If a group of people walked into a bank and stole $155 million, government agencies from the local police to the FBI would pounce onto the case, searching for those people until every last perpetrator is found. Once caught, the perpetrators would be brought in front of a court, tried, and (hopefully) brought to justice.

The function of our society relies on the basic principle of the equal administration of justice. The Constitution provides for the equal protection of the laws. What happens, though, when those responsible for executing the law circumvent the law?

Such is the case in Lamar. The Arkansas River Power Authority grants power to the municipalities of Lamar, Trinidad, Las Animas, La Junta, Holly and Springfield. Lamar joined with its fellow ARPA members to repurpose a gas-fired power plant to a coal-fired plant to reap the benefits of the low price of coal. The project is known as the Lamar Repowering Project.

Funded through public bonds, LRP was initially projected to cost $66 million. After years of mismanagement and other setbacks, costs soared and ARPA ended up borrowing $155 million to finance the project. The project failed when an environmentalist-backed lawsuit took the plant offline, leaving ARPA members on the hook to pay back the massive debt they agreed to when LRP began.

ARPA’s six member cities were understandably unhappy about the failed project, which they remained on the hook to pay for. But five of the six municipalities settled with ARPA, knowing they were ultimately responsible for their share of the debt they approved. But Lamar chose not to settle in court, rather opting to take the costlier route and stiff ARPA’s creditors. The city has filed a lawsuit in hopes it can avoid paying back its share of the money borrowed on its behalf.

This is tantamount to theft. If you or I refused to pay the money we owe to the government, does anyone doubt the outcome? In all likelihood, the government would impose a lien against us and our belongings would be repossessed.

Good governance advocates can often look to local administrations to set the standard for how our lawmakers can effectively govern at the state and federal level. However, Lamar has demonstrated the opposite and could create a dangerous precedent for other Colorado municipalities.

This double standard cannot be tolerated. We must demand financial accountability from Lamar’s elected leaders.

Nor can the financial ramifications of Lamar’s actions be considered in isolation. Its actions may affect its ability to finance infrastructure projects in the future.

Consider this: If someone borrowed money from the bank to buy a house, didn’t make payments on the house, then had the house repossessed, that individual’s credit would be doomed. He or she would be unable to obtain another loan from the bank (or any bank) for many years, and then only at a high interest rate.

The same concept applies to government. ARPA borrowed money with the backing of its members to finance an infrastructure project. The creditors were happy to invest in the project, only expecting their money back (with interest) in exchange for upfront liquidity. If they do not get their money back, or even if Lamar demonstrates that it is willing to fight debt repayment that it voluntarily agreed to, no responsible creditor would lend money to the city again. In fact, the precedent created by the city of Lamar would almost certainly impact other Colorado municipalities. As the risk of lending money goes up, creditors will charge a much higher interest rate, punishing not only the city of Lamar, but other Colorado municipalities as well.

We must hold our elected officials accountable, for their power is derived from the people. Whether money is heisted from a bank or “borrowed” from constituents through bonded indebtedness and then never paid back, the money has been, effectively, stolen. No individual and no entity should be above the law or its contractual obligations.

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Jeff Crank is a native Coloradan and conservative radio talk show host on AM 740 KVOR. He can be heard every Saturday morning from 6-9 a.m.