New Trash and Sidewalk Fees

The City and County of Denver has recently introduced new fees for essential programs like trash collection and sidewalk maintenance. Historically, citizens paid for these services through sales and property taxes. However, the City has now added these fees, totaling over $300 per year for most households, without decreasing the existing taxes, effectively creating a hidden tax increase.

Denver’s Tax Burden

Denver citizens have voted to raise their taxes more than 30% since 2018 and we now have one of the highest sales tax rates in the Rocky Mountain region. The new sidewalk and trash fees only add to the financial strain without any reduction in current tax rates.

https://denverite.com/2023/01/26/denver-sales-taxes

Lack of Planning and Transparency

The new fee-based trash and sidewalk programs are well-intentioned, but their implementation has been poorly planned and lacks transparency. Elected officials have been unable to answer basic questions about the expected level of service, cost of service, and future rate increases.

FeeTransparency.org’s Mission: Transparency and Accountability

Denver citizens deserve clear, objective information about these programs before being charged new fees indefinitely. To achieve this, FeeTransparency.org is launching a ballot measure to require the City to:

1. Pause the new fees for trash and sidewalks and revert funding to the General Fund and/or General Obligation bonds.
2. Hire an independent expert to provide realistic financial forecasts, including fully loaded costs, revenues, rates, levels of service, and delivery options. The City will share this report with the public and hold public input sessions.
3. Create a new ballot measure for voters to decide on fee-based sidewalk and trash programs based on realistic and objective cost and rate information from the expert report.

Get Involved

Explore our site to learn more about the sidewalk and trash fee programs.

• Sign up for our email list or contact us [here].
• Donate money or time to support our cause. We are especially seeking web developers, lawyers, and political experts to help us move this initiative forward.