This is part 4 of a series exploring Rio Blanco County’s special districts, how they are funded, and their transparency practices.
Read part 1: “The ins and outs of special tax districts”
Part 2: “Explainer: how special districts work”
Part 3: “Recreation in Rio Blanco County: WRBM and ERBM”
rbc | Rio Blanco County is home to two hospital districts which both receive taxpayer funding via mill levies. Their boards operate similar to other public districts and are subject to the same transparency/open meetings laws. Both districts are governed by five-member elected boards and have open seats in the upcoming special election in May.
Eastern Rio Blanco County Health Services District
The Eastern Rio Blanco County Health Service District (ERBCH) is associated with Pioneers Medical Center and serves Meeker and surrounding areas of eastern RBC. It receives 7.28 mills property taxes, or $4,079,879 last year. That amount represents approximately 5% of gross revenue for the district.
District board meetings are held at Pioneers Medical Center on the fourth Tuesday of each month, with finance meetings starting at 9 a.m. and regular meetings beginning at 10 a.m. Meeting agendas are posted outside of the boardroom and online at least 48 hours before the meeting. Past/future agendas and minutes are available for public inspection at pioneershospital.org/board-of-directors-meeting-agendas-minutes/
The district welcomes public attendance in-person or via Zoom. Zoom information is included with the district’s meeting notices at pioneershospital.org/blog/
Those who’d like to ask specific questions, request meeting minutes or get on a meeting agenda can contact executive administrative assistant Natalie Bustad. Her official contact is 970-878-9791 or [email protected]
ERBCH has two seats up for reelection this year. The district’s election official is Cindy Rholl. An official call for nominations for the spring election is posted on the district’s website. Interested citizens must submit a self-nomination and acceptance form to Cindy Rholl by Friday, Feb. 24, 2023.
A district spokesperson told the HT they are implementing a new Electronic Health Records (EHR) system this year, adding, “Detailed, expanded communication will begin rolling out to the community soon. We anticipate ‘go-live’ with our new system in October 2023.”
Rangely Hospital District
The Rangely Hospital District is associated with Rangely District hospital, serving Rangely and surrounding areas of western RBC. It receives 27.35 mills of property tax funding, split into two categories:
– general operating (13.05 mils)
– bond (14.3 mils)
Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Dillon explained the breakdown, noting that the general operating mill levy was about 5 mils until 2019 when voters approved an increase of 8 mills. The remaining mills go towards the bond for the hospital which among other things is being used to pay off the district’s facility. Bond funding is scheduled to sunset in 2026 according to Dillon. He said the current mill levies account for approximately 25% of total district revenue.
District board meetings are held at the Rangely District Hospital on the last Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. Meeting agendas are posted on the bulletin board near the hospital’s outpatient entrance. Agendas, minutes, baord member info, transparency notices and more are available at rangelyhospital.com/about-us/board-of-directors/
The official contact person for board related information is Jodi Dillon, who can be reached at RDH’s main office or by email at [email protected].
The Rangely Hospital District has three seats up for nomination this year, with two board members eligible to run for reelection. District residents can find nomination petitions for the upcoming board election on the district’s website. Dillon told the HT, “Anybody that wants to participate or know what’s going on, feel free to reach out to any of our board members or myself or any of our administrative team and we are more than happy to be transparent, and we greatly appreciate our community because we would not be here without our community.”
BY LUCAS TURNER | Special to the Herald Times
