$4 County Clerk fee: What is it?

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KKCO) - We were contacted about a fee on a vehicle tag renewal form that a viewer claimed they hadn’t seen before about a $4 county clerk for hire fee.

The writer wondered if the fee helped pick up the bill for former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters,m who is indicted for election tampering.

The current clerk, Bobbie Gross, said that was far from where the funds actually go. We found out almost every vehicle in the state pays that fee.

“When we collect that that $4 clerk for hire fee, it goes into the into the county’s general fund. Then the Board of County Commissioners distribute that for our budget,” said Gross. “We ultimately get that money back but in the form of our budget.”

The fee is applied to any registered vehicle in the state of Colorado, except those exempt from a registration fee. “It’s in statute, it’s been in there since at least 1995,” informed Gross. “Originally, it was put into statute to help defray the cost for the counties that are performing the duties for the Department of Revenue.”

Gross said the revenue collected from this fee is to pay county employees and credits it for helping cut down on wait times. She mentioned that last year’s funds didn’t cover all the costs.

If you check your registration fee breakdown you’ll find other costs. Everything from $1.50 for vehicles and trailers over two thousand pounds. That money goes to county road and bridge funds.

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