Legislative Updates

View the text of HB24-1267

The law requires a metropolitan district engaging in covenant enforcement and design review services to comply with certain procedural requirements, including adopting written policies governing the imposition and collection of fines, governing how disputes between the metropolitan district and a resident are addressed, and refraining from prohibiting residents from certain activities on their property, similar to requirements and restrictions applicable to homeowners associations in the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act.

The law also prohibits a metropolitan district from foreclosing on any lien based on a resident’s delinquent fees or other charges owed to the metropolitan district.

The law was signed by the Governor on April 19, 2024, and takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, August 7, 2024, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of HB24-1302

The law requires all taxing authorities to submit, with their annual certification of levies, the following information:

• The rate of the levy;
• The prior year levy and revenue collected from the levy;
• The maximum levy that may be levied without further voter approval;
• The allowable annual growth in revenue collected from the levy;
• The actual growth in revenue collected from the levy over the prior year;
• Whether revenue from the levy is allowed to be retained and spent as a voter-approved revenue change pursuant to Section 20(7)(b) of article X of the State Constitution;
• Whether revenue from the levy is subject to the limit on annual revenue growth in Section 29-1-301(1)(a)
• Whether revenue from the levy is subject to any other limit on annual revenue growth enacted by the taxing authority or other local government;
• Whether the levy must be adjusted, or whether a mill levy credit must be allowed, to collect a certain amount of revenue for the tax year and, if applicable, that amount of revenue;
• Any other information determined necessary by the Department of Local Affairs

The board of county commissioners or other body authorized by law to levy taxes must provide this information, along with the identity of the entity that fixes each levy rate, with its annual certification of levies. The counties are required to ensure that this information is publicly available.

The law was signed by the Governor on June 3, 2024, and takes effect immediately.

View the text of HB24-1454

The law provides for a one-year grace period for public agencies to comply with digital accessibility standards.  During this time, a public agency will be immune from liability for non-compliance if the public agency demonstrates a good faith effort toward compliance. The language does not define what constitutes good faith efforts toward compliance means, but in order to be eligible for immunity, a public entity must post an accessibility statement and a quarterly progress report on the public entity’s accessibility efforts on all front-facing pages of its website.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 24, 2024, and takes effect immediately.

View the text of SB24-005

The law prohibits, as of January 1, 2026, local governments, including metropolitan districts, from allowing the installation, planting or placing of nonfunctional turf, artificial turf or invasive plant species on commercial, institutional or industrial property, common interest community property, or a street, parking lot, median, or transportation corridor.

The law was signed by the Governor on March 15, 2024, and takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, August 7, 2024, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of SB24-025

The law harmonizes the separate statutes that govern the state administration of local sales or use taxes and specifies that the Department of Revenue is the entity that collects, administers and enforces a local government sales or use tax in the same manner as it collects, administers and enforces the state sales tax.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 1, 2024, and takes July 1, 2025, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of SB24-037

The law requires the Division of Administration in the Department of Public Health and Environment to conduct a feasibility study of the use of green infrastructure, to adopt three pilot projects to demonstrate the use of green infrastructure, green financing mechanisms, or both, and, by February 1, 2027,  to present a report to the water resources and agricultural review committee on the progress on various efforts to promote the use of green infrastructure and green financing mechanisms for water quality management in the State.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 25, 2024, and takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, August 7, 2024, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of SB24-129

The law prohibits public agencies (defined as any state or local government unit, including special districts) from taking certain actions relating to the collection and disclosure of data that may identify persons connected to nonprofit entities. There are civil penalties of not less than $2,500 for each violation and not less than $7,500 for each intentional violation.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 28, 2024, and takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, August 7, 2024, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of SB24-131

The law prohibits a person from carrying a firearm, both openly and concealed, in certain government buildings including state legislative buildings, buildings of a local government’s governing body, and courthouses.  The law also prohibits a person from carrying a firearm, both openly and concealed, on the property of specified public or private schools. The law includes exceptions for law enforcement officers, members of the United States armed forces or Colorado National Guard, security personnel, and certain other specified situations.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 31, 2024, and takes effect July 1, 2024.

View the text of SB24-160

The law allows public inspection of records of an employer of written and oral complaints of discriminatory or unfair employment practices that pertain to a sexual harassment complaint or investigation against an elected official found culpable of sexual harassment.

The law was signed by the Governor on June 2, 2024, and takes effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, August 7, 2024, unless a referendum is filed. If a referendum is filed, then it will be on the November 2024 ballot.

View the text of SB24-233

Property Tax Revenue Limit – The law limits specified property tax revenue for local governments beginning with the 2025 property tax year (the “Limit”). The Limit does not apply to local governments that are home rule local governments, school districts, have not received voter approval to exceed the statutory 5.5% property tax revenue limitation, or have not received voter approval to collect, retain, and spend revenue without regard to the limitations in section 20 of article X of the state constitution. The Limit is equal to the local governmental entity’s base year qualified property tax revenue increased by 5.5% for each year since the base year including the relevant property tax year. A local government may seek voter approval to waive the limit. A local governmental entity’s base year is:

• For a local governmental entity that had qualified property tax revenue for the 2023 property tax year, the local governmental entity’s qualified property tax revenue for the 2023 property tax year, plus any money the local governmental entity received from the state to compensate the local governmental entity for reduced property tax revenue in the 2023 property tax year;
• For a local governmental entity that did not have qualified property tax revenue for the 2023 property tax year, the local governmental entity’s qualified property tax revenue for the first year that the local governmental entity has property tax revenue; and
• The local governmental entity’s qualified property tax revenue for the most recent property tax year for which the local governmental entity’s voters approved temporarily waiving the limit.

A temporary property tax credit shall be established to prevent the local government’s property tax revenue from exceeding the limit.

Commercial Property Valuation Reductions – The law reduces the valuation of commercial property from 29% as follows:

• Tax year 2024: 27.9% of the amount equal to the actual value of the property minus the lesser of $30,000 or the amount that causes the valuation for assessment of the property to be $1,000 (alternate amount);
• Tax year 2025: 27% of the actual value of the property;
• Tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2026: 25% of the actual value of the property minus the lesser of 10% of the actual value of the property or $70,000 as increased for inflation.

Residential Real Property Valuation Reductions – The law makes reductions for property tax years as follows:

Tax Year 2024: The law reduces residential real property valuation by continuing the 2023 property tax year reductions to residential real property valuation:

• Multi-Family Residential Real Property: The law reduces the valuation from 6.8% of the actual value of the property to 6.7% of the amount equal to the actual value of the property minus the lesser of $55,000 or the alternate amount; and
• All Other Residential Real Property: The law reduces the valuation from an estimated 7.06% of the actual value of the property to 6.7% of the amount equal to the actual value of the property minus the lesser of $55,000 or the alternate amount.

Tax Year 2025: The law modifies residential real property valuation so that the valuation for all residential real property is:

• For the purpose of a levy imposed by a school district, 7.15% of the actual value of the property; and
• For the purpose of a levy imposed by a local governmental entity that is not a school district, 6.7% of the actual value of the property.

Tax Year 2026 and All Future Tax Years: The law reduces the valuation for all residential real property from 7.15% of the actual value of the property. For all residential real property, the valuation is:

• For the purpose of a levy imposed by a school district, the lesser of 7.15% of the actual value of the property or a percentage of the actual value of the property determined by the property tax administrator pursuant to section 6; and
• For the purpose of a levy imposed by a local governmental entity that is not a school district, 6.95% of the amount equal to the actual value of the property minus the lesser of 10% of the actual value of the property or $70,000 as adjusted for inflation in the first year of each subsequent reassessment cycle.

Adjustable Residential Real Property Valuation – The law requires legislative council staff to notify the property tax administrator of the first year after 2026 in which the local share of total program is equal to or greater than 60% of the total program determined pursuant to the “Public School Finance Act” (act). For every property tax year after that year, the valuation for assessment for all residential real property, for the purpose of a levy imposed by a school district, is equal to the lesser of:

• 7.15% of the actual value of the property; or
• The percentage of the actual value of the property necessary for the local share of total program to equal 60% of the total program determined pursuant to the act, based on the best available information when the property tax administrator determines the percentage of actual value.

Reimbursement of Local Governments – The law establishes a reimbursement mechanism for certain local governmental entities other than school districts to account for property tax revenue lost as a result of the reductions in valuation in the law for the 2024 property tax year. The reimbursement mechanism requires the state to reimburse local governments in an amount equal to the decrease, if any, in assessed value between the 2022 and 2024 property tax years multiplied by the local governments’ mill levy rate from the 2022 property tax year and establishes a fund to make such reimbursements.

Property Tax Deferral Program – Beginning with the 2025 property tax year, the law removes the existing 4% tax-growth cap applicable to property tax deferrals. Beginning with the 2025 property tax year, a person may defer the payment of the portion of real property taxes on the person’s homestead that exceeds the average of the person’s real property taxes paid for the preceding 2 property tax years for the same homestead.

The law was signed by the Governor on May 14, 2024. The law will not take effect if one or both of the following occurs:

• An initiative that reduces valuation for assessment is approved at the November 5, 2024 general election;
• An initiative that requires voter approval for retaining property tax revenue that exceeds a limit is approved at the November 5, 2024 general election is approved.

If the law takes effect after an official declaration of the vote of the November 5, 2024 general election the following exceptions apply:

• Section 3 takes effect only if Senate Bill 24-111 does not become law;
• Section 4 and 8 take effect only if Senate Bill 24-111 becomes law;
• Section 6 takes effect only if House Bill 24-1448 does not become law; and
• Section 7 takes effect only if House Bill 24-1448 becomes law.