Rifle’s 2024 financial audit came back clean, with no issues reported, according to Finance Director Scott Rust during the City Council’s regular meeting last Wednesday.

The city underwent both a standard financial audit and a single audit due to receiving more than $750,000 in federal funding for the 2024 fiscal year. Rust said he expects the city will continue to exceed that threshold in the coming years.

“I think it’s good, because it means continuing to get federal monies,” Rust said. “The only thing I will point out is a number of our funds went up, fund-balance wise, so that’s a good thing, revenues came in solid and our budget managers kept expenditures conservative last year.”

Rifle’s 2024 financial audit is available online for the community to view in detail. 

Council also discussed a supplemental environmental project tied to a 2020 violation from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. The city received a Notice of Violation and Cease and Desist Order that year after exceeding permitted levels of dissolved copper at its wastewater treatment facility.

While the facility effectively treats typical domestic wastewater, it was not designed to remove metals such as copper. From 2015 to 2018, the city had intermittent non-compliance related to copper discharge.

In 2018, Rifle contracted SGM Engineering for compliance assistance and found that the source of copper was most likely from erosion of copper pipes and fixtures in the water distribution system. 

The copper discharge rates for the facility come in at 28 micrograms per liter (μg/L) daily maximum and 17 μg/L for the monthly average. The wastewater facility in Rifle had multiple infractions, with copper levels ranging from 29.7 μg/L to 121 μg/L.

The limits for copper are there to protect aquatic wildlife, in particular, the Colorado pikeminnow and razorback sucker, which are both considered endangered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. 

The health standard for copper in humans is around 1,500 μg/L and the maximum amount found in the wastewater treatment plant in Rifle was 121 μg/L, posing no risk to public health. 

Because of the wastewater treatment facility’s copper amounts, Rifle was given a choice between a fine or a supplemental environmental project for the violation of the Colorado Water Quality Control Act. 

“The project that we’re looking at now is stormwater, so two manholes, one would be to align and put the storm piping at the right grade,” said city engineer Craig Spaulding. “The second will be a storm manhole that will essentially filter and treat right before it hits Rifle Creek.”

The project was awarded to Martinez Construction in the amount of $65,000 for construction. The total amount for the project, including reporting, is $110,000. 

While the fine happened five years ago, the project is starting now because of backups during the compliance assistance phase, however, it will take four to six weeks when it begins. 

Council also approved the second round of 2025 grant funding for the Greater Rifle Improvement Team (GRIT), totaling $15,000.

The Rifle Area Mountain Biking Organization (RAMBO) was awarded $7,000 for its Grand Hogback Extravaganza event in October. The request increased by $2,000 from last year to help cover parking and a shuttle system to and from the event site.

The Young Guns of Rifle is requesting $5,000 again for the Touch-A-Truck event in September and the Rifle Heritage Center is asking for $3,000 to replace the laminate photo window covering on the east side of the building. 

All motions passed unanimously.