PUEBLO, Colo. (KOAA) — Pueblo Mayor Heather Graham is hosting town halls to discuss the city's budget shortfall. The first one was Wednesday evening at City Park.
The city relies heavily on sales tax to fund services, but they say revenue is down because people are spending less. To save money, the city is freezing open jobs and cutting some programs.
Mayor Graham says voters might see new sales tax initiatives on future ballots, which would let residents choose to fund specific things like parks or roads.
"90% of our budget is supported by sales tax and sales tax only," said Mayor Graham. "So, when people aren't spending, the city isn't collecting funds. It's not like your property tax that the county collects, the city just gets a small portion."
The mayor will hold three more town halls with the next one being June 2 at 5:30 p.m. at the Pueblo City-County Library District's Rawlings (Main) Library, which is located near the intersection of South Union Avenue and East Abriendo Avenue.
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