklessly set off fireworks in a grassy and wooded area,” Sheriff Curtis Johnson said in an earlier release.
- The county coroner is struggling to identify the remains of the person found in the wake of Lyons’ Stone Canyon Fire, due to challenges finding usable DNA and locating family members for comparative DNA analysis. “We are dedicated to overcoming these challenges and are utilizing every available resource to assist in this identification effort,” Boulder County Coroner Jeff Martin said in an Aug. 14 press release.
- On-leash requirements for several Boulder trails are in effect through Dec. 1 “to minimize dog-bear encounters where high-quality bear foraging habitat is near trails.” Requirements are in place for parts of Gregory Canyon, Saddle Rock, Amphitheater and Bluebell-Baird Trails; Skunk Canyon up to the Mesa Trail; Shadow Canyon South from the Mesa Trail up to the intersection with Shadow Canyon North and the upper portion of the Doudy Draw Trail above Springbrook Loop.
- As of this month, what you see is what you get (pre-tax) when it comes to ticket pricing in Colorado. Vendors and resellers are now required to advertise all-inclusive pricing, aka no added fees once tickets are in your cart, thanks to legislation signed by Gov. Jared Polis in June.