Office of the Assessor
Exemptions
As provided in the Colorado State Constitution, all property is subject to ad valorem property tax unless specifically exempt. A number of exemptions have been added to the Constitution over the years. Following are the specific exemptions that are allowed and the clause of the Constitution pertaining to the exemption:
Section 3. (1) (b) ...Non-producing unpatented mining claims, which are possessory interests in real property by virtue of leases from the United States of America, shall be exempt from property taxation.
Section 3. (1) (c) The following classes of personal property, as defined by law, shall be exempt from property taxation: Household furnishings and personal effects which are not used for the production of income at any time; inventories of merchandise and materials and supplies which are held for consumption by a business or are held primarily for sale; livestock; agricultural and livestock products; and agricultural equipment which is used on the farm or ranch in the production of agricultural products.
Section 3. (1) (d) Ditches, canals and flumes owned and used by individuals or corporations for irrigating land owned by such individuals or corporations, or the individual members thereof, shall not be separately taxed so long as they shall be owned and used exclusively for such purposes.
Section 3.5 (1) For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2002, fifty percent of the first two hundred thousand dollars of actual value of residential real property, as defined by law, that, as of the assessment date, is owner-occupied and is used as the primary residence of the owner-occupier shall be exempt from property taxation if:
(a) The owner-occupier is sixty-five years of age or older as of the assessment date and has owned and occupied such residential real property as his
or her primary residence for the ten years immediately preceding the assessment date;
(b) The owner-occupier is the spouse or surviving spouse of an owner-occupier who previously qualified for a property tax exemption for the same residential real property
under paragraph (a) of this subsection (1); or
(c) For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2007, only, the owner-occupier, as of the assessment date, is a disabled veteran. (For further information on
Senior Exemptions and Disabled Veterans Exemptions, please follow the appropriate links under "Related Information " below.)
Section 4. The property, real and personal, of the state, counties, cities, towns and other municipal corporations and public libraries, shall be exempt from taxation.
Section 5. Property, real and personal, that is used solely and exclusively for religious worship, for schools or for strictly charitable purposes, also cemeteries not used or held for private or corporate profit, shall be exempt from taxation, unless otherwise provided by general law. (The Colorado Department of Property Taxation is responsible for approving religious, educational and charitable exemptions. See the link under "Related Information " below for further information.)
Section 6. The general assembly shall enact laws classifying motor vehicles and also wheeled trailers, semi-trailers, trailer coaches, and mobile and self-propelled construction equipment, prescribing methods of determining the taxable value of such property, and requiring payment of a graduated annual specific ownership tax thereon, which tax shall be in lieu of all ad valorem taxes upon such property; except that such laws shall not exempt from ad valorem taxation any such property in process of manufacture or held in storage, or which constitutes the inventory of manufacturers or distributors thereof or dealers therein; and further except that the general assembly shall provide by law for the taxation of mobile homes.
Section 3. (1) (b) ...Non-producing unpatented mining claims, which are possessory interests in real property by virtue of leases from the United States of America, shall be exempt from property taxation.
Section 3. (1) (c) The following classes of personal property, as defined by law, shall be exempt from property taxation: Household furnishings and personal effects which are not used for the production of income at any time; inventories of merchandise and materials and supplies which are held for consumption by a business or are held primarily for sale; livestock; agricultural and livestock products; and agricultural equipment which is used on the farm or ranch in the production of agricultural products.
Section 3. (1) (d) Ditches, canals and flumes owned and used by individuals or corporations for irrigating land owned by such individuals or corporations, or the individual members thereof, shall not be separately taxed so long as they shall be owned and used exclusively for such purposes.
Section 3.5 (1) For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2002, fifty percent of the first two hundred thousand dollars of actual value of residential real property, as defined by law, that, as of the assessment date, is owner-occupied and is used as the primary residence of the owner-occupier shall be exempt from property taxation if:
(a) The owner-occupier is sixty-five years of age or older as of the assessment date and has owned and occupied such residential real property as his
or her primary residence for the ten years immediately preceding the assessment date;
(b) The owner-occupier is the spouse or surviving spouse of an owner-occupier who previously qualified for a property tax exemption for the same residential real property
under paragraph (a) of this subsection (1); or
(c) For property tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2007, only, the owner-occupier, as of the assessment date, is a disabled veteran. (For further information on
Senior Exemptions and Disabled Veterans Exemptions, please follow the appropriate links under "Related Information " below.)
Section 4. The property, real and personal, of the state, counties, cities, towns and other municipal corporations and public libraries, shall be exempt from taxation.
Section 5. Property, real and personal, that is used solely and exclusively for religious worship, for schools or for strictly charitable purposes, also cemeteries not used or held for private or corporate profit, shall be exempt from taxation, unless otherwise provided by general law. (The Colorado Department of Property Taxation is responsible for approving religious, educational and charitable exemptions. See the link under "Related Information " below for further information.)
Section 6. The general assembly shall enact laws classifying motor vehicles and also wheeled trailers, semi-trailers, trailer coaches, and mobile and self-propelled construction equipment, prescribing methods of determining the taxable value of such property, and requiring payment of a graduated annual specific ownership tax thereon, which tax shall be in lieu of all ad valorem taxes upon such property; except that such laws shall not exempt from ad valorem taxation any such property in process of manufacture or held in storage, or which constitutes the inventory of manufacturers or distributors thereof or dealers therein; and further except that the general assembly shall provide by law for the taxation of mobile homes.
Disabled Veterans Property Tax ExemptionIn 2006, Colorado voters approved Referendum E, amending section 3.5 of article X of the Colorado Constitution. The amendment and subsequent legislation expanded the senior property tax exemption to include “qualifying disabled veterans.”
For disabled veterans who qualify, 50 percent of the first $200,000 of actual value of the veteran’s primary residence is exempted. The state will reimburse the county treasurer for the lost revenue. The effective date for the exemption was January 1, 2007, on property tax bills sent beginning in 2008. A disabled Veteran exemption is available to those applicants who: a) sustained a service-connected disability while serving on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States, b) were honorably discharged, AND c) were rated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs as one hundred percent "permanent and total" disabled. VA unemployability awards do not meet the requirement for determining an applicant's eligibility. The applicant must have owned and occupied the home as his or her primary residence since January 1 of the year of application; however, limited exceptions to the ownership and occupant requirements are detailed in the eligibility requirements section of the application. Owners of multiple residences may only designate one property as their primary residence. The application deadline is July 1. Application forms are available from the Division of Veterans Affairs at the address, telephone number, and website shown below, and can also be downloaded from the link below. Completed applications should be submitted to the Colorado Division of Veterans Affairs at the following address: Colorado Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Division of Veterans Affairs 7465 E 1st Avenue, Suite C Denver, CO 80230 Telephone: 303-343-1268 Fax: 303-343-7238 www.dmva.state.co.us/page/va/prop_tax |
Senior Property Tax ExemptionIf you have owned your home for ten years and are 65 years or older as of January 1, 2013 you probably qualify for the senior property tax exemption. This exempts 50% of the first $200,000 of actual value from property tax, and is funded by the State of Colorado. In recent years the state legislature has suspended the exemption because of budget limitations, however it is once again effective.
Those who qualify for the first time in 2013 are encouraged to apply, and homeowners who have already been approved for the exemption need not reapply. Religious, Educational and Charitable ExemptionsThe Department of Property Taxation (DPT) is responsible for determining qualification for exemption from property taxation for properties that are owned and used for religious, charitable, and private school purposes. Currently exempt property owners are required to file annual reports with the DPT in order to continue exemption. They provides assistance to counties and taxpayers with inquiries about exempt properties, conducts hearings on denied exemption applications and revocations of exemption, and defends appeals of such denials and revocations.
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