Author: Dennis Huspeni
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Taxing a fee: Some Colorado cities profit from controversial state delivery fee
Colorado’s home-rule cities – notably Denver and Aurora – are collecting local sales tax on the new statewide retail delivery fee, which took effect July 1. That’s despite the new law that created the fee specifically saying it’s exempt from local sales taxes. Under Senate Bill 21-260, the 27-cent fee must be collected and paid…
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Colorado’s new retail delivery fee takes effect, drawing criticism
Colorado consumers will start noticing a 27-cent fee on receipts for almost everything that gets delivered to them, including restaurant food, after Colorado’s new “retail delivery fee” took effect July 1. The fee must be collected and paid to the state by retailers “on all deliveries by motor vehicle to a location in Colorado with…
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Denver tourism rebounds in 2021, but headwinds persist
Denver’s tourism industry rebounded in a big way in 2021, drawing 31.7 million visitors who spent an estimated $6.6 billion, according to the Longwoods International Travel USA 2021 survey report. Visit Denver presented the report at a news conference Wednesday. “The travel industry was disproportionately harmed by the pandemic. … Thankfully, Denver is a very…
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Historic Denver executive director Annie Levinsky shifts to statewide focus at History Colorado
Annie Levinsky’s name has become synonymous with Denver historic preservation. Her 14 years of work as the executive director of Historic Denver Inc. literally shaped how many parts of the city look today and will look into the future. The 42-year-old Denver native will move on from the nonprofit organization she’s served for 19 years…
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Report: Denver lodging bounces back, but lags behind national recovery
Metro Denver’s hotels saw a strong first quarter, marching – slowly but surely – to pre-pandemic occupancy levels, according to an industry report from real estate giant CBRE. But the recovery remains behind the national average – largely because of the influx of all the newly-constructed, higher-priced hotel rooms that hit the Denver market in recent years.…
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Colorado unemployment rate drops again in May
Colorado’s unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in May, its lowest level since the pandemic began. And the state’s economy has recovered more than twice as quickly as it did during the Great Recession, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment announced Friday. May was the 11th month in a row in which Colorado’s unemployment rate either…
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Colorado tries luring Australian green energy company
Colorado’s Economic Development Commission on Thursday approved almost $9.4 million in incentives to try to lure four companies to the state, including an Australian “green energy” company. The companies could create nearly 1,100 local jobs, officials said. The biggest package would go to a company that the state is calling “Project Chamomile,” which it described as…
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Colorado gaming division points to pandemic in regulation glitches
Colorado Division of Gaming officials early Tuesday responded to a critical audit from the Office of the State Auditor, saying the pandemic impacted its ability to roll out legalized sports betting in Colorado. The state auditor issued a scathing audit Monday of how the division regulated the first full year of legal sports betting in…
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Colorado auditors ding sports betting regulators
Colorado’s Office of the State Auditor issued a scathing audit Monday of how the Division of Gaming has regulated the first full year of legal sports betting in the state, alleging the division hands out far too many temporary licenses and that it could be losing tax revenue by not requiring more documentation. The 56-page report covered…
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Denver International Airport CEO ‘leading contender’ for FAA: Report
President Joe Biden will likely name Denver International Airport’s CEO Phil Washington as the next head of the Federal Aviation Administration, according to the Seattle Times. Washington has held the DIA post for less than a year, after being appointed by Mayor Michael Hancock in 2021. An airport spokesperson declined a Denver Gazette request to…