Pueblo County to award more than $2 million in marijuana tax scholarships
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -- Pueblo County unveiled how much scholarship money will be awarded thanks to marijuana sales tax.
According to our news partners at the Pueblo Chieftain, more than $2 million in marijuana excise sales tax scholarships will be distributed to local schools and organizations for the upcoming fall and spring semesters.
The county will award:
- $1 million to Pueblo Community College
- $616,000 to the Colorado State University-Pueblo Foundation
- $385,000 to CSU Pueblo Athletics for student-athletes
- $26,000 to the Pueblo African American Concern Organization
The administrators of the scholarships told the Chieftain this type of accessible funding available is key to convincing students to enroll in school and stay in Pueblo County.
“Not only are we able to focus on Pueblo County student-athletes that could potentially come to CSU Pueblo and play for us, but we can also look at the national scene and try to bring in national-caliber student-athletes to enrich the life of CSU Pueblo, but also enrich our community and hopefully stay here after that,” Director of Athletics Paul Plinske told the Chieftain.
The scholarship program was first approved by voters in 2015 and has since grown and now stands at a fully phased-in 5% tax.
When the scholarship program was created, it was initially for Pueblo County high school graduates and who planned to go to a Pueblo school. In 2019, the Board of Pueblo County Commissioners expanded the eligibility to include all Pueblo county residents with a GED who planned to attend higher education in the U.S.
