Larimer county commissioner - jody shadduck mcnally

Larimer County Commissioner - Jody Shadduck McNally

District: 3 | Role in 2026: Chair, Board of County Commissioners

2026-05-15

Sources:
- Things to do in Larimer County for 2026 Mental Health Awareness Month
- New chair, chair pro tem, Board of Larimer County Commissioners

2026-05-17

Sources:
- Larimer County Mental Health Awareness Month events
- Larimer County Facebook — Mental Health events

2026-05-26

Sources:
- Larimer County Increases Fire Restrictions — larimer.gov
- Larimer County fire restrictions through May 26 — North Forty News
- Bill to Update Front Range Passenger Rail District Becomes Law — CO House Dems
- SB26-172 — Colorado General Assembly

2026-05-27

Sources:
- Larimer County extends fire restrictions — larimer.gov
- Larimer Extends Fire Restrictions — North Forty News

2026-06-07

Sources:
- Upcoming Commissioners' Meetings & Broadcasts — larimer.gov
- Larimer County extends fire restrictions — larimer.gov

2026-06-08

Sources:
- Residential Property Appeals — larimer.gov
- Upcoming Commissioners' Meetings — larimer.gov

2026-06-09

Sources:
- Upcoming Commissioners' Meetings — larimer.gov
- Larimer County Fire Restrictions — larimer.gov

2026-08-15

Sources:
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov
- Larimer County commissioners consider camping ban, abandoned car rules — Coloradoan via AOL
- Major Infrastructure Improvements Complete at Horsetooth and Carter Lake Reservoirs — larimer.gov (Aug 14, 2026)
- Shining Silver — larimer.gov (Aug 12, 2026)

2026-08-17

Sources:
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-18

Sources:
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov
- Parking Regulation Policy — larimer.gov

2026-08-20

Sources:
- 2026 Northern Colorado Workforce Symposium — larimer.gov spotlights (Aug 19, 2026)
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-21

Data Center Moratorium Expires Tuesday, Aug 25 — Four Days Out

The temporary moratorium on data center facilities in unincorporated Larimer County expires August 25, 2026. Timeline: the Board adopted an initial 30-day moratorium Jan 27, 2026, then extended it roughly six months at a Feb 9 public hearing. The extension was meant to give the Community Development Department time to draft Land Use Code definitions and standards.

As of today the Land Use Code still contains no definition or regulation of data center uses. No BOCC hearing on a data center code amendment appears on any published agenda. The Planning department's upcoming-hearings page lists only an Aug 24, 6:30 PM land use hearing on the LifeQuest Campus and Retreat Center Rezone (File No. 25-ZONE3797) — nothing on data centers.

If the moratorium lapses without adopted regulations, applications could be filed into a code that doesn't address them.

Public input: the formal survey closed June 12, 2026. 94% of respondents opposed construction of any data centers in Larimer County at all. The engagement portal still accepts submissions — comments become part of the legal record, and staff do not answer questions through it.

Impacts the county has said it is weighing: water consumption for cooling, power usage, nuisance (noise, heat, lighting), and zoning location. For comparison, Longmont adopted a framework June 9, 2026 banning facilities with 100+ MW peak demand and setting standards for smaller ones.

Same-day collision: Fort Collins City Council holds a data center work session that same evening, Aug 25, and has attached a Larimer County draft report to its packet — a document that does not appear to be posted on the county's own site.

How to Comment on Data Center Regulations

Parking Ordinance — Four Days Past First Reading, Still Nothing

No county release, coverage, or minutes from the Aug 17 6 PM first-reading hearing on the parking ordinance for unincorporated Larimer County. Second reading is required before adoption and has not been scheduled publicly.

Sources:
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Data Center Regulations engagement portal
- Upcoming Planning Meetings and Agendas — Larimer County
- Larimer County has until August to build framework of rules for future data centers — Colorado Citizen Observers
- Proposed data center regulation feedback needed (Apr 23)

2026-08-22

The Moratorium May Already Have Been Extended — The County's Own Pages Don't Say So

Statewide reporting says the pause was extended; every county page still says it lapses Tuesday. Both cannot be right.

What the reporting says. Colorado Newsline, Aug 10 (syndicated to KUNC, Westword, News From The States): "Larimer County decided to extend its existing data center moratorium to February." 1310 KFKA, June 30: commissioners supported a six-month extension and "will officially vote on at a land use hearing on July 13." Six months from Aug 25 lands in February 2027, so the two accounts fit together.

What the county says. The moratorium page and the engagement portal both still carry the Feb 9 timeline ending Aug 25, 2026 and neither mentions a July 13 vote. No resolution, minutes, or press release from a July 13 hearing surfaced in this run. The planning page lists no data center hearing.

So the operative expiration is unverified from any primary source. Treat Aug 25 as the date of record and February 2027 as likely-but-unconfirmed. Either way the county still has no Land Use Code definition or standard for data center uses, and the KFKA report has a commissioner conceding six months "might prove longer than county staff needs."

Aug 10 also produced the state-level counterpart: Sen. Cathy Kipp and Rep. Kyle Brown will bring data center legislation back in 2027 after SB26-102 died — see CO State Senator - Cathy Kipp.

LifeQuest Rezone Pushed to Sept 28

The LifeQuest Campus and Retreat Center Rezone hearing (File No. 25-ZONE3797) is rescheduled from Aug 24 to Monday, Sept 28, 2026. Online sign-up for public comment reopens one week before. Anyone who registered for Aug 24 should re-register.

BOCC This Week

Standing

Sources:
- Local governments in Colorado enact moratoriums on data center development — Colorado Newsline (Aug 10)
- Larimer County Commissioners Take More Time To Consider Data Center Moratorium — 1310 KFKA (Jun 30)
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Upcoming Planning Meetings and Agendas — Larimer County
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov
- Larimer County extends fire restrictions (Jul 21)
- Spotlights — larimer.gov

2026-08-23

Moratorium Resolved: Extended July 13 Through Feb 25, 2027

The two-run dispute closes. The data center moratorium does not lapse Tuesday.

Sequence: enacted January 2026 → extended Feb 9 through Aug 25, 2026 → extended again July 13 for six months through Feb 25, 2027.

Three independent accounts agree. Server Country's Colorado policy tracker (page updated Jul 17) states the July 13 extension and the Feb 25, 2027 end date, citing Larimer County documents dated Feb 9 and July 13. Colorado Newsline (Aug 10) said the county extended "to February." Govtech/KFKA (Jun 30) reported commissioners backing a six-month extension to be voted at a July 13 land use hearing. Feb 25, 2027 is exactly six months past Aug 25.

The county's own pages are stale. The moratorium page still ends its timeline at the Feb 9 vote and says Aug 25, 2026, with no mention of July 13. The engagement portal says the same. Nothing published from the July 13 hearing — no resolution, no minutes, no release.

Still true regardless: the county has no Land Use Code definition or standard for data center uses, 94% of survey respondents opposed data centers outright, and comment channels remain open. Six more months of runway, and the drafting work has not surfaced publicly.

Statewide context from the same Newsline piece — other Colorado moratoriums: Denver one year (May 18), Jefferson County to March (May 19), Boulder County six months (June), Longmont capped data center load at 5% of the regional grid or 100 MW (June), Broomfield 18 months on 10+ MW loads (July), Woodland Park 18 months (Jul 16), Lochbuie five years (Jul 21) — the longest in the state.

LifeQuest: County Pages Disagree on the Date

The planning page says the LifeQuest Campus and Retreat Center Rezone (25-ZONE3797) was continued to Monday, Sept 28, 2026, and that sign-up reopens one week prior. The commissioners' schedule still shows the hearing Mon Aug 24, 6:30–10:00 PM, hybrid, Hearing Room 1st Floor / Zoom.

Planning is the case-file source and is the one to trust; the schedule page appears not to have been updated. Anyone planning to attend tomorrow should confirm first — PlanningCIRT@larimer.org, (970) 498-7683.

The proposal: rezone 103 Sunrise Ranch Rd, Loveland from O-Open to RPD-Rural Planned Land Division. Comments accepted anytime at engage.larimer.gov/c41658, 25-zone3797@publicinput.com, or voicemail 855-925-2801 project code 11893.

Rest of the Board's Week — Unchanged

Mon Aug 24: 10–11 AM work session on Federal Legislation and Local Impacts (Office of Emergency Management, Commissioners' Conference Room, 2nd Floor); 11 AM–12 PM special meeting on the 2026 Abstract of Assessment. Tue Aug 25, 9 AM–12 PM Administrative Matters — register by 4:30 PM Mon Aug 24.

No individual commissioner news this window.

Sources:
- Colorado Data Center Policy — Server Country (updated Jul 17)
- Colorado County Prepares to Extend Data Center Moratorium — GovTech (Jun 30)
- Local governments in Colorado enact moratoriums on data center development — KUNC (Aug 10)
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Upcoming Planning Meetings and Agendas — Larimer County
- 25-ZONE3797 LifeQuest Rezone — PublicInput
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-24

The Data Center Planning Framework Is Readable

The county's consultant report — attached to Fort Collins' Aug 25 work session packet, and unreadable across four prior runs — came apart this run. It is "Data Center Planning Framework, Larimer County & Fort Collins," Full Draft v6, published May 12, 2026, prepared for Scott Benton (bentonwi@co.larimer.co.us) and Kassidee Fior (fiorka@co.larimer.co.us) of Larimer County.

It is visibly unfinished. Author to-do notes are still highlighted in the body: "How many data centers in Larimer County and scale," "order by importance and explain how I got here," "(better intros)," "Expand." The KEY THRESHOLDS section — the operative one — consists entirely of "Similarity to Definitions?" and "See Spreadsheet? Appendix?" The WORKLOADS section is an outline, not text. This is a v6 draft with holes in the places that decide policy, and it is what the county has to work from with the moratorium running to Feb 25, 2027.

Proposed definitions (the draft's own):
- Qualified Data Center = 5 MW or greater
- Large Load Data Center = 20–50 MW
- Article 10 (1041 Powers) Data Center = 50 MW or greater

A conflicting set the county gave Fort Collins staff for the same report: Small <5MW, Large >5–25MW, Very Large >25MW. Two different threshold ladders for the same regulatory question, in the same packet. Worth asking which one the county intends.

The regulatory approach is a five-tier menu, Tier 1 most lenient ("could even be crafted to invite data centers to the county"), Tier 4 the most stringent set the consultant thinks is feasible, Tier 5 "regulations data center developers will likely never agree to." Each tier inherits the one below.

The county's main lever, per the report's own conclusion, is the 50% local Business Personal Property Tax rebate — a carrot to encourage things the county can't mandate. The other named tool: noise ordinances, because onsite fossil generation is loud, so a strict noise rule effectively pushes projects onto the grid.

Other recommendations: applications must have confirmed power or water rights; conditional use in limited industrial districts only; annual reporting on water, power, noise, pollution; county-administered noise monitoring for at least 5 years after build; impact studies and fees for environmental, power, water, sewer/discharge, and emergency services; claw-back provisions; and Article 10 triggers including substations over 69 kV, loads over 50 MW, transmission upgrades, and buy-and-dry water rights.

The report cites Laramie County, Wyoming's $1.2B / 1.8-gigawatt campus (scaling toward 10 GW) and Global AI's 438-acre, 18–60 MW Weld County project with Saudi firm Humain as the nearby pressure.

City staff independently confirm the moratorium runs "until February 2027." That closes the question yesterday's correction opened.

LifeQuest Rezone — The Contradiction Survived to Hearing Day

Today is the date in dispute. It did not resolve overnight.

Planning holds the case file. Don't drive down without calling PlanningCIRT@larimer.org, (970) 498-7683.

Also on the Board's Calendar

No new county spotlights since Aug 19.

Sources:
- Data Center Planning Framework draft, in the Aug 25 Fort Collins work session packet (PDF)
- Larimer planning — upcoming meetings and agendas
- Commissioners' schedule
- LifeQuest case page
- Data center engagement portal

2026-08-25

Emergency Services Building Opened — Aug 21

Shadduck-McNally spoke at the ribbon cutting for the new Larimer County Emergency Services Building, northwest of Fort Collins. Over $30 million, on 50 acres. It consolidates wildland fire, search and rescue, dive teams, the Sheriff's Office, and volunteer units in one place to coordinate during major disasters.

Sheriff John Feyen: "Of all the counties in Colorado, we have the number one for declared disasters in the state." George Janson of Larimer County Search and Rescue called it "a very helpful facility" for response across the rest of the county.

The Aug 24 BOCC work session — Federal Legislation and Local Impacts, presented by the Office of Emergency Management — ran the morning after.

New Floodplain Maps — Effective Nov 27, 2026

Updated FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps and Flood Insurance Study replace the current maps for unincorporated Larimer County, incorporating new topography and hydrology. Portions of the Big Thompson River and Cache la Poudre River basins change. The update traces back to the September 2013 flood and is required to keep the county in the National Flood Insurance Program.

Two board actions come first: Planning Commission Sept 16 and Board of County Commissioners Oct 12.

Check your own address on the Land Information Locator — search the address, open Layers, turn off the current FEMA layer, turn on "FEMA Floodplains Draft Current Effective."

Data Center Moratorium — the County's Own Page Says It Expires Today

larimer.gov/planning/temp-moratorium-data-centers still reads that the board "voted to extend the temporary moratorium on data center facilities until August 25, 2026" — today. That is stale. The commissioners extended it another six months at the July 13 land use hearing, to February 2027, and Fort Collins staff independently confirm the February 2027 date in their Aug 25 work session materials. The page has not been updated in six weeks.

LifeQuest Rezone — Resolved

The contradiction that ran for three check-ins is settled. Planning confirms the hearing was CONTINUED to Monday, Sept 28, 2026; it did not happen Aug 24. Sign-up reopens one week prior. The commissioners' schedule page carried the stale Aug 24 date to the end.

Sources:
- New Northern Colorado emergency services building to expedite response to natural disasters — CBS Colorado
- New Floodplain Maps Take Effect This November — Larimer County (Aug 24)
- Final Flood Hazard Determinations — Federal Register (Aug 21, 2026)
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Larimer planning — upcoming meetings and agendas

2026-08-26

Sources:
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Here are Larimer County's 2026 Impact Fund grant recipients (Aug 25)
- Proposed Northern Colorado data center faces uncertain future following gaps in construction permits — Rocky Mountain Collegian (Aug 2026)
- Local governments in Colorado enact moratoriums on data center development — Colorado Newsline (Aug 10)
- BOCC schedule

2026-08-27

BOCC refers a 0.3% sales tax to the November ballot

Correction to yesterday's entry. This file said the Aug 25 Administrative Matters session was routine and that there was "no BOCC action this window." Wrong — that is the meeting where the board referred a county sales-and-use tax to the November 3, 2026 ballot. The BOCC schedule listed it only as "Administrative Matters meeting with County Attorney," which is where ballot referrals get taken up.

The measure:
- 0.3% county sales and use tax — 30 cents on every $100.
- Effective January 1, 2027.
- Estimated ~$30 million per year.
- Funds wildfire protection and mitigation, natural disaster preparedness, watershed protection, road and bridge safety, and other community services. Framed partly as backfilling revenue the county lost from the federal government.
- Exempt: groceries for domestic home consumption, gasoline, diapers, prescription drugs, feminine hygiene products.
- All revenue subject to annual independent financial audits.

Shadduck-McNally, as chair: "We have had lots of things remind us of the importance of wildfire mitigation, including protecting the watersheds that supply the drinking water of our communities and protecting the escape routes into and out of our forested areas."

Larimer County Commissioner - Kristin Stephens: "We try to use our budget wisely and run a very lean operation, yet we are facing mounting costs." Sheriff John Feyen put a number on it — a single-engine air tanker costs $3,300 to start plus $2,000/hour to operate.

Precedent this is running against. In November 2025 Larimer voters rejected Issue 1A, a 0.15% transportation sales tax (~53% no). They narrowly approved Issue 1B, a 0.25% 20-year child care tax raising ~$28M/yr, which trailed for most of election night. This measure is double the failed 1A rate and bundles roads together with wildfire.

Not yet confirmed: the vote count and how each commissioner voted, the ballot issue number, and whether the tax has a sunset. The county has published no spotlight or press release on it — coverage so far is BizWest and KFKA off the Loveland Reporter-Herald.

Voting on it: mail ballots go out in October; Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Larimer County Elections — elections@larimer.gov, (970) 498-7820, larimer.gov/clerk/elections. The TABOR ballot issue notice (which will carry the exact ballot language and fiscal estimates) is mailed to households ~30 days before the election.

To weigh in before the ballot language is final: BOCC — bocc@larimer.org, (970) 498-7010, 200 W. Oak St., Fort Collins.

Sources:
- Sales tax issue heads for Larimer ballot — BizWest (Aug 26)
- Infrastructure, Wildfire Mitigation Tax Proposed In Larimer County — 1310 KFKA (Aug 26)
- Election: Larimer County transportation, child care taxes trail in early results — BizWest (Nov 4, 2025)
- Northern Colorado county approves $28M annual tax increase for child care — CBS Colorado
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-29

The county broke its silence on the tax — and there is a way to get a statement into the ballot notice

Aug 28, three days after the referral, Larimer County published its first official word on the measure: a spotlight titled "Larimer County Commissioners Place Community Resilience and Needs Sales Tax Measure on November Ballot." Until this, everything in this file came from BizWest and KFKA.

What the county's own announcement adds. It names the measure — the Community Resilience and Needs Sales Tax — and organizes the spending into three categories:

  1. Wildfire and natural hazard resilience
  2. Transportation and infrastructure safety
  3. Community resilience and public services

Shadduck-McNally, as chair, with the return-on-investment argument:

"Every dollar invested in mitigation work reduces the cost of future damages and emergency response by $6 to $13."

Exemptions and the audit provision are restated as previously logged: groceries for home consumption, gasoline, diapers, prescription drugs, and period products are exempt; all revenue is subject to annual independent financial audits.

What the county still has not published, four days on: the vote count and each commissioner's position, the ballot issue number, and whether the tax sunsets. The 2024 transportation measure carried an explicit 15-year term expiring Dec 31, 2039, and 2025's child care measure ran 20 years — a 0.3% tax with no stated end date would be a real departure, and the silence on it is conspicuous. The elections page still carries nothing on November; only primary results.

The actual lever: a FOR or AGAINST statement in the TABOR notice

Before this measure reaches a ballot, every registered household gets a TABOR ballot issue notice in the mail. Under C.R.S. 1-7-901, that notice must carry two summaries of up to 500 words each — one for the measure, one against — built from written comments filed by eligible voters. This is a published, mailed, county-wide channel that most people never learn exists.

Deadline: noon on the 45th day before the election. For November 3, 2026, the 45th day is Saturday, September 19 — so file by noon Friday, September 18, since county offices are closed that Saturday. Confirm the exact cutoff with Elections; do not rely on the Saturday date.

Where it goes. The Designated Election Official for a county ballot issue is the Larimer County Clerk and Recorder, Tina Harris — 200 W. Oak St., Fort Collins, CO 80521. Elections: (970) 498-7820, elections@larimer.org.

What a submission must contain:
- Your signature and your voter registration address (only eligible electors of the subdivision get summarized).
- Comment on this specific ballot issue.
- No names of persons or private groups, and no endorsements or resolutions — those get struck.

Hand-deliver with a time-stamped receipt if possible, and confirm receipt. Comments are summarized, not printed verbatim.

Sept 1, 9:00 AM — another Administrative Matters with Legal Matters

The BOCC schedule lists Tuesday, Sept 1, 9:00 AM–12:00 PM, Hearing Room: Administrative Matters, including Legal Matters with William Ressue, County Attorney. That is the same line the schedule carried for Aug 25, the session that produced the ballot referral. First 30 minutes are public comment. Phone participation requires registration by 4:30 PM Monday, Aug 31 — bcc-admin@larimer.org, (970) 498-7010.

The week also includes forest health and opioid abatement discussions.

Sources:
- Larimer County Commissioners Place Community Resilience and Needs Sales Tax Measure on November Ballot — larimer.gov (Aug 28)
- Submitting FOR or AGAINST statements in your local TABOR ballot issue notice — TABOR Foundation
- Elections — Larimer County Clerk and Recorder
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-30

Sales Tax: What a Second Source Adds, and What Two Sources Still Don't Have

BizWest's Aug 26 account, read against the county's Aug 28 release, adds real specifics:

Exempt from the 0.3%: groceries for domestic home consumption, gasoline, diapers, prescription drugs, feminine hygiene products. That exemption list is the county's answer to the regressivity objection and is the most concrete new fact about the measure.

Also new: watershed protection appears among the funded purposes alongside wildfire, natural disaster preparedness, road and bridge safety, and community services. All revenues are subject to annual independent financial audits. Mail ballots go out in October for the Nov 3 election.

Still missing after two independent sources and five days:

The sunset gap is now a finding rather than an oversight. The 2024 transportation measure ran 15 years; the 2025 child care measure ran 20; the 2018 behavioral health tax ran 20. Every recent Larimer county-wide tax has carried a term. A 0.3% tax with no stated end date would break that pattern, and neither the county nor BizWest says either way.

$3M Out the Door From the Tax That Did Pass

Aug 29. The county awarded $3 million in Impact Fund grants to 43 organizations, 8 of them new grantees. Since 2019 the program has moved $20.7 million to 86 organizations. It is funded by the 20-year behavioral health tax voters approved in 2018 — the direct precedent for what the commissioners are now asking for again.

78% of the money goes to youth services, care coordination, and criminal justice alternatives. Grants come in tiers of $25,000 / $50,000 / $75,000 / $100,000. Largest awards: NoCo Kids Thrive $150,000 (early childhood mental health), Boys & Girls Clubs of Larimer County $100,000 (counseling and social-emotional learning), Alliance for Suicide Prevention $100,000 (training and outreach to 12,500 youth).

Deputy Administrator Jessica Plummer: "By funding these organizations, including eight new grantees, we are fortifying our local safety net."

Recommendations pass through behavioral health staff, 20 independent subject-matter experts, county leaders, an executive review team, and the Behavioral Health Policy Council before the Board of County Commissioners gives final approval. No application deadline for the next cycle was published.

A Fire in the County While the Fire Tax Is on the Ballot

The Moose Mountain Fire started around 1:00 PM Friday Aug 28 just north of Pinewood Springs, off Highway 36 between Estes Park and Lyons. Small — 1.5 to 2 acres. Voluntary evacuation at 1:30 PM, upgraded to mandatory, downgraded back to voluntary by 4:30 PM, and all evacuations lifted just after 7:00 PM. Crews had hand line around the entire fire by Friday afternoon; 50% contained as of Aug 29. Roosevelt National Forest, Larimer County, Boulder County, and Pinewood Springs Fire Protection District responded.

Minor as an incident. Worth logging for two reasons: fire restrictions in unincorporated Larimer County expire 11:59 PM Sept 8 and a renewal vote has not been scheduled, and the commissioners have just put wildfire resilience on the ballot.

Evacuation alerts: sign up at NOCOAlert.org.

This Week on the Commissioners' Schedule

Four items beyond the already-logged Sept 1 Administrative Matters, all at 200 W. Oak:

Work sessions are in the Commissioners' Conference Room, not the Hearing Room, and are not the same as the public-comment-bearing Administrative Matters meeting. No formal BOCC meetings Sept 3–5.

Sources:
- Sales tax issue heads for Larimer ballot — BizWest (Aug 26, 2026)
- Larimer awards $3M in grants to 43 organizations — BizWest (Aug 29, 2026)
- Larimer County 2026 Impact Fund grant recipients — larimer.gov
- Moose Mountain Fire 50% Contained Near Pinewood Springs — North Forty News (Aug 29, 2026)
- Evacuations lifted for Pinewood Springs over Moose Mountain Fire — KDVR
- Mandatory evacuations issued for Pinewood Springs, Blue Mountain — Denver7
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-08-31

Sizing the 0.3% Tax From the One the Voters Already Saw

The county still hasn't published ballot language, an issue number, a sunset, or the vote count. But the 2025 transportation measure's certified ballot text is public, and it's the right yardstick — same county, same exemption list, one year apart:

"SHALL LARIMER COUNTY TAXES BE INCREASED $17,400,000 ANNUALLY … FOR A PERIOD OF 15 YEARS THROUGH A 0.15% (15 CENTS ON 100 DOLLARS) COUNTYWIDE TRANSPORTATION SALES AND USE TAX, NOT APPLYING TO SALES OF FOOD FOR HOME CONSUMPTION, GASOLINE, DIAPERS, PRESCRIPTION DRUGS AND CERTAIN OTHER ITEMS …"

The exemption list is identical to the one the county published Aug 28 for the new measure. The new rate is exactly double. So the November measure plausibly raises on the order of $35 million a year. This is a derived estimate, not a published figure — the county has stated no dollar amount. Treat it as an order of magnitude until certified text appears.

What the 2025 text also settles: every recent Larimer county-wide tax states its term inside the ballot question itself — the transportation tax printed "FOR A PERIOD OF 15 YEARS" in the sentence voters read. If the 2026 measure has a sunset, it will be in that same sentence. Six days after referral, its absence from every published account remains the open question.

Where the number will surface: ballot content is certified in early September, and the TABOR notice carrying full text mails in October. The written-comment deadline for the pro/con statements (noon Fri Sept 18) falls after certification, so the exact language should be readable before comments are due.

Fire Restrictions Confirmed Expiring Sept 8, No Renewal on Any Agenda

Re-verified directly. Restrictions adopted May 6 for unincorporated Larimer County run until 11:59 PM Sept 8, 2026, across all three fire management zones (below 6,000 ft; 6,000–9,000 ft; above 9,000 ft). The Sept 1 Administrative Matters meeting is the last BOCC session before they lapse, and no renewal item appears on it. The board has put wildfire resilience on the November ballot while its own restrictions run out.

Loveland Starts a Data Center Study Series — Larimer's Nearest Peer Test

Loveland City Council opened a three-session study series on data center impacts with no application pending — explicitly to have policy ready before one arrives. Larimer County's own draft framework is still out for comment through Feb 25, 2027 with an empty KEY THRESHOLDS section.

Session Focus
Tue Sept 1 Foundational information and existing policies
Tue Oct 27 Development services and economic development
Tue Dec 8 Municipal utilities and data centers

All follow the regular 6:00 PM council meeting at City Council Chambers, 500 E. Third St., Loveland, open to the public, broadcast on Loveland TV. Not Aaron's jurisdiction and not a place to testify, but the sessions are public and the material is what Larimer is still drafting. Watching Sept 1 is the cheapest way to see what "existing policies" look like before commenting on the county framework.

Sources:
- Larimer County Ballot Issue 1A (2025 transportation tax) ballot language — BallotReady
- Commissioners place Community Resilience and Needs sales tax measure on November ballot — larimer.gov (Aug 28, 2026)
- Larimer County extends fire restrictions — larimer.gov (Jul 21, 2026)
- Larimer County Extends Fire Restrictions Through Sept. 8 — North Forty News
- Loveland Council to Examine Data Center Impacts — North Forty News (Aug 30, 2026)

2026-09-01

Her Week Is Wildfire Mitigation, While the County Stays Silent on the Tax That Funds It

Three items on the commissioners' schedule, all in the first spending category of the ballot measure she referred on Aug 25:

She is the commissioner most publicly identified with the measure — the Aug 28 county release quoted her that "every dollar invested in mitigation work reduces the cost of future damages and emergency response by $6 to $13."

Seven days after the referral, the county has still published no ballot issue number, no ballot language, no sunset, and no vote count. Checked directly this run: larimer.gov/spotlights has nothing newer than Aug 30 (a workforce workshop), and larimer.gov/clerk/elections still shows only 2026 primary results with no November content at all. The Sept 1 Administrative Matters session was the last board meeting before fire restrictions lapse at 11:59 PM Sept 8, and no renewal item appeared on it.

Sources:
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov
- Commissioners place Community Resilience and Needs sales tax measure on November ballot — larimer.gov (Aug 28, 2026)
- Spotlights — larimer.gov
- Elections — Larimer County Clerk and Recorder

2026-09-02

Ballot Issue 1A — The Full Text, Finally

Eight days of "no number, no language, no sunset" ends here. The county's 2026 elections page now names it Larimer County Ballot Issue 1A and links the signed resolution, adopted August 25, 2026 and signed by Shadduck-McNally as Chair.

Ballot title, verbatim:

SHALL LARIMER COUNTY TAXES BE INCREASED BY UP TO $34½ MILLION ANNUALLY (ESTIMATED FIRST YEAR INCREASE STARTING JANUARY 1, 2027), AND BY ANY ADDITIONAL AMOUNT GENERATED EACH YEAR THEREAFTER, TO FUND COUNTY PURPOSES INCLUDING:

BY ESTABLISHING A 0.3% (30 CENTS ON $100 PURCHASE) COUNTYWIDE SALES AND USE TAX, EXCLUDING SALES OF FOOD FOR HOME CONSUMPTION, GASOLINE, DIAPERS, PRESCRIPTION DRUGS AND CERTAIN OTHER ITEMS EXEMPT BY LAW; WITH ALL REVENUE SUBJECT TO AN ANNUAL INDEPENDENT AUDIT; AND SHALL THE COUNTY BE AUTHORIZED TO COLLECT, RETAIN AND SPEND ALL REVENUES FROM THIS TAX WITHOUT LIMITATION BY ARTICLE X, SECTION 20 OF THE COLORADO CONSTITUTION (TABOR), ALL AS PROVIDED IN THE RESOLUTION REFERRING THIS BALLOT ISSUE?

$34.5 million — the derived ~$35M estimate carried in this log since Aug 25 was right.

There is no sunset. Sections 1, 2 and 6 all read "beginning January 1, 2027, and continuing thereafter." The measure is permanent. The county's own 2025 transportation tax — also numbered 1A — ran a stated 15-year term written into the ballot question. This one has no term at all. That is the single largest difference between the two measures and it is not mentioned in any county release or news story found.

It is de-Bruced. "Collect, retain and spend all revenues… without limitation by Article X, Section 20." Section 8 accounts for the money outside the county's TABOR fiscal-year spending limit and states that nothing shall limit receipt or expenditure of the full amount in any year.

The purposes are effectively unrestricted. The third bullet ends "and other County priorities and emerging community needs." The recitals say so plainly: the board "intends that the revenues authorized by the measure provide flexibility to address those needs and priorities, rather than being limited to any single project, program, facility, or geographic area." Section 7 binds spending only to "the purposes set forth in this Resolution" — which is that same list.

A Justice Center line rides inside a wildfire-framed measure. "JUSTICE CENTER AND OTHER FACILITY IMPROVEMENTS" sits in the third bullet. Every public description of 1A found so far leads with wildfire, roads and bridges; the county jail and courts complex has not been named in any release or news account.

Accountability is one line: "all revenue subject to an annual independent audit." That is the county's existing annual audit. No dedicated oversight board, no citizen committee, no reporting requirement in the resolution.

Exemptions — eleven, incorporated by statute: food for domestic home consumption; machinery and machine tools; residential gas, electricity and fuels; low-volume charitable sales; farm equipment (not animal ID equipment); vending-machine food excluding candy and soft drinks; certain medium/heavy-duty vehicles; renewable energy components; manufactured, modular and tiny homes on permanent chassis; incontinence products and diapers; period products. Plus food bought with SNAP or WIC, and construction materials where local use tax is already paid.

Still not published: the vote count. The resolution carries only the Chair's signature and the Deputy Clerk's attest — no roll call. Nothing in the county's release, the elections page, or BizWest's Aug 26 story gives who voted how. Eight days on, the only route to it remains the clerk of the board at (970) 498-7010.

What the clerk must now do (Sections 15–19): publish the full proposal text four times, a week apart, in the county's official newspaper and in every city and town; mail a TABOR notice to all registered electors; and file the ballot text with the Department of Revenue within 14 days of adoption — i.e. by Sept 8.

Search trap, logged. Querying "Larimer County Ballot Issue 1A" returns the 2025 transportation measure (0.15%, $17.4M/year, 15-year term) at the top of results, complete with VOTE411 and BallotReady pages and an organized "VOTE NO on 1A" campaign. Two different measures, one year apart, same number. Any 1A source has to be date-checked before use.

Her Calendar, Sept 2–4

Sources:
- 2026 Elections — Larimer County Clerk and Recorder
- Resolution referring the 0.3% sales and use tax, signed (PDF)
- Sales tax issue heads for Larimer ballot — BizWest (Aug 26, 2026)
- Commissioners' Schedule — larimer.gov

2026-09-03

Sources:
- 2026 TABOR Election Notice Pro/Con Statements — Huerfano County
- 2026 Elections — Larimer County Clerk and Recorder

2026-09-04

Sources:
- Sales tax issue heads for Larimer ballot — BizWest (Aug 26)
- How Your County Works — Larimer County (Sept 1)
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-09-05

The calendar past Sept 5 has now populated, and it puts two commissioner meetings in the coming week.

Tuesday Sept 8, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM — Administrative Matters. Hearing Room, 1st Floor, 200 W Oak St. Agenda includes Legal Matters with County Attorney William Ressue. Public comment accepted in person, by email, or by phone — phone registration required by 4:30 PM Monday Sept 7, which is Labor Day and county offices are closed. Register or ask ahead at bcc-admin@larimer.org / (970) 498-7010.

Wednesday Sept 9, 6:00 – 10:00 PM — Commissioners / Planning Commission joint Work Session. Hybrid, Zoom available. Four topics, all growth-related:
- Data center regulations
- Manufactured housing preservation
- Legislative rezoning
- Strategic growth and water supply elements of the comprehensive plan

Data centers, in context. The county has no definitions or regulations for data centers in its Land Use Code at all. After a Feb 9 public hearing the Board extended a temporary moratorium to Aug 25, 2026, then on July 13 extended it again to February 25, 2027 while staff draft standards. The regulatory questions on the table are water consumption for cooling, electrical load, noise/aesthetics/heat nuisance, and which zones could host them. The formal survey closed June 12, but the comment channel is still open and comments become part of the legal record: datacenter@publicinput.com or voicemail 855-925-2801, project code 6408.

Ballot Issue 1A — a hard date lands. Mail ballots go out starting October 2, 2026 for the Nov 3 general. The measure is officially described as a 0.3% countywide sales and use tax to support community resilience and community needs — wildfire protection, natural disaster preparedness, road and bridge safety. It exempts groceries for home consumption, gasoline, diapers, prescription drugs and feminine hygiene products. TABOR pro/con statements are due noon Friday Sept 18; Elections is at (970) 498-7820 / elections@larimer.org.

Roll call still unpublished — day thirteen since the Aug 25 referral. No individual commissioner vote on 1A has been posted.

Search note: a "Vote NO on Larimer County Ballot Issue 1A" piece circulating from the Larimer League of Independent Voters is dated *October 2024** and concerns the transportation 1A, not this measure. No organized campaign on the 2026 measure has surfaced yet.*

Sept 18 also holds a Shadduck-McNally community meeting in the Tahosa Valley, 10:00–11:00 AM, High Peak Camp Dining Hall, 111 Salvation Ln.

Sources:
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities — Larimer County
- Data Center Regulations engagement portal — Larimer County
- 2026 Elections — Larimer County Clerk
- Sales tax issue heads for Larimer ballot — BizWest (Aug 26)
- Civic Engagement — Larimer County

2026-09-12

Sources:
- Larimer County extends fire restrictions (Sept 10)
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County
- Boards and Commissions Openings — apply by Oct 4 (Sept 11)
- Temporary Moratorium on Data Center Facilities
- 2026 Elections — Larimer County Clerk

2026-09-13

Sources:
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County
- Larimer: Unlocked — Larimer County

2026-09-14

Sources:
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-09-16

Sources:
- Larimer County secures inholding and trade with conservation buyer at Chimney Hollow Open Space (Sept 15)
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-09-19

Sources:
- Larimer County Voters to Decide 0.3% Sales Tax Increase in November — Johnstown Republic (Aug 29)
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-09-20

Sources:
- Resilience Survey 2026 — Larimer County Engagement Gateway
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-09-27

Sources:
- Ballot Issue 1A signed referral resolution (PDF)
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-10-02

Sources:
- Board defers public comment and votes to continue LifeQuest hearing to Nov. 16 — Citizen Portal
- LifeQuest team says revised plan removes housing and amphitheater — Citizen Portal
- Loveland Utilities' concerns: reservoir at risk — Citizen Portal
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-10-03

Sources:
- 2026 Larimer County Parking Ordinance — PublicInput
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County

2026-10-10

Sources:
- Commissioners' schedule — Larimer County