Denver Giving DNC Gas Tax Breaks

Ah, the appearance of impropriety. Or illegality.

The City of Denver, which is hosting the Democratic National Convention next month was apparently providing DNC committee members with the ability to fill their gas tanks on taxpayer dime - by letting them skip paying state and federal gas taxes.

The practice, which began four months ago, may have ended hours after its disclosure. An aide to Mayor John Hickenlooper released a statement Tuesday evening saying that Denver 2008 Host Committee members would pay market prices for fuel and would also be liable for all applicable taxes.

However, Public Works spokeswoman Christine Downs told City Council members just hours before that host committee members were fueling up at the city pumps. The city does not pay taxes on the fuel for its fleet, and Downs said the host committee would not either.

The disclosure brought immediate scrutiny. Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said the practice "would seem" to be illegal and referred the matter to the state Department of Revenue.

Nonprofits, such as the host committee, are subject to state and federal gasoline taxes, according to the Department of Revenue.

The issue arose during the regular weekly meeting of Hickenlooper and City Council members. Downs requested authorization for a contract so the Public Works Department could be reimbursed by the host committee for use of "fueling facilities, fuel and car washes."

Downs said the contract with the host committee started in March and that $9,700 in fuel and services had been purchased from the city so far. But the committee has yet to be billed. The city anticipates $466,125 in total revenues from the contract, Downs said.

City Councilman Charlie Brown raised the question of whether the host committee would be paying fuel taxes, and Downs said it wouldn't.

"There's something there that just doesn't seem right to me because, in a sense, you're saying then that the officials who pass the laws are not willing to live by them," said Councilwoman Jeanne Faatz.

Hickenlooper said the practice isn't unique to Denver.

"I do know for a fact that they're doing the same exact thing in Minneapolis," Hickenlooper said, referring to the city that along with St. Paul is hosting the Republican National Convention.

The mayor's office is trying to play this off as though the RNC was getting a similar break, but the RNC is paying the tax on fuel just as any other taxpayer.

Nice.

So, what was the excuse given for the DNC using the city's tax-free gas pumps?

Wait for it:

The host committee, which is responsible for raising money to put on the convention, is using the city's pumps "for safety and security reasons," Lopez said.

"We know the gas is not tainted," he said. "We use it as a safety and security measure."

Oh really? Are you telling me that Denver residents are putting themselves in jeopardy by filling up at any of the privately owned gas stations? How many tainted gas stations have been found in the City? You would think that such news would get wider play in Denver, but a search of news for Denver and tainted gas found no records.

Lame.

First the DNC was toying with the idea of cutting the convention short because it couldn't make it's budget, and now we're finding that they've been shortchanging the state by not paying taxes on fuel purchases.

Lovely.