Dolores County board to seek legislative sponsorship for elected-official pay reclassification

Dolores County commissioners spent a portion of their Dec. 15 meeting discussing whether to pursue a classification change that would raise elected-official salaries tied to the consumer price index.

Staff summarized a recent workshop with elected officials that reviewed the county’s current classification under the Colorado Counties, Inc. (CCI) system and the effect of a CPI-based increase. The office-level increase discussed would raise commissioner, treasurer, assessor and clerk salaries to about $67,360 and the sheriff’s salary to about $75,511 under the proposed category, with the county noting two-year overlap rules that affect when individual officials would see the change.

Commissioners were told the only practical route to change classifications is through state legislation with legislative sponsorship and that many counties pursue changes as a group. Board members agreed to pursue tentative sponsorship in January and aim for a formal decision — via a resolution adopting any classification change — at the board’s end-of-month meeting so the county can line up co-sponsors and partner counties if needed.

The board did not adopt any change on Dec. 15; members discussed holding additional workshops and coordinating with fellow counties and CCI to develop a legislative approach. Staff said the county would seek legislative sponsorship early in the session if members approve moving forward.

Next steps: staff will reach out to legislators for tentative sponsorship and bring an action item back to the board at the Dec. 29 meeting for a final decision.