Maes tax records document struggling family business

GOP gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes has released partial tax records to conservative Colorado Springs-based website The Constitutionalist Today. The site has not posted the returns but reviews them in a short article. In 2005, Maes started a credit reporting business that has generated up and down income for the family, ranging between roughly $52,000 to $11,000.

According to the website, Maes family income averaged $89,000 a year from 2000 to 2004 and the family donated an average of 4.75% of income to First Baptist Church of Evergreen, Evergreen Christian Outreach and Goodwill.

In 2005, though, Maes left his job to start a credit reporting business. Family income was $19,205 in 2005, $20,340 in 2006 and $51,678 in 2007. In 2008, the web site reported, Maes income fell to $11,000.

Maes, a political newcomer, won the GOP delegate voting in May with strong tea party support, upsetting six-term Congressman Scott McInnis, who came in second place. Maes received an additional boost last week when reports revealed that McInnis plagiarized articles he was paid $300,000 by the conservative Hasan Family Foundation to write in 2005 and 2006.

The Constitutionalist Today is a product of We The People, which also prints a paper version. According to the web site, “We are simple and ordinary, average Joes and Janes all. We are God-fearing. We are patriots. We are Constitutionalists!”

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Scot Kersgaard has been managing editor of a political newspaper, editor and co-owner of a ski town newspaper, executive editor of eight high-tech magazines (where he worked with current Apple CEO Tim Cook), deputy press secretary to a U.S. Senator, and an outdoors columnist at the Rocky Mountain News. He has an English degree from the University of Washington. He was awarded a fellowship to study internet journalism at the University of Maryland's Knight Center for Specialized Journalism. He was student body president in college. He spends his free time hiking and skiing.

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