The U.S. House of Representatives has introduced a bipartisan bill to fund the construction and maintenance of wildlife road crossings through 2031.
The bill would authorize $200 million annually over the next five years — a total of $1 billion — in federal spending for projects such as land bridges, tunnels and fencing, which have significantly reduced wildlife-vehicle collisions in Colorado.
Roaring Fork Safe Passages has been studying the advantages of constructing wildlife crossings in Pitkin County, but the high price tag remains a concern for local government officials
An initial $350 million was approved in 2021 for wildlife crossings as part of a pilot program under the Department of Transportation, and this bill would direct additional funding to the initiative.
But Pitkin County commissioners aren’t sure if they should throw their support behind it. Each was generally supportive of the federal government investing in wildlife crossings at a work session on Tuesday; however, some were unsure if this legislation would help the cause locally.
Commissioner Francie Jacober questioned whether the Roaring Fork Valley would benefit from those federal dollars under the Trump administration, which has rescinded or withheld federal funding from Colorado multiple times in the past year.
“I would like to support this bill, but we're never [going] to get any money, because it's from the feds. ... So it'll go maybe to Montana.”
Commissioners also discussed whether or not a future push for wildlife crossing grants would conflict with other funding requests.
Jacober spoke on behalf of Patti Clapper, who was absent from Tuesday’s meeting.
“Her concern is that, do we really want to put something forward to the Department of Transportation at the same time that we're trying to build an airport and get money from the Department of Transportation for that?”
Commissioner Kelly McNicholas Kury asked staff for clarity on whether or not additional funding requests would conflict with current projects.
Levi Borst, the county’s management analyst, suggested that commissioners in support of the legislation could reach out to U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd and request that he sign on as a co-sponsor of the bill.
Commissioner Greg Poschman was in favor of reaching out to Hurd and endorsing the legislation, especially given the bipartisan nature of the bill. H.R.6078 is co-sponsored by Montana Rep. Ryan K. Zinke, a Republican, and California Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat.
“Let's do endorse this and support Hurd if he decides to do the right thing with this,” Poschman said. “And it can't hurt for us to be supportive, and also to … cross the aisle, so to speak.”
Pitkin County staff said the legislation is unlikely to advance on its own, but it could be included in a larger bill.
The commissioners will review a draft letter of support at a later date.
