Weld County’s reputation for going easy on taxpayers has been elevated to formal recognition. The county has picked up an award from the American City County Exchange, praising Weld’s “efforts to alleviate the tax burden on residents as well as progress in eliminating county debt,” according to a press release from the exchange.

Though the exchange’s first-ever Taxpayer Friendly Community Award was handed out last month in Denver at the annual meeting of parent group American Legislative Exchange Council – Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer formally accepted the honor at a reception July 19 – publicity is evidently just now making the rounds.

From the exchange press release issued today:

Jon Russell, Director of ACCE, noted Weld County’s achievements, lauding “Weld County is the Gold Standard for fiscal responsibility for localities across the country, having saved taxpayers more than $420 million since 2002. With no sales tax and no debt, I can think of no county more worthy of the very first Taxpayer Friendly Community Award than Weld County, CO.”

Barbara Kirkmeyer reaffirmed her county’s commitment to fiscal responsibility, saying, “The commissioners have been diligent in our pursuit of reducing the tax burden to our constituents and we will remain strong on our commitment to ‘pay cash as we build’ so future generations of Weld County taxpayers will not be saddled with any debt.”

Also noted by the exchange:

Weld County’s retirement plan is more than fully funded at 103 percent with assets valuing more than $255 million dollars. The county ranks 4th lowest in the nation  at $962.12, and 6th lowest in the nation in per capita tax costs at $438.38.

The conservative, pro-free market American Legislative Exchange Council has been an advocate of limited government and a resource for model legislation to generations of (mostly Republican) state legislators in Colorado and across the country. Spinoff ACCE, geared toward local government, bills itself as “America’s only non-partisan forum for elected local officials who believe taxpayers should come first in every decision.”