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Pitkin County set to place Healthy Community Fund renewal on November ballot; board discusses campaign and criteria
Summary
Pitkin County commissioners decided to place a renewal of the Healthy Community Fund on the November 2026 ballot. Board members and commissioners discussed ballot language options (sunset vs. permanent, fixed amount vs. fixed mill), fundraising and outreach strategy, and calls for clearer spending criteria and program evaluation before finalizing campaign plans.
Pitkin County will seek voter renewal of the Healthy Community Fund in November 2026, county staff told the Board of Health on May 12. The fund, created by ballot measure and repeatedly renewed, supports public‑health operations, senior services and nonprofit contracts; revenue has grown from under $1 million originally to more than $3 million after successive renewals.
County commissioners decided at a recent retreat to put renewal language before voters this fall; staff said the clerk’s office submission is expected in August and that, once formalized, community members and volunteers—not staff—would undertake campaign activities. Board members discussed strategic choices that must precede public campaigning, including whether to remove or keep a sunset clause, whether to change how the tax is calculated (fixed dollar vs. a rate tied to property values), and whether to tighten eligibility criteria so funds concentrate on core health priorities.
Commissioners Greg Pochman and Ted (newly appointed to the BOCC) described experience with past ballot campaigns and urged building a community committee of advisors, legal counsel for campaign rules, and testimonials from beneficiaries. Several board members asked staff for more detailed budget analysis that shows what services rely on the Healthy Community Fund and what gaps would appear if funding changed; members suggested evaluating whether some county services (for example, senior‑center operations) should be budgeted through the general fund rather than the levy to free Healthy Community Fund dollars for other uses.
No committee or ballot language was finalized at the meeting; staff said they will return to the BOCC with clearer options about sunset provisions, funding mechanism and the projected revenue impact to support an informed decision.
