With Election Day three months away, committees focused on two major ballot issues are drumming up funds, according to the most recent campaign-finance reports.
The reports also show incumbent La Plata County commissioners’ campaign chests are fuller than those of their challengers.
County officials are again pitching a mill levy increase for the county road and bridge maintenance, which didn’t win over voters last year at the polls, as well as a mill levy increase for the Durango-La Plata County Airport. This year, two separate organized efforts are underway to educate and advocate for the issues.
YESforDRO! supports a property tax hike to raise $40 million for a terminal expansion and other improvements for the airport. The committee raised $2,500 in the most recent campaign-finance filing period, covering donations from June 20 to July 23, and spent $760.
Glacier Management Associates and the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad are among the contributors to the committee, which registered with the state in May.
Yes for Roads and Bridges received $3,850 in contributions and spent $555 for a booth at the La Plata County Fair and signs to promote the ballot measure. This committee also was registered in May.
Commissioners Gwen Lachelt and Julie Westendorff both contributed to the campaign, as did the railroad and HDS Freight Services, a Bayfield-based freight-shipping company.
Thus far, expenses have been limited to yard signs, a website and logo, but the citizens committee plans additional outreach via handouts and radio advertising in the fall, committee chairman Pat Cummins said.
“There was no such committee last year, and attention was on the Gold King Mine spill, and the word didn’t get out,” Cummins said. “It failed, but it didn’t fail by much, so we thought it would be worth getting more information out about why this is needed and how the money will be used.”
Finance reports show that railroad owner Al Harper has contributed to multiple county causes and campaigns. In addition to backing the airport and roads and bridges initiatives, he financially endorsed both incumbent commissioner candidates and their challengers. He could not be reached for comment.
In the county commissioner races, incumbents Lachelt and Westendorff, both Democrats, are working with larger budgets than their Republican challengers.
Lachelt received monetary contributions of about $4,600 in the most recent disclosure period and did not record any expenditures, leaving $13,527 on hand.
Her largest contribution came from the La Plata County Democratic Party Central Committee, which donated $2,750.
Her District 2 opponent Lyle McKnight received contributions totaling about $6,000 and expenditures just over $3,000 in the most recent disclosure period. He has $4,351 on hand.
Westendorff, who holds the District 3 seat on the county commission, finished the end of July with $2,200 in contributions and nearly $4,000 in expenditures. She has $10,583 in her campaign fund.
Kayla Patterson, the District 3 Republican challenger disclosed expenditures of $1,500 and monetary contributions of $4,400, and reported $4,489 on hand.
Expenditures by all candidates and committees have been standard purchases, including signs, billboards and stamps.
All financial disclosures for candidates and committees are searchable at http://tracer.sos.colorado.gov/PublicSite/Homepage.aspx.
jpace@durangoherald.com
