WEEK OF AUGUST 8, 2024
VOLUME 129 | ISSUE 23
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PERA’s finances spark questions Panel considers whether to recommend further reforms BY BRIAN EASON THE COLORADO SUN
Kiowa Schools Superintendent Travis Hargreaves stands in the high school entryway July 10 to greet people. He stands next to a PHOTO BY NICKY QUINBY large display explaining the breakdown of funds and detailing the grounds for building a new school.
the total available state funding for the year. The only catch is that BEST Grants are matching grants and if local voters turn down the bond request this November, another school — whose community has already approved a bond to provide matching funds — is waiting to utilize the state funding. On July 10, in the Kiowa High School cafeteria, the school dis-
The state’s public pension could be underestimating the scope of its financial problems by billions of dollars, an independent review found, raising fresh concerns about the Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association and its tenuous finances. As a result, for the first time since a state pension overhaul in 2018, a legislative oversight panel is considering whether to recommend further reforms to the system, which manages the retirement benefits of more than 700,000 current and former public sector workers. The concerns stem from a steady drip of bad news this summer —
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Kiowa-area voters will rule on bond School district tries again after being awarded BEST Grant BY NICKY QUINBY SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
The Kiowa School District, officially Elbert County School District C-2, was awarded the state’s largest-ever
BEST Grant in May: $55.53 million for construction of a new school. The money will go to the district only if local voters approve a bond for $13.44 million, which is the required “match” of 20% of the cost to build a new school. BEST (Building Excellent Schools Today) Grants are funded by the Colorado State Land Board, Colorado Lottery and marijuana excise taxes. Kiowa received just under 50% of
COUNTY FAIRS: 10 | VOICES: 14 | LIFE: 16 | CALENDAR: 19
ELBERTCOUNTYNEWS.NET • A PUBLICATION OF COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
GIVING VOICE American Sign Language and the importance of communication
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