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8/20/2019 1985.03.11 - Colorado Dep_t of Social Servs. v. Board of County Comm_rs_ 697 P.2d 1
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| | Questioned
As of: May 6, 2015 10:58 PM EDT
Colorado Dep't of Social Servs. v. Board of County Comm'rs
Supreme Court of Colorado
March 11, 1985
No. 83SA316
Reporter
697 P.2d 1; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404
The COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL
SERVICES, Plaintiff-Appellee and Cross-Appellant, v.
The BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Of the
COUNTY OF PUEBLO, Defendant-Appellant and
Cross-Appellee, and Samuel J. Corsentino,
Intervenor-Appellant and Cross-Appellee
Subsequent History: [**1] As Modified on Denial of Rehearing April 1, 1985.
Prior History: Appeal from District Court, Pueblo
County, Honorable Jack F. Seavy, Judge.
Disposition: Judgment Affirmed.
Core Terms
counties, funding, levy, social services, costs, public
assistance, public assistance program, programs,
contingency fund, general assembly, budget, provisions,
foster care, appropriations, twenty percent, fiscal year,
Department's, purposes, expended, trial court,expenditures, taxes, assistance payments,reimbursement, advancements, provides, propertytaxes, expenses, requires, eighty percent
Case Summary
Procedural Posture
Appellee, the Colorado Department of Social Services
(Department), appellant the Board of the CountyCommissioner of the County of Pueblo (Board), andintervenor taxpayer, challenged the judgment of theDistrict Court of Pueblo County (Colorado), which
upheld the public assistance funding scheme, and heldthat Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-125 did not limit the board'sduties, that costs were proper, and that a contingencyfund was state funded.
Overview
The taxpayer contended that the public assistance
funding system violated Colo. Const. art. X, §§ 3,7 and
8 , and the Equal Protection Clause. The board
contended that Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-125 (1982) did
not limit the county's funding duties, that it was owed
reimbursement of foster care expenses, and that
pass-through programs were not part of the county's 20
percent funding duties. The department claimed thestate had no duty to fully fund the county contingency
fund. The court affirmed the lower court's judgment.The
funding system was constitutional. Counties retained
enough control over funds and the tax system was
uniform within each county. Moreover, the funding
systemproperly served both county and state purposes,
and was rationally related to a legitimate state interest.
Counties had to appropriate funds from ad valorem
taxes to pay their share of public assistance programs'
costs, the mill levies of which were not limited to 20
percent. Foster care and pass-through programpercentages were properly determined. Also, former
legislators' testimony was inadmissible evidence of
intent. Finally, the state had to fully fund county
contingency funds as necessary.
Outcome
The court affirmed the lower court's judgment, which
upheld the public assistance funding provisions against
a constitutional challenge, and determined the rights
and duties of the board and the department with respect
to the financing of certain aspects of public assistanceprograms.
LexisNexis® Headnotes
Constitutional Law > ... > Case or Controversy >
Constitutionality of Legislation > General Overview
Evidence > Inferences & Presumptions > General
Overview
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HN1 Statutes are presumed to be constitutional and aparty asserting the contrary must establish the
constitutional infirmity alleged beyond a reasonable
doubt.
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
Governments > Local Governments > Duties & Powers
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > General Overview
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal Property
Taxes > General Overview
HN2 Colo. Const. art. X, §§ 3, 7 and 8 contain the
following language: All taxes shall be uniform upon
each of the various classes of real and personal property
located within the territorial limits of the authority levying
the tax. The general assembly shall not impose taxes
for the purposes of any county, city, town or other
municipal corporation, but may by law, vest in the
corporate authorities thereof respectively, the power to
assess and collect taxes for all purposes of such
corporation. No county, city, town or other municipal
corporation, the inhabitants thereof, nor the property
therein, shall be released or discharged from their or its
proportionate share of taxes to be levied for state
purposes.
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal PropertyTaxes > General Overview
HN3 Colo. Const. art. X, § 3 applies only to ad valorem
property taxes. It requires the burden of such taxation to
be uniform on the same class of property within the
jurisdiction of the authority levying the tax.
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > General Overview
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal Property
Taxes > General Overview
HN4 Colo. Const. art. X, §§ 7 , 8 prohibit the General
Assembly from either imposing state taxes for purposes
of any particular smaller government unit or relieving a
local governmental unit or the persons therein from the
obligation to pay proportionate shares of taxes imposed
for state purposes. Colo. Const. art. X, §§ 7 , 8 further
the goal of insuring uniform state taxation policies andprohibit the state from undermining the financial integrityof local governments.
Governments > Public Improvements > Bridges & Roads
Governments > Public Improvements > Financing
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Estate & Gift Taxes >
General Overview
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal Property
Taxes > General Overview
Transportation Law > Bridges & Roads > Funding
HN5 The test to determine whether a state imposed taxis for "county purposes" is as follows: Is the tax for strictly county uses, for which the county or itsinhabitants alone will benefit, or is it for a purpose in
which the entire state is concerned or will benefit?
Constitutional Law > ... > Case or Controversy >
Constitutionality of Legislation > General Overview
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
HN6 Questions as to what uses funds are put to andwhich governmental units benefit from those uses mustbe asked when considering asserted constitutionalprohibitions on the taxing authority of the state. When
the effects of statewide programs directly benefit
residents of specific localities, courts must conclude
that such programs serve the "purposes" of the local
governmental units, which receive those services, as
well as cognizable interests of the state.
Governments > Police Powers
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal Property
Taxes > General Overview
HN7 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-111(1) (1982), declaresthat the public assistance and welfare activities of the
state are state as well as county purposes. While such
legislative declaration is not controlling, it suggests that
even though state control of public assistance programs
is essential, the programs themselves fulfill county as
well as state purposes. The suggestion that localities
benefit when the indigent or disabled residents of their
communities receive assistance for basic subsistence
needs is compelling.
Page 2 of 23697 P.2d 1, *1; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **1
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Constitutional Law > Congressional Duties & Powers >
Contracts Clause > General Overview
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
Governments > Local Governments > Duties & Powers
HN8 Colo. Const. art. XIV, § 18(2)(a) provides in part:Nothing in this constitution shall be construed to prohibit
the state or any of its political subdivisions from
cooperating or contracting with one another to provide
any function, service, or facility lawfully authorized to
each of the cooperating or contracting units, including
the sharing of costs, the imposition of taxes, or the
incurring of debt.
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Nature & Scope of
Protection
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
HN9 The federal constitution provides that no state
shall deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal
protection of the laws. U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 1.
Although the Colorado Constitution does not contain an
identical provision, it has long been recognized that
Colo. Const. art. II, § 25 provides a similar guarantee.
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Judicial Review >
Standards of Review
HN10 Different levels of scrutiny are applied to state
legislation subjected to equal protection challenges.The type of classification and the nature of the right
affected determine which level applies. State action
which abridges fundamental rights or which employs
racial or other suspect classifications is subjected to
strict scrutiny. When the classification involves neither a
suspect class, nor a fundamental right, review is limited
to a determination of whether the challenged legislative
scheme is rationally related to a legitimate state interest.
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Nature & Scope of
Protection
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
HN11 Rights not afforded explicit or implicit protection
under the federal constitution are not fundamental for
the purposes of that constitution. Whether rights are
fundamental under the Colorado Constitution does not
necessarily depend on whether they are guaranteed
explicitly or implicitly, but whether they have been
recognized as having a value essential to individual
liberty.
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Judicial Review >
Standards of Review
Constitutional Law > State Constitutional Operation
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
HN12 The General Assembly has broad discretion to
structure taxes and that classifications of persons or property forpurposesof taxation need be merely rationaland related to a legitimate governmental purpose tosurvive equal protection challenges.
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Judicial Review >
Standards of Review
Constitutional Law > Equal Protection > Nature & Scope of
Protection
Evidence > Inferences & Presumptions > General
Overview
HN13 In challenging the constitutionality of a state
statute on equal protection grounds, it is insufficient to
establish that some effects of the legislation may be
counterproductive to the stated aims of the legislation.
Rather, one must demonstrate that no rational relation
exists between the goals and effects of the statute.
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > General
Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > Food
Stamp Program > General Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
Tax Law > State & Local Taxes > Personal Property
Taxes > General Overview
HN14 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122(1)(a)(1982) provides:
The board of county commissioners in each county of
this state shall annually appropriate as provided by law
such funds as shall be necessary to defray the countydepartment's twenty percent share of the overall cost of
providing the assistance payments, food stamps (except
the value of food stamp coupons), and social services
activities delivered in the county, including the costs
allocated to the administration of each, and shall include
in the tax levy for such county the sums appropriated for
that purpose. Such appropriation shall be based upon
the county social services budget prepared by the
county department pursuant to Colo. Rev. Stat. §
Page 3 of 23697 P.2d 1, *1; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **1
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26-1-124, after taking into account state advancementsprovided for in Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122(1)(a)(1982).
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > Local Governments > Duties & Powers
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
HN15 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-102(2) provides in part:The monetary limit prescribed in this article for thecounty department participation in social services shallbe deemed a precise limit beyond which no county canoperate or be required to operate by virtue of anystatutory or regulatory provision.
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > Local Governments > Duties & Powers
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > General
Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > Food
Stamp Program > General Overview
HN16 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122(1)(d) states: Under no circumstances shall any county expend county funds
in an amount to exceed its twenty percent share of
actual costs for assistance payments, food stamps
(except the value of food stamp coupons), and social
services activities, including the administrative cost of each.
Governments > Local Governments > General Overview
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
HN17 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-125(1) contains the
following provisions: The board of countycommissioners of each county shall make a county
social services levy at such a rate that the amount when
computed by applying the levy against the valuation for
assessment of the county will provide the necessary
money to be appropriated by the county, as provided by
the final county social services budget as approved by
the board of county commissioners, within the following
limitations: (a) Counties with valuation for assessment
per capita of $ 1,400.00 or more, but less than $
1,600.00, not to exceed four mills;(b) Counties withvaluation for assessment per capita of $ 1,600.00 or more, but less than $ 2,000.00, not to exceed three andone-half mills; (c) Counties with valuation for assessment per capita of $ 2,000.00 or more, but lessthan $ 2,600.00, not to exceed three mills; (d) Counties
with valuation for assessment per capita of $ 2,600.00,not to exceed two and one-half mills.
Governments > Legislation > Interpretation
HN18 Sections that are part of the same code andpertainto the same subject must be read in pari materia.
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > Local Governments > Duties & Powers
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
HN19 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-125(3) permits county
boards to apply to the Division of Local Government in
the Department of Local Affairs for authorization to
make a county social services levy at a reasonable rate
in excess of the limits provided for in § 26-1-125(3).
Governments > Legislation > Interpretation
Workers'Compensation & SSDI > ...> Injuries > Accidental
Injuries > Usual Exertion & Exposure Injuries
HN20 In construing statutes, courts must choose a
construction that serves the purposes of the legislative
scheme, and must not strain to give language other
than its plain meaning, unless the result is absurd.
Family Law > Adoption > General Overview
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
HN21 The State Board of Social Services must adopt a
method for allocating to county departments' fundsappropriated for foster care. Colo. Rev. Stat. §
19-3-120(1) (1984). Section 19-3-120(1) provides in
part that the amount allocated to each county shall
represent the maximum expenditure by an individual
county for foster care, which may be reimbursed.
Section 19-3-120(1). Section 19-2-120 further provides
that the Colorado Department of Social Services'
obligations to reimburse county departments for 80
percent of foster care expenditures, as specified in
Page 4 of 23697 P.2d 1, *1; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **1
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Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122 (1982), is limited to the totalfoster care allocation made to each county. See Colo.Rev. Stat. § 19-3-120(2)(d), (e) (1984).
Governments > Local Governments > Administrative
Boards
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
HN22 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122(4)(b) states in partthat 80 percent of the amount expended for assistancepayments program costs and social services programcosts shall be advanced to the county from the statetreasurer. Section 26-1-122(4)(c) defines "programcosts" as amounts expended for assistance paymentsand social services.
Criminal Law & Procedure > ... > Abuse of Public Office >Misuse of Public Funds & Property > Elements
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > General
Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > Food
Stamp Program > General Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Social Services > General
Overview
HN23 The Department of Social Services is required toadvance to the counties 80 percent of the costs of administering assistance payments, food stamps andsocial services by the state treasurer from fundsappropriated or made available for such purpose, Colo.Rev. Stat. § 26-1-122(3)(b), and the same percentagefor assistance payments program costs and socialservices program costs. Colo. Rev. Stat. §26-1-122(4)(b) (1982).
Civil Rights Law > ... > Contractual Relations & Housing >
Property Rights (sec. 1982) > General Overview
Constitutional Law > Congressional Duties & Powers >
Spending & Taxation
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Pensions & Benefits Law > Governmental Employees >
State Pensions
HN24 The term "assistance payments" is defined as
financial assistance provided pursuant to rules and
regulations adopted by the state department andincludes pensions, grants, and other money paymentsto or on behalf of recipients. Colo. Rev. Stat. §26-2-103(2) (1982). The old age pension, fundedentirely by the state, is one of the pensions provided for by Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 26-2-113, -114. The Low-Income
Home Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) is a "grant"program providing for "payments" to low-income
households. See 42 U.S.C.S. § 8623. The federal fundsprovided for programs such as LEAP are "madeavailable" for such programs; pensions are providedfrom "funds appropriated" by the state.
Governments > Legislation > Interpretation
Governments > State & Territorial Governments >
Legislatures
HN25 Remarks of a legislator made subsequent to the
adoption of a statute concerning the intent of thelegislation are, of course, not legislative history. Courts
generally hold that subsequent comments about the
intent of a legislature by a member of the legislature that
enacted a particular statute are not admissible to
establish the legislative intent of the statute.
Governments > Legislation > Interpretation
Governments > State & Territorial Governments >
Legislatures
HN26 The recollections of the legislator can hardly be
challenged in the absence of contrary testimony of another member of the appropriate legislative body. If
the views coincided with extant contemporaneous
legislative history, the testimony is duplicative; if it
contradicted such history, the recorded history shall be
deemed controlling.
Governments > Local Governments > Finance
Governments > State & Territorial Governments > Finance
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > General
Overview
Public Health & Welfare Law > Food & Nutrition > Food
Stamp Program > General Overview
HN27 Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-126 provides as follows:
County contingency fund - creation. (1) There is hereby
created a county contingency fund, which shall be
expended to supplement county expenditures for public
assistance as provided in § 26-1-122 .(2)
Notwithstanding the provisions of Colo. Rev. Stat. §
26-1-125(1), the state department shall make an
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advancement, in addition to that provided in Colo. Rev.
Stat. § 26-1-122 , out of the county contingency fund to
any county if moneys equivalent to those raised by a
levy of three mills on the property valued for assessment
in the county are less than twenty percent of the amount
expended for administrative costs and program costs of
public assistance, medical assistance, and food
stamps.(3) The amount of the additional advancement
for each county for each month commencing on or after
July 1, 1975, shall be fifty percent of the difference
between the following:(a) Twenty percent of the monthly
amount expended for the purposes named in subsection
(2) of Colo. Rev. Stat. § 26-1-126 , minus; (b) The
moneys equivalent to those raised by a levy of three
mills on the property valued for assessment in the
county divided by twelve. (4) In the event appropriations
are insufficient to cover advancements provided for; all
reimbursements shall be prorated on the basis of totalclaims submitted in proportion to funds available for
reimbursement.
Governments > Legislation > Interpretation
HN28 Where possible, a statute is to be construed as a
whole to give consistent, harmonious and sensible effect
to all its parts.
Counsel: L. Duane Woodard, Attorney General,
Charles B. Howe, Deputy Attorney General, Richard
Forman, Solicitor General, Wade Livingston, Assistant Attorney General, Denver, Colorado; Attorneys for
Plaintiff-Appellee and Cross-Appellant.
Terry A. Hart, James V. Phelps, Pueblo County
Attorney's Office, Pueblo, Colorado; Attorneys for
Defendant-Appellant and Cross-Appellee.
Ware and Marroney, Gerald A. Marroney, Pueblo,
Colorado; Attorney for Intervenor-Appellant and
Cross-Appellee.
The Board of County Commissioners of the County of
Otero and State of Colorado, Mitchell & Mitchell, P.C.,
Rexford L. Mitchell, Rocky Ford, Colorado; AmicusCuriae.
The Board of County Commissioners of El Paso County,
Colorado, Charles Berry, Colorado Springs, Colorado;
Amicus Curiae.
Judges: En Banc. Justice Kirshbaum.
Opinion by: KIRSHBAUM
Opinion
[*4] JUSTICE KIRSHBAUM delivered the Opinion of
the Court.
This case presents questions concerning the respective
responsibilities of the Colorado Department of Social
Services (the Department), the General [**2] Assembly,
and county governments to fund public assistance
programs established by the Colorado Social Services
Code, sections 26-1-101 to 26-15-113, 11 C.R.S. (1982
& 1984 Supp.) (the Code). 1
[**3] The case arose whenthe Department sought a judicial decree requiring the
Board of County Commissioners of Pueblo County (the
Board) to pay the Board's share of the county's total
public assistance costs for 1981, pursuant to section
1 The Department, created by § 24-1-120, 10 C.R.S. (1982), is authorized to administer "programs relating to public
assistance and welfare." § 26-1-102(1), 11 C.R.S. (1982). The Code at times implies that the term "social services" is an all
encompassing generic term ("In providing for such programs relating to public assistance and welfare, the General Assembly
finds that recipients of social services qualify . . . . for such services . . . . The state department, not the several county
governments, is the principal in all federal-state social services programs covered in this title . . . ." § 26-1-102(2), 11 C.R.S.
(1982)). However, the term "social services" is specifically defined as "services and payments for services . . . . available . . .
. through the social services staff of the state and county departments for the benefit of eligible persons . . . ." Id. § 26-2-103(11).
The term "public assistance" is more broadly defined to include "assistance payments, food stamps, and social services
provided to or on behalf of eligible recipients . . . ." Id. § 26-2-103(7). Furthermore, the Department's administrative authority is
defined as authority "to administer or supervise the administration of public assistance programs" and to "establish public
assistance programs consisting of assistance payments and social services . . . ." Id. § 26-2-104. Provisions describing the
Department's authority to comply with applicable federal requirements, § 26-2-105, and describing procedures for initiating
applications for public assistance, § 26-2-106, also suggest that the term "public assistance" is the more inclusive phrase. We
will use the term "public assistance" to include all forms of payments and services authorized by the Code.
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26-1-122 of the Code. 2 The Board asserted that its
responsibility for funding public assistance programs
was limited to the sums generated by a tax levy of 2.5
mills under section 26-1-125 of the Code and that the
Department improperly calculated the amount of its
mandatory funding requirements. The Board also filed a
counterclaim seeking compensation from theDepartment. Samuel J. Corsentino, a resident and
taxpayer of Pueblo County, intervened to challenge the
constitutionality of the funding provisions of the Code.
After a trial to the court, the trial court concluded, inter
alia, that (1) the funding [*5] scheme established by the
Code is constitutional; (2) the Board's obligation to fund
county public assistance costs is not limited by section
26-1-125 of the Code; (3) the Board is not entitled to
reimbursement by the Department for sums the Board
expended for foster care in 1981; (4) the Department
properly determined the Department's share of welfarecosts in 1981; and (5) the General Assembly is required
to fund fully the county [**4] contingency fund
established by section 26-1-126 of the Code.
The three parties have appealed one or more of these
rulings, and the Board also appeals an evidentiary
ruling of the trial court. 3 Several amici curiae have filed
briefs in support of certain of the Board's contentions.
We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
I
To aid the resolution of these issues, it will be helpful to
briefly review the history of welfare programs in
Colorado and to explain the functioning of the public
assistance funding provisions established by the Code.
The facts underlying the various claims will emerge in
the course of these discussions.
A. Overview of Public Assistance
Prior to statehood, the territory's county governments
were charged by various legislative provisions with the
responsibility of providing relief to poor persons whoeither had no relatives in the territory or whose relatives
could not or would not [**5] support them. See Ch. 68,
C.R.S. (1868) (chapter entitled "Paupers"). These
provisions continued in force upon the admission of
Colorado into the Union. See Colo. Const. sched. § 1
(1876); ch. 76, Colo. Gen. Laws (1877). Indeed,
substantially similar provisions remained in effect until
1981. See §§ 30-17-101 to -117, 12 C.R.S. (1977),
repealed and reenacted by Ch. 367, §§ 30-17-101 to-206, 1981 Colo. Sess. Laws 1451. The reenacted
provisions deleted all language requiring county
responsibility for public assistance programs, except for
the obligation to provide burial services for indigent
persons. See §§ 30-17-102, -104, 12 C.R.S. (1984
Supp.).
The state first assumed some responsibility for public
assistance programs in response to the economic
environment engendered by the Great Depression. In
1933, the General Assembly created a state relief
committee and declared that providing "the necessaries
of life" was a "State, County, City and Town purpose."
Ch. 51, sec. 1, 1933 Colo. Sess. Laws 385 (codified at
ch. 141, § 2, 4A Colo. Stat. Ann. (1949)). At an
extraordinary session, the General Assembly reaffirmed
that relief served both a state and county purpose [**6]
and expressly provided that adoption of the new
legislation did not relieve counties of their former duties
under the "Paupers" statute. See Ch. 15, § 1, 1933-34,
Colo. Sess. Laws 71 (2d Ex. Sess.) (codified at ch. 141,
§ 1, 4A Colo. Stat. Ann. (1949)).
In response to the passage by the federal congress of
the Social Security Act in 1935, Pub. L. No. 74-271, 49
Stat. 620 (codified, as amended, at 42 U.S.C. § 301, et
seq. (1982)), the GeneralAssembly enacted theWelfare
Organization Act of 1936. See ch. 5, 1936 Colo. Sess.
Laws 27 (codified, as amended, at ch. 141, §§ 13 to 29,
4A Colo. Stat. Ann. (1949)). This act created state and
county welfare departments and established a pattern
of joint state and county funding responsibility together
with general state control over public assistance
programs, including federally assisted programs. See
id. See generally Colorado Legislative Council, Report to the Colorado General Assembly: Public Assistance
Administration, Research Pub. No. 135 (Nov. 1968).
2 The complaint sought relief by injunction to prevent the Board "from reducing public assistance and welfare payments, and
all other social services expenditures," and by writ of mandamus compelling the Board to "appropriate and expend such funds
as are necessary to administer public assistance or welfare programs." It also sought a declaratory judgment that "Pueblo
County must comply with C.R.S. 1973, 26-1-122 and pay its share of public assistance and social services." Previous
paragraphs of the complaint alleged that this duty was twenty percent of such costs.
3 This court has accepted jurisdiction of this appeal pursuant to § 13-4-110, 6 C.R.S. (1973).
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The present version of the Code retains much of the
structure first announced by its depression era
predecessors. It establishes the duties of the state and
county [**7] departments of social services; 4 grants
authority [*6] to theexecutive director of the Department
to issue rules governing the internal administration of
both state and county departments; and authorizes theState Board of Social Services, a component body of
the Department, to issue rules governing the scope and
content of programs, the rights and responsibilities of
persons affected by such programs, and the fiscal and
personnel administration of the county departments. §
26-1-108(1), (2), 11 C.R.S. (1982). Furthermore, the
State Board of Social Services, by rule, has authority to
establish minimum personnel standards and
qualifications, which rules govern the employment of
support staff. Id. §§ 26-1-108(2), -119, -122; Dempsey
v. City & County of Denver, 649 P.2d 726 (Colo. App.
1982). The Department's rules and regulations arebinding on the several county departments. §
26-1-108(2), 11 C.R.S. (1982). Colorado State Board of
Social Services v. Billings, 175 Colo. 380, 487 P.2d 1110
(1971).
[**8] Some decisions, however, remain within the
authority of county departments, such as the choice of
county director, whether certain specialized training
shall be given to county department employees, and
whether certain optional specialized programs should
be adopted. §§ 26-1-117(1), -118(8), -122(4)(e), 11
C.R.S. (1982). It is clear, however, that the county social
services departments are agents of the State
Department. Id. § 26-1-118(1); Board of County
Commissioners v. State Board of Social Services, 186
Colo. 435, 528 P.2d 244 (1974).
The federal government, the state and the counties
contribute funds to public assistance programs in
Colorado. Section 26-1-109(2)(a) authorizes the
Department, with the written approval of the governor
and the attorney general, to accept federal funds for
public assistance programs under the terms and
conditions of applicable federal statutes. To obtain
federal aidfor such programs as aid to the blind, families
with dependent children (AFDC), the needy disabled
and the elderly, the state program must operate in andbe mandatory for all political subdivisions of the state.
See 42 U.S.C. §§ 302(a)(1), 602(a)(1), 1202(a)(1) and
1352(a)(1) [**9] (1982). The federal share of financing
for various public assistance programs ranges generally
from fifty percent to ninety percent, depending on the
nature of the expenditure and the type of the program.
See, e.g., 42 U.S.C. § 302(1)(4)(B) (fifty percent of
certain old age assistance expenditures); 42 U.S.C. §
603(a)(3)(B) (ninety percent of AFDC program costs).
Other special federal assistance programs may be one
hundred percent federally funded. See, e.g., 42 U.S.C.
§ 8623(a)(1)(B) (1982) (Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LEAP)).
The federal monies received by the state are held
separately from state funds. The Code designates the
state treasurer as ex officio custodian of these funds
and authorizes the treasurer to disburse such funds for
their designated purposes. See § 26-1-109(2)(b), (c),
11 C.R.S. (1982). These federal monies are included
within the calculation of the state's share of public
assistance costs, which is eighty percent of overall
program and administrative costs. Id. § 26-1-122(3)(b),
(4)(b). 5
[**10] The counties are also responsible for certain expenses of public assistance, not to exceed
twenty percent. Id. § 26-1-122(1). 6
[*7] The budget and appropriation processes for state
and county public assistance program budgets are well
established. The state fiscal year commences July 1
annually. § 24-30-204, 10 C.R.S. (1982). The
Department begins work on its budget in the July
4 The Code expressly permits two or more counties to form joint district departments of social services. See § 26-1-115(2),
11 C.R.S. (1982). The district department performs the same duties as county departments, with each county chargeable for
the proportion of benefits expended in it. Each reference to "county" in this opinion applies equally to districts.5 Whether all federally provided funds should be included in the calculation of this eighty percent is one issue in this case.
There is no dispute that programs which are only partially federally funded should be included in the calculation. The Board
contends, however, that programs such as LEAP which is funded 100% by the federal government or old age pension which
is funded 100% by the state should be excluded from the calculation.
6 The eighty/twenty division is not unalterable. In certain exceptional circumstances, the State may assume a greater share
of expenses. § 26-1-122(4)(d), 11 C.R.S. (1982). Counties which qualify for the monies from the state-funded county
contingency fund, § 26-1-126, 11 C.R.S. (1982), will necessarily pay less than twentypercent.Also, countyboardswhich do not
comply with Department rules and regulations may be denied state-disbursed funds for administrative expenses. Id. §
26-1-122(3)(b).
Page 8 of 23697 P.2d 1, *5; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **6
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8/20/2019 1985.03.11 - Colorado Dep_t of Social Servs. v. Board of County Comm_rs_ 697 P.2d 1
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preceding the next state fiscal year. The Department
considers a variety of data in assessing state welfare
needs, including actual expenses incurred in previous
and current years and various indicators of general
economic and social conditions. The budget contains
separate funding requests for each program and fund. It
must be submitted to [**11] the State Office of Planningand Budget by October 1, and, as modified there, is
presented as part of the overall state budget to the
GeneralAssemblyin December. Legislative committees
hold hearings on the budget, which is eventually
approved by the General Assembly prior to the
commencement of the fiscal year. The General
Assembly is required to make "adequate appropriations"
for public assistance based upon the budget submitted
by the Department. § 26-1-121(1)(a), 11 C.R.S. (1982).
In the event the initial appropriation fails to meet the
costs of public assistance programs, the General
Assembly may supplement appropriations to redressthe imbalance. See Colo. Const. art. V, § 32 . Any
unobligated and unexpended balances in state funds
are credited to the general fund. Id. § 26-1-121(2).
Upon approval of its annual budget, usually near the
July 1 date upon which the state fiscal year begins, the
Department sends a "County Budget Letter" to each
board of county commissioners. The letter includes
projected fluctuations in caseloads, rate increases for
programs and facilities, and provides estimates of the
adequacy of the appropriations adopted by the General
Assembly for [**12] the programs established by theCode. Because the counties employ a fiscal year based
on thecalendar year, see section 29-1-103(1), 12 C.R.S.
(1984 Supp.), and typically begin their budgeting
process in the fall of each year, each county is aware of
the Department's appropriated budget for the first six
months of the county's next fiscal year and has some
indication of the Department's budget priorities for the
remainder of thecounty'snext fiscal year well in advance
of the commencement of the county budgetary process.
The public assistance budget prepared by each county
in the fall must be submitted to the Department for
review before it may be adopted by a board of countycommissioners as part of the county's overall budget. §
26-1-124, 11 C.R.S. (1982). 7 The Department neither
approves nor disapproves preliminary county budgets;
it uses these budgets as an aid in monitoring the
adequacy of present and future state budgets.
[**13] The Code requires the board of county
commissioners of each county to include in the annual
county tax levy sums sufficient to defray the total costs
of that county's public assistance programs, up to a
maximum of twenty percent of such costs. Id. §
26-1-122(1). The sums derived from the tax levy,
together with the appropriate state and federal fundsadvanced to each county by the state treasurer upon
warrants issued pursuant to vouchers from the
Department, are deposited in a county social services
fund in each county for payment of program and
administrative costs. Sums are disbursed from that
fund, upon proper warrants, by the director of the county
program to appropriate programs and to eligible
recipients. See id. §§ 26-1-109(2)(c), -122(4)(b).
Two particular aspects of the publicassistance financing
scheme bear special explanation -- foster care funding
under section 19-3-120, 8 C.R.S. (1984 Supp.), and thecounty contingency fund established by section
26-1-126, 11 C.R.S. (1982). The Children's Code
requires the State Board of [*8] Social Services to
adopt a method for allocating funds for foster care. The
Children's Code also provides that no county may
exceed [**14] its particular allocation for foster care. §
19-3-120(1), 8 C.R.S. (1984 Supp.). Section
19-3-120(2)(d) and (e) provides that the Department
shall reimburse a county department for eighty percent
of the total county allocation as described in section
26-1-122 . Thus, foster care is a fixed or capped
program, where the total expenditures are limited, ascompared to an entitlement program in which total
costs depend primarily on the number of eligible
recipients served.
Section 26-1-126 creates a "county contingency fund"
funded by the General Assembly. The Department is
required to make advancements from this fund to
counties qualifying for such payments. A county is
eligible for payments from this fund if a 3.0 mill levy
would provide less than that county's actual required
share of public assistance costs. Section 26-1-126(3)
provides a method for calculating the amount to beadvanced each month to qualifying counties. Because
data concerning actual expenditures in each county
does not arrive at the Department until approximately
two months after funds for a particular month have been
advanced, in practice the Department authorizes
7 Although Department officials indicated that they have, on occasion, rejected items in a county social services budget, they
maintained that they neither approve nor disapprove the proposed county budgets, but use them as additional data for
calculating the state budget.
Page 9 of 23697 P.2d 1, *7; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **13
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8/20/2019 1985.03.11 - Colorado Dep_t of Social Servs. v. Board of County Comm_rs_ 697 P.2d 1
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advancements from this fund based upon estimated
[**15] claims. The Department later recoups from or
reimburses to the counties the amounts of prior
advancements that have exceeded or fallen short of the
actual amount to which a particular county was entitled.
B. Pueblo County Public Assistance ExpensesThe events precipitating the public assistance deficit in
Pueblo County's 1981 fiscal year budget began in 1979.
In fiscal year 1979, Pueblo County imposed a public
assistance levy of 5.3 mills. Funds from the property tax
revenues generated by this levy, certain other taxes, 8
[**16] and reliance upon $13,271,115 from state
sources, including approximately $740,000 from the
county contingency fund, constituted the sources from
which Pueblo County's $15,916,675 public assistance
costs were to be funded. However, the General
Assembly did not appropriate enough money for the
county contingency fund to permit the Department to
pay all counties the full amounts to which they were
entitled according to the formula in section 26-1-126(3)
of the Code. Thus, during its fiscal year 1979 Pueblo
County received approximately $22,000 less in county
contingency fund payments than had been expected. 9
The Department's 1979 County Budget Letter predicted
a controversial legislative session in 1980 because the
rate of inflation at that time exceeded the permitted rate
of growth in government spending.The letter anticipated
increases in various public assistance program
expenses at seven percent generally, but contained noprediction regarding the adequacy of funding for the
county contingency fund. However, in the fiscal
1980-1981 budget the General Assembly again failed
to appropriate sufficient sums to cover the total county
contingency fund obligations due eligible counties under
the section 26-1-126(3) formula. As a result, Pueblo
County received $65,000 less from the county
contingency fund than had been projected for the
county's 1980 fiscal year.
The 1980 County Budget Letter sent to all counties
[**17] by the Department predicted [*9] that legislative
funding for the county contingency fund in 1981 would
be insufficient and counseled counties to "plan on
receiving no more than 90% of claims against the
contingency fund." The letter also predicted a net
increase in program caseloads and warned that,because the General Assembly had previously rejected
requests for supplemental appropriations to the county
contingency fund, it was unlikely to approve such a
request during the coming year. Pueblo County
prepared its fiscal 1981 budget on the assumption that
during 1981 it would recover 100% of the county
contingency fund advancements to which it would be
entitled under the formula established by section
26-1-126(3).
Pueblo County received a separate letter in 1980 from
the Department concerning funding for the foster careprogram in 1981. This letter stated that "no county will
be reimbursed more than its allocation" for foster care
and cautioned the county to budget carefully. The
county, however, paid more than its total foster care
allocation that year.
In 1980, anticipating a total expenditure of $23,300,000
for public assistance programs in its fiscal year 1981, as
compared [**18] to expenses of $19,500,000 during
fiscal year 1980, the Board sought permission, pursuant
to section 26-1-125(3) of the Code, to increase its public
assistance mill levy. The increase requested, 1.0 mill,
was approved by the Division of Local Government,
raising Pueblo County's public assistance levy to 6.3
mills. The County simultaneously received permission
to increase its levy for other county services by .44 mill.10 The county also imposed a wage and hiring freeze
and laid off forty-one employees in other departments in
an attempt to reduce overall expenses.
In March 1981, the Board received a letter from the
Department stating that the appropriation for the county
8 The County utilized $197,073 from the specific ownership tax on motor vehicles levied in lieu of ad valorem taxes on such
vehicles pursuant to §§ 42-3-101 to -134, 17 C.R.S. (1984). It also realized revenue from delinquent property taxes andpenalties and interest thereon. For purposes of providing a sufficient appropriation for public assistance costs and including
such in the tax levy of each county, see § 26-1-122(1)(a), 11 C.R.S. (1982), all of these property-based taxes and revenues are
properly relied on by the counties.
9 Pueblo County began its fiscal year 1979 with a public assistance surplus of over $290,000. As the combination of this, its
property taxand state funds were inadequate to satisfy publicassistance costs in that year,it ended countyfiscal year 1979 with
a public assistance deficit of $57,337.
10 An overall increase of 1.44 mills in the levy of Pueblo County caused the county's budget to increase beyond the seven
percent increase permitted by the Local Government Budget Law, § 29-1-301, 12 C.R.S. (1977 & 1984 Supp.). The law
requires counties to obtain permission to exceed this growth ceiling.
Page 10 of 23697 P.2d 1, *8; 1985 Colo. LEXIS 404, **14
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