Sheriff urges safe holiday driving as county CFO reports modest sales-tax gains

During the Nov. 18 meeting of the El Paso County Board of County Commissioners the county’s sheriff urged residents to drive carefully over the holiday season and previewed a public-safety campaign, and County Chief Financial Officer Nikki Simmons presented the quarter-three sales-and-use tax report.

The sheriff told the board his traffic team has grown and that officers made enforcement and education a priority this year: "Since last Thanksgiving, my team and patrol have issued over 10,000 little reminders that you shouldn't drive carelessly," he said, urging community members to avoid impaired and reckless driving and noting a planned partnership to provide reduced-fee rides.

In the sales-tax presentation, CFO Nikki Simmons said September retail activity rose 5.42% month-over-month and that year-to-date retail activity is up about 0.91%. Simmons noted that a large audit adjustment accounted for roughly 2 percentage points of the reported change and that building-material use tax is up about 36% year-to-date. She cautioned that clerk-and-recorder vehicle-use-tax figures capture only certain transactions and must be combined with dealership-reported figures for a full picture.

Simmons said the county remains projected to fall short of the current budget by roughly $6 million but described that as manageable within other revenue expectations and the draft 2026 budget. The board discussed how sales-tax resources are used — including the county's public-safety-dedicated sales tax slice — and the chair emphasized that sales-tax growth remains above historical levels even if it has moderated.

What to watch: the sheriff's planned holiday enforcement campaign and any finalized partnerships for reduced-fee rides, and the county's year-end sales-tax collections and final budget reconciliations.