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Committee tables $1.5 million request to rebuild Custer West Dam
Summary
House Bill 12‑37 requested $1,500,000 in state funds for reconstruction of the West Dam in Custer. Proponents cited flood mitigation, fire suppression and tourism impacts; the Bureau of Finance and Management opposed state funding for a city‑owned recreational dam. The committee voted to table the bill.
House Bill 12‑37, a request for $1,500,000 to reconstruct West Dam in Custer, was tabled by the Joint Appropriations Committee after proponents outlined flood, fire‑suppression and tourism‑revenue justifications and the state budget office recommended opposition.
Leanne McCourter, representing the Custer Community Development Foundation and the city mayor, told the committee the dam — breached in 2012 and designated a high‑hazard dam in January 2024 — is central to flood mitigation, local water supply for firefighting and to tourism that generates state tax revenue. McCourter said the city has spent about $250,000 to start preliminaries, budgeted $1,000,000 for 2025 and local donors have committed about $1,300,000. The proponents said phase‑2 bids to remove silt had been issued and the $1.5 million request would go to phase‑3 construction.
Trent Bruce, a Custer resident and civil engineer working with the project, said the total reconstructed‑dam cost would be about $4 million after redesigns from an earlier, costlier plan and that local fundraising plus the requested state contribution would close the gap. Mike Tennyson, chairman of the local development fund and a local hotel owner, said receipts of about $1.25 million have already been deposited and urged support for life‑safety reasons.
The Bureau of Finance and Management opposed using general funds for a municipally‑owned recreational resource, noting the dam has been breached since 2012 and suggested federal grants and other sources be exhausted before state general funds are used. Yolanda Sun of the bureau noted several potential federal funding sources, including FEMA hazard programs and Bureau of Reclamation grants.
Representative Kolbeck moved to table HB 12‑37; Senator Voda seconded. The roll call produced 13 ayes, 4 nays and 1 excused; the motion to table passed and the bill was removed from active consideration at the hearing.
Proponents said they will continue to pursue federal and county grants and local fundraising; project leaders asked the committee to consider the dam’s role in community disaster resilience if the bill is later revived.
