The first round of grant allocations from the Emergency Services Sales and Use Tax — approved by voters in 2022.
The tax began in 2023 to provide financial assistance to underfunded or under-resourced organizations that provide emergency services in the rural and mountain areas of Boulder County.
“We are pleased to award this new source of funding to our first responders and firefighters who perform critical, life- and property-saving work—all year round, all around the county—with very limited resources,” said Boulder County Commissioner Marta Loachamin. “The voters of Boulder County made money available and now a community advisory group has helped recommend funding to fill some of the gaps in resources for preparedness and emergency response.”
The six grants total $1,663,320 and were approved for individual agency’s financial assistance needs and the fulfillment of a countywide request for dual-band radios for every mountain and rural fire district in Boulder County, according to a news release from Boulder County.
The grants were awarded to:
- Boulder County Firefighter’s Association to unify the radio equipment among radio and mountain fire protection districts. The grant totaled $1,292,359.
- Gold Hill Fire Protection District for life safety equipment to improve the district’s response to health and safety calls. The grant totaled $78,186.
- Indian Peaks Fire Protection District for a Lifepak Defibrillator for a total of $36,297.
- Hygiene Fire Protection District for a total of $56,200 for fire bunker gear to outfit 10 recently hired firefighters.
- Lafayette Fire Department for technical rescue equipment that can be deployed throughout the county for a total of $96,368.
- Sunshine Fire Protection District for a total of $103,910 for an improved braking system for its main apparatus to help with steep mountain inclines and declines, a UTV for access to off-road accidents and emergencies and funding for a fire chief’s on-call response vehicle.
A second round of grants is expected in the spring and will be awarded to search and rescue and trail safety organizations in Boulder County.
