CASTLE ROCK, Colo. — Castle Rock town council members will discuss a tax increase on Tuesday night that town officials said would address public safety needs.
The sales tax increase would go alongside what city officials called "conservative budgeting measures" and would allow them to hire 40 additional public safety personnel over the next five years, according to officials who spoke with Denver7 about the proposed measure.
"Since 2022, the Town has been shifting funding away from road maintenance to instead allow for the hiring of 28.75 Fire and Police personnel. Now, resources are plateauing and cannot continue to meet Castle Rock Fire and Rescue’s and the Castle Rock Police Department’s staffing needs over the next five years," town officials wrote on the town's website as they explained the reasoning behind the tax hike.
Officials said that from 2012-2024, the budget for the town's fire and police departments grew by 178% and 217%, respectively. In comparison, officials said, the sales tax for the town of Castle Rock only grew by 159% in that same period.
This sales tax increase would go up by 0.2% — that be 0.20 cents on a $100 purchase, officials said, which would generate about $3.75 million a year and allow for the hiring of 18 fire and 22 police personnel.
Those other budgeting measures mentioned earlier to generate the funds to hire the other 20 or so public safety personnel would come from deferred software purchases for customer service, Municipal Court, Finance, among others; an inflation adjustment to the downtown-specific sales tax fund to divert $1.1 million in annual resources that would have gone to downtown projects, but will instead go to public safety; and funding $2 million of the town’s pledged Dawson Trails infrastructure incentive using building use tax rather than sales tax so that sales tax raised can be directed to public safety, according to town officials.
During public comments submitted over the past couple of months, Castle Rock residents voiced concerns about the already high cost of living with inflation.
If the ballot question is approved on Aug. 20, it'll be on the November ballot.
Election Day is Nov. 5.
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