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Steamboat Springs — A candidates debate Thursday night reached the boiling point on several occasions, with election foes sparring about qualifications and political records.

The debate, hosted by the Steamboat Springs High School forensics team, drew about 60 people, who were encouraged to submit questions for the candidates before the debate began.

Ten candidates running in four contested races attended the event. They were: sheriff's candidates Gary Wall (D) and Garrett Wiggins (R); county commissioner candidates Diane Mitsch Bush (D) and Paul Strong (R); county assessor candidates Mike Kerrigan (D), Nancy Terry (I) and Dick Klumker (R); and state House District 57 candidates Andy Gold (D), Al White (R) and Mike Kien (L).

Wiggins and Wall butted heads over Amendment 44, which would legalize possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana for adults 21 and older. Both candidates are against the amendment, but for different reasons. Wiggins opposes Amendment 44 because he thinks it will only serve to increase drug abuse and make marijuana more available to children. Wall opposes the amendment because he thinks drug laws need to be addressed at the federal level. The men also questioned one another's qualifications for the job.

Wiggins said voters should consider whether they want a sheriff who has not been a certified law enforcement officer in nearly 30 years, and Wall wondered why Wiggins had never been given a supervisory role during his 20 years on the job.

The candidates for Routt County assessor also made experience - and politics - a key issue in their debate.

Terry said the Assessor's Office is "meeting its statutory obligations" but that its employees are "entrenched and work in a deny-all bureaucracy."

Kerrigan, who is chief app-raiser in the Assessor's Office, rejected Terry's claims and said the office takes on a huge task in the county, one that requires specialized skills, experience and leadership. Klumker said he wants the Assessor's Office to have an open-door policy and a set of ethical guides and standards he will abide by if elected. Klumker also addressed his lack of accreditation as an appraiser or assessor. He said he is close to finishing a course in those areas.

Thursday's most heated debate belonged to the candidates running for House District 57.

Democrat Andy Gold accused incumbent opponent Al White of giving tax breaks to the ski industry and oil and gas companies before taking care of state education issues.

White called Gold's allegations "damn lies." White, a Republican from Winter Park, stressed the success he's had in the Legislature fighting for Northwest Colo-rado issues, and emphasized the endorsements he's picked up.

Speaking about environmental preservation, Kien, a Libertarian candidate from Oak Creek, said the way to eliminate greenhouse gases is to "re-legalize the growth of agricultural hemp" and that "a farmer could grow enough hemp oil to power all cars in a year."

County commissioner candidates Strong and Mitsch Bush agreed on solutions to many of the problems Routt County residents may face in coming years.

Mitsch Bush and Strong said growth is the No. 1 issue facing Routt County in the next couple decades, and they agreed that county sprawl is not a good idea and that the county and other municipalities should work together more often on projects.

- To reach Alexis DeLaCruz, call 871-4234 or e-mail adelacruz@steamboatpilot.com