Raises the town excise tax from 4.9% to 9.9% on rentals under 30 days at residential-classified properties beginning January 1, 2027, for critical community housing.
Town of Mt. Crested Butte
On the November 3, 2026 ballot
Kim's Recommendation
NO
Vote No on Town of Mt. Crested Butte Ballot Question 2A
Question 2A charges guests 9.9% in short-term rentals the Gunnison County assessor classifies as residential and leaves commercially classified properties at 4.9%. Councilor Bruce Nation argued for that line so that rented homes gain no edge over hotels and short-term renting moves toward the base area. I oppose using the tax code to favor one class of property owner over another in the same business.
The case for that line rests on the housing impacts of short-term rentals, and the mayor said in June that the council has no hard data on those impacts. The town's excise rate rose from 2.9% to 4.9% in January 2025, and 2A takes the residential rate to 9.9% in January 2027. Whatever the higher rate collects, the town may spend on housing year after year beyond TABOR's limits. Voters should not grant a permanent tax on a premise the council has not measured.
I recommend a no vote on Town of Mt. Crested Butte Ballot Question 2A.
Kim Monson
Host, The Kim Monson Show · President, Colorado Union of Taxpayers · Colorado Voter's Guide 2026
Certified ballot question
SHALL TOWN OF MT. CRESTED BUTTE TAXES BE INCREASED NOT MORE THAN $2,500,000 COMMENCING JANUARY 1, 2027 AND BY WHATEVER AMOUNTS ARE GENERATED ANNUALLY THEREAFTER BY AN INCREASE OF 5% IN THE TOWN'S EXISTING 4.9% SHORT TERM RENTAL EXCISE TAX, FOR A TOTAL TAX OF 9.9% ON THE AMOUNT CHARGED TO PERSONS RENTING SHORT TERM RENTAL PROPERTIES (DEFINED AS RENTALS FOR LESS THAN 30 DAYS), SUCH INCREASE TO APPLY ONLY TO SHORT TERM RENTAL PROPERTIES WHICH ARE CLASSIFIED BY THE GUNNISON COUNTY ASSESSOR AS "RESIDENTIAL", FOR THE PURPOSE OF RAISING FUNDS TO SUPPORT THE CREATION AND RETENTION OF CRITICAL COMMUNITY HOUSING, AND SHALL ALL AMOUNTS RECEIVED BY THE TOWN FROM SUCH TAX AND OTHER REVENUES AND EARNINGS THEREON BE COLLECTED AND SPENT FOR SUCH PURPOSES WITHOUT LIMITATION OR CONDITION AS A VOTER-APPROVED REVENUE CHANGE UNDER ARTICLE X, SECTION 20 OF THE COLORADO CONSTITUTION?
A yes vote means
Approves the tax increase on qualifying rentals, the housing purpose and collection and spending of the specified revenue and earnings outside TABOR limits.
A no vote means
Rejects the increase; the town short-term rental excise tax rate remains 4.9%.
Key facts
Current town rate
4.9%
Proposed town rate
9.9%
Begins
January 1, 2027
Two Rates for Short Stays01
Mt. Crested Butte levies a 4.9% excise tax on the amount charged for rentals of less than 30 days, for the town's community housing fund. Question 2A adds five percentage points, for a total of 9.9%, and applies the increase only to short-term rental properties that the Gunnison County assessor classifies as residential. Properties the assessor classifies as commercial keep the 4.9% rate. The increase begins January 1, 2027, and has no end date.
A staff memo from Town Clerk Tiffany O'Connell adds the 9.9% excise tax to the town's 5% sales tax, the 4% local marketing district tax, the state and county sales taxes and a 1% special district (RTA) tax. On those figures, if 2A passes, a stay at a residential property carries 23.8% in taxes, and a stay at a commercial property remains at 18.8%. Gunnison County Ballot Issue 1A, on the same ballot, asks for an added 0.50% countywide sales tax, which the memo's totals do not include.
The tax rate now and if approved
Rate
The town's short-term rental excise tax, now (as the question states it)
4.9%
The town's short-term rental excise tax, if approved (on short-term rentals the county assessor classes as residential)
9.9%
Gunnison County ballot, Town of Mt. Crested Butte Ballot Question 2A
Added short-term rental tax
The proposed increase adds $5 per $100 of taxable charges for rentals under 30 days at residential-classified properties.
Example for $100 in qualifying rental charges
$100 × 0.05 = $5.00
Applies only to rentals under 30 days at properties classified as residential by the Gunnison County assessor. This estimates the added tax, not the total tax or final rental bill. Begins January 1, 2027, with no end date. Rounded to the nearest cent; actual checkout rounding may differ.
Estimated added town rental tax
Enter a value of zero or more, with no more than two decimal places.
The question dedicates the revenue to the creation and retention of critical community housing. It allows up to $2,500,000 from the increase in 2027 and whatever the increase raises each year after. Voters earlier raised the excise tax from 2.9% to 4.9%, effective January 2025. The Crested Butte News reported that the tax collected $2,509,000 for the housing fund that year. At a council work session, Councilor Steve Morris said that the housing fund is depleted and will likely remain so until 2028 while the town pays off direct loans for the Homestead affordable housing project.
A yes vote also frees this money from the limits the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) places on the town's revenue. The town may then collect and spend the tax, other revenues and the earnings on them for housing without limitation or condition.
The Council's Residential-Only Choice03
Some councilors wanted the increase on every short-term rental. Councilor Bruce Nation argued that rented homes should carry the increase so that they gain no unfair advantage over commercial lodging such as hotels. He also stressed the council's wish to see short-term rentals near the base area and transit rather than in residential neighborhoods. On July 21 the council voted 4-1 to direct staff to draft the residential-only question, and on August 4 it adopted Resolution 25, Series 2026, by a 6-1 vote, with Councilor Bobbie Sferra against.
In June the council also discussed a possible impact study relating short-term rental guest spending to local jobs and employee households. Mayor Nicholas Kempin said then that the council assumes many of the housing impacts it talks about are true, without hard data to back them.
Sources04
Official documents
Gunnison County certified sample ballot, November 3, 2026 election
