Commission trims Supercross lodgers-tax support, removes t-shirts and generator costs

Colfax County commissioners debated and then approved reduced lodgers-tax support for an upcoming Raton Supercross event after a lengthy review of eligible promotional costs.

Jenny (identified in packet as the Supercross representative) described the board's prior review and the promotional package the board recommended; several commissioners questioned paying for T-shirts and paid Meta (Facebook) advertising. One commissioner said, "I don't believe in the T-shirts, period," and another said paid social media is effectively paid advertising and should be evaluated like radio advertising.

Commissioners agreed to remove the T-shirts and clarified that generator charges would not be covered. After motions and amendments, the promotional application was approved with a reduced award of $8,600 (down from $10,600 after removing some items) and the non-promotional application was approved for $18,730 with specific exclusions. Staff and the promoter discussed attendance figures (about 262 racers signed up last year) and vendor line items; the promoter said track build quotes were solicited and the board selected the lowest bidder.

A commissioner urged clearer lodgers-tax ordinance language to reduce ambiguity about what expenses the county should fund; the board asked staff and counsel to revisit the ordinance language to provide better guidance for future applications.

The commission's action: approve promotional funding with line-item removals and approve the non-promotional award with agreed exclusions. Commissioners flagged the need for an ordinance workshop to clarify compliance and eligible categories for lodgers-tax funds.

Next steps: staff will update grant paperwork to reflect the approved amounts and will return if ordinance changes are recommended.