The Proceeds Were Issued to Eight Organizations With the Goal of Increasing Capacity for Search & Rescue and Recreation/Trail Safety Service Providers in Boulder County.

Boulder County, Colo.—The Boulder County Commissioners, with support from the Boulder Sheriff, have awarded $721,703 in emergency services grants to eight local search & rescue and emergency response agencies. The proceeds for the grants come from the Emergency Services Sales & Use Tax that was approved by voters in 2022 as County Issue 1B.

Revenues from the tax help provide financial assistance to underfunded or under-resourced organizations that provide emergency services—such as firefighting and search and rescue—in the rural and mountain areas of Boulder County.

A total of eight grants were approved for the spring round of grants (with payments issued in late summer and fall) to agencies that provide either search and rescue services or help make trails in rural Boulder County safer to use.

The awards were recommended by the Emergency Services Grant Program Advisory Committee, a volunteer group of nine Boulder County residents with extensive emergency service, firefighting, and search and rescue experience.

Photos depicting rescue training efforts by search & rescue responders in Boulder County

Grant Awards

For this second round of grants, the Emergency Services Advisory Committee was tasked with making funding recommendations for search and rescue and recreation/trail safety service providers in Boulder County. A previous round of grants, awarded in the fall of 2023, awarded $1.7 million to mountain and rural fire protection districts.

The eight awarded organizations include:

1) Boulder County Amateur Radio Emergency Services (BCARES) – $30,000

For upgrades, repairs, and enhancements of emergency voice, video, and digital communications.

2) Boulder Emergency Squad (BES) – $454,944

For facility-related capital upgrades or replacements, including a roof replacement and other facility repairs; dual-band radios and repeater to conform to Boulder County communications standards by 2028.

3) Boulder Mountainbike Alliance (BMA) – $8,105

For bike patrol & Wapiti Trail safety first aid training and equipment.

4) Bryan Mountain Nordic Ski Patrol (BMNSP) – $50,521

For education & training for CPR/first aid, avalanche awareness, mountain travel and rescue, and communications equipment (internal radios).

5) Colorado 4x4 Rescue and Recovery – $10,000

For an amount to cover personal expenses incurred by volunteers when performing search and rescue activities and vehicle recoveries in Boulder County.

6) Front Range Rescue Dogs (FRRD) – $34,694

For pagers, dual-band radios, and dog tracking collars (with inReach capabilities).

7) Indian Peaks Wilderness Alliance (IPWA) – $7,207

For internal and partner organization communications devices, inReach subscription, spot device, and a new radio cabinet.

8) Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, Inc (RMR) – $126,232

For dual-band radios to meet Boulder County communications standards by 2028.

Announcement: Fire Districts in Boulder County Can Apply for $1.7 million in Emergency Services Grants. The 2024 Fall Grant Pool is open to fire districts that provide emergency services in Boulder County's mountain and rural areas. Deadline to apply: Tuesday, December 10, by 5 p.m.