See that tree in front of your house, the one that gives shade to the sidewalk? Denver bureaucrats do, too – it grows money.

More on that in a moment on the Face The State Radio Minute.

Maybe you’ve got a sidewalk in front of your house. a little plot of land, too, between the sidewalk and the curb. It’s the city’s land, but you’ve got to take care of it.

In Denver, that plot is often home to a tree or two. Great. Those trees represent a potential new cash-cow for the city to the tune of $100,000 in fines every year. That’s right - If you don’t trim the branches, you’re liable for a ticket that can run into the hundreds of dollars.

Not a problem for an able-bodied home improvement god such as myself, but this could be a real burden for older folks. Some city-mandated upkeep even requires an arborist. That’s real money.

Denver passed a half-billion dollar tax increase last year. I hardly think Colorado’s biggest city really needs $100,000 in new fines. Like the trees, this idea is for the birds.

For FaceTheState.com, I’m Brad Jones.