{"id":15175,"date":"2025-12-18T12:22:38","date_gmt":"2025-12-18T19:22:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/8-9-million-in-federal-funds-lost-in-montezuma-county-state-data-shows\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:45:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:45:17","slug":"8-9-million-in-federal-funds-lost-in-montezuma-county-state-data-shows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/8-9-million-in-federal-funds-lost-in-montezuma-county-state-data-shows\/","title":{"rendered":"$8.9 million in federal funds lost in Montezuma County, state data shows"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Gov.
Gov. Jared Polis prepares to sign bills into law at the governor's mansion in downtown Denver on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. (Jesse Paul\/The Colorado Sun)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

About $8.9 million in federal funds for Montezuma County was canceled this year, according to the Colorado Governor\u2019s Office of Federal Funds and Strategic Initiatives.<\/p>\n

The loss<\/a> includes money once available or already allocated to the county, including funds planned for future years. Most dollars were distributed through grants and social benefits.<\/p>\n

Federal cuts have been a major feature of President Donald Trump\u2019s agenda, from mass layoffs to foreign aid cancellations and reduced DEI grants. Colorado\u2019s budget shortfall, Gov. Jared Polis<\/a> says, stems from H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.<\/p>\n

The state database, released Dec. 2, shows the varied, sometimes indirect, routes through which federal dollars flow through Montezuma County.<\/p>\n

The largest cut, $5.3 million, was for insurance subsidies tied to the 43-day government shutdown that ended Nov. 12<\/a>. Those enhanced premium tax credits expire in 2026.<\/p>\n

\n

Canceled\/expired funds lost by departmentBehavioral Health Administration$67,633.28Department of Agriculture$947,002.50Department of Human Services$1,371,899.40Department of Labor and Employment$119,851.48Department of Public Safety$71,671.79Department of Transportation$12,241.30Energy Office$1,055,540.00Division of Insurance$5,314,240.00Data released Dec. 2 from the Colorado Governor\u2019s Office of Federal Funds and Strategic Initiatives<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The data is not exhaustive; some cuts described by officials and others in the county don\u2019t appear in the spreadsheets, suggesting an undercount. For example, Department of Justice funds lost to Renew<\/a>, a local domestic violence shelter, are missing.<\/p>\n

Much of the money once at risk has been restored, totaling about 2\u00bd times the amount canceled.<\/p>\n

An additional $24.6 million in federal funds for Montezuma County was \u201csuccessfully defended,\u201d the state says, mostly through court orders or administrative adjustments. More than $20 million was secured for broadband development under the state Office of Information Technology.<\/p>\n

Even so, the state says much of the money may be only temporarily secured.<\/p>\n

\n

Defended federal funds, by Colorado departmentBehavioral Health Administration$90,752Department of Education$1,087,279.5Department of Information Technology$20,837,700Office of Lieutenant Governor$107,663.27Department of Natural Resources$680,776Department of Public Health and Environment$1,543,266.8Department of Public Safety$98,335.6Department of Transportation$161,738Data released Dec. 2 from the Colorado Governor\u2019s Office of Federal Funds and Strategic Initiatives<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

About $1.8 million countywide remains at risk,\u201d the state says.<\/p>\n

Notable cuts include $1.5 million from an EPA Solar for All program, a five-year digital equity grant t<\/a>otaling $108,000 and more than $87,000 from a SNAP educational grant aimed a<\/a>t reducing obesity.<\/p>\n

The database covers hundreds of millions in federal dollars statewide. Rural Western Slope communities like Montezuma County receive only a small share.<\/p>\n

\n

Federal funding lost in Colorado<\/strong>Saved from cutsAt riskCanceled (administrative)Canceled (Congressional)$868.08 million$429.06 million$206.88 million$698.78 million<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Federal funds scarce, local projects in limbo<\/div>\n

Local officials say federal dollars are disappearing.<\/p>\n

Scott Baker, Cortez\u2019s grants administrator, said securing funds is increasingly difficult. The city especially needs help to repair its aging rural infrastructure, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore the 2025 federal administration, when the city had a critical need whose cost exceeded our budget or reserves we\u2019d have one or more federal offices from whom we could seek support,\u201d Baker said.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, several agencies are virtually closed for grant business or have drastically reduced their inventory of grant openings \u2013 EPA, HUD, USDA, et al.\u201d<\/p>\n

Communication with federal staff who once helped officials craft proposals has dwindled, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn short, there\u2019s not only fewer buckets of public funding now, what\u2019s left in those buckets is vastly depleted, and only the biggest dogs can compete for lingering crumbs.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the county level, some emergency funds are frozen.<\/p>\n

Speaking to the Montezuma County Board of County Commissioners Nov. 24, Emergency Manager Jim Spratlen said his office\u2019s usual funding is on hold. The Federal Emergency Management Agency froze funds<\/a> for the state in mid-October, demanding Colorado share immigration data and enforce deportations.<\/p>\n

When FEMA\u2019s Emergency Management Performance Grant halted, over $48,000 remained unpaid to the county. FEMA approved over $319 million to distribute across states, but Colorado is still negotiating to meet requirements for its share, Spratlen said. In the meantime, the state can pay some of the grant until June.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen we\u2019re going to see throughout the year what happens with that federal funding and what we can come up with from that point on,\u201d Spratlen said.<\/p>\n

Colorado\u2019s database lists the grant as \u201cCanceled \u2013 Grant terms change (pending).\u201d<\/p>\n

Losses have also hit conservation and agriculture.<\/p>\n

Danny Margioles, executive director of Mancos Conservation District, told Montezuma County Commissioners Aug. 25 that grant money for soil health is gone.<\/p>\n

Margioles said the district previously got some of that money from a Climate Smart Commodities grant, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The state\u2019s database says a total of over $946,000 had been distributed in the county. But now it\u2019s gone.<\/p>\n

In March, MCD President Mike Nolan told the Sierra Club\u2019s magazine<\/a> that a $630,000 farmer equity grant was cut from the district. The program was not in line with the administration\u2019s anti-DEI stance. Colorado\u2019s database does not account for the cut.<\/p>\n

There are plenty of taxpaying county residents who appreciate cautious spending, such as Frank Harrison, a Lewis-Arriola resident and natural gas engineer who describes himself as a fiscal conservative.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019d need to look at each program and see what type of value is returned from the investment that you make in it,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of programs that sound really helpful. And a lot of folks take that at face value. But if you start digging into it, there\u2019s some waste involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Considering the cuts underway, Harrison said it\u2019s best to weigh how effective each specific program is to decide whether it should continue.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s some things that you gotta ask the question: is this really needed? is this a program that\u2019s really needed to keep things going? Is it going to improve the health of the county? Is it going to stop some sort of environmental disaster? Is it really going to add value?\u201d<\/p>\n

Domestic violence nonprofit expects hard times ahead<\/div>\n

A nonprofit that protects victims of domestic violence is bracing for a hefty federal cut to its operating costs next year.<\/p>\n

Cortez-based Renew, one of few domestic violence resources in the Four Corners region, depended on a U.S. Department of Justice grant to cover staff wages. The money also pays for utilities in its shelter, which can house up to 20 people, sometimes for months at a time. Renew helps victims with housing, food aid and a more secure life.<\/p>\n

Those running the nonprofit applied for $236,000 for operating costs. In August, they learned the center would receive only a fraction of that: $25,000.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s nerve-wracking for the community, for victims,\u201d said Sage Lawson, Renew\u2019s executive director.<\/p>\n

The grant Renew has relied on for the past four to five years would have supplied about three-quarters of its funding, Lawson said. The fund, under the Victims of Crime Act, has been declining in recent years, according to the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice. This year, Renew\u2019s team deliberately applied for more money, anticipating reductions.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince I got on the board in 2023, the director at the time was already making [us] aware of underfunding,\u201d said Melissa Matthews, Renew\u2019s board treasurer. Matthews said more applicants were in the pool this year, thinning out what\u2019s available.<\/p>\n

Smaller batches of funds for Renew also come from Local Victim Assistance and Law Enforcement<\/a> funds provided by the state and from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families<\/a>, given by the county, Matthews and Lawson said.<\/p>\n

Now, Renew is turning to local donations to cover costs, Lawson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just wish the community would come together and help,\u201d she said. \u201cBecause that\u2019s really our only saving grace at this point.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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