Ballot initiatives 17-9 and 17-10
This November, voters will be asked to consider two changes to the city’s Home Rule Charter, which has successfully guided how the city manages the community’s water resources since 1958. The changes would make Greeley the only city in Colorado to require a special election to approve water management decisions the city considers to be routine.
The changes would require the city to hold elections on water-related matters, putting operational questions on the ballot that must pass by a majority of all registered voters, regardless of voter turnout to the elections. The changes could delay or suspend long-term water leases, limit the use of leases with farmers interested in selling their water now but not yet done farming, and limit Greeley’s position in the water purchasing market. The changes duplicate the state law that already requires a vote for any sale or trade of a waterworks or utility asset. The changes also would require an election prior to using groundwater or recycled wastewater for drinking or irrigation (non-potable) use. The proposed changes would also require that an engineering study of the lease, sale or trade be performed and published at least sixty (60) days before the election.
For more information, visit www.Greeleygov.com/YourGreeleyWater.