Routt County commissioners approve draft IGA to advance Yampa Valley Regional Transportation Authority

Routt County commissioners voted Wednesday to approve a draft intergovernmental agreement (IGA) to form the Yampa Valley Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) and to submit the draft to the Colorado Department of Transportation and neighboring jurisdictions for review.

The draft IGA, which would create a single RTA covering unincorporated Routt County and the municipalities of Steamboat Springs, Hayden, Oak Creek and Yampa (with a flagpole extension to include the City of Craig in Moffat County), passed by motion as Resolution No. 2025-024. The draft will be refined by a formation committee and returned for final approval before being placed on ballots for voter approval.

Why it matters: An RTA would be a new public entity created under state statute to plan and operate regional transportation services — potentially including expanded bus service, airport connections and pedestrian and safety projects. The IGA sets governance rules, voting thresholds and potential revenue tools the authority could later request from voters; it does not itself create any new tax.

The formation consultant, identified in the meeting as Bill, summarized the statutory process and the draft IGA’s provisions, saying, “These public hearings are part of the statutory process to create a regional transportation authority.” He told the commissioners the IGA contemplates a range of funding sources allowed under state law (sales tax, vehicle registration fees, tolls and pledged revenues among them) but noted the formation committee had written an express prohibition on property tax into the draft IGA to reflect local concerns.

Public comment at the hearing included an extended statement from Toni German, who identified herself as a West Steamboat resident representing the Safe Crossing Committee. German urged commissioners to include a pedestrian “safe crossing” on U.S. 40 in the RTA scope and to preserve service to West Steamboat and other unserved neighborhoods. “The safe crossing benefits the entire community,” she said, adding that better transit would reduce isolation for residents who lack cars.

Commissioners and staff discussed next steps and timing: the formation team plans polling across the proposed RTA area, community-specific surveys, and additional refinement of service goals (including routes south along Colorado 131 and a Stagecoach connection). The consultant said jurisdictions would have until August to request changes before finalizing the IGA and preparing ballot language; the state referral deadline to place questions before voters is Sept. 5.

Several commissioners pressed formation-team members about how the resort contribution would be memorialized in the IGA. County legal counsel and outside counsel from Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell described options, including an executed pledge agreement or making formation contingent on a guaranteed financial contribution; they said additional legal vehicles could be drafted and vetted by the formation committee. County Attorney Eric Knauss asked for clarification about the property-tax prohibition; outside counsel and the consultant said the IGA explicitly prohibits a property tax now and that a future property-tax proposal would require an amendment to the IGA.

Commissioners said they expect the IGA to spell out commitments for projects Routt County has prioritized — wildlife crossings, the West Steamboat safe crossing and regional rail planning participation — and asked staff to press for concrete commitments from resort-related entities. Commissioners emphasized that unincorporated residents should receive equitable service and that formation should not lock in a governance structure that leaves unincorporated areas underserved.

The board made the motion to approve the IGA draft and send it to CDOT and neighboring jurisdictions; a second was recorded and the motion carried with an affirmative voice vote. The resolution as approved authorizes submission of the IGA draft for statutorily-required review and continues the formation process through the summer.

What’s next: formation-committee refinements of the IGA (funding language, resort contribution wording and detailed service plans), targeted polling and community surveys, CDOT and neighboring-jurisdiction review through August, and potential ballot referrals in summer 2025 for formation and any funding measures.