A proper check on Colorado tourism funding
“We raised a red flag in 2009 about concentrating too much power in a committee awarding tens of millions of dollars to promote regional tourism. That concern, we still believe, was justified.
Now, a measure gaining speed in the Colorado legislature would rightly check that power.
House Speaker Mark Ferrandino, D-Denver, is sponsoring a bill that would limit the amount of sales tax increment financing the Colorado Economic Development Commission could award to projects under the state’s Regional Tourism Act, or RTA.
The legislation was prompted by a decision last year by the commission to award nearly $120.1 million to the City for Champions project in Colorado Springs.
That award was a whopping 128 percent higher than recommended by independent analysts hired to evaluate the project’s potential to attract tourists.”
Denver Post 14 April 2014