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When the state legislature in 2021 expanded a little-known property tax deferral program, policymakers expected it to explode in popularity.
The state Treasurer’s Office, relying on a study commissioned by the General Assembly that year, figured it would become a financial lifeline for 35,000 or more Colorado households — a modest participation rate of 7% of a potential 475,000 eligible homeowners.
Property values, of course, spiked as predicted. But very few homeowners turned to the program for help.
After expanding the program a second time this year in Senate Bill 233, state lawmakers and treasury officials say they’ve been caught off guard by the lack of applications for property tax deferral, a process that allows homeowners to put off paying chunks of their property tax bills until they sell their home.
At a September meeting of the state’s Property Tax Commission, state Treasurer Dave Young told the panel that only 1,600 homeowners applied to the program this year, and of those, just 1,042 were ultimately awarded a deferral. That was about double the 540 deferrals processed in 2021, but still far from meeting the expected need for tax relief.
“Those numbers surprise me,” said state Rep. Lisa Frizell, a Castle Rock Republican. “I thought they would be a lot higher.”
Here’s how the program works:
Historically, only seniors and military veterans could defer their property taxes. But starting in the 2023 tax year, all homeowners could apply to defer some of the growth in their taxes, if their tax bill rises by more than 4% from the previous two years. The deferral amount gets converted to a lien on their home that the homeowner has to repay with interest, tied to the U.S. Treasury rate, when they sell their home or die. (Surviving spouses could apply to continue deferring the payments.)
This year, lawmakers expanded the program again to lift the 4% minimum growth rate and allow tax payment deferrals on any increases in a person’s bill, up to a maximum of $10,000.
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A LACK OF AWARENESS
The thinking behind the program is to allow homeowners — or their estates, in the case of death — to use the unrealized gains in their property values to cover their rising tax bills.
Taking a lien on their home that grows with interest over time may not make financial sense for everyone. But, Young said, most homeowners still don’t appear to know about it. Residents of just under half of the state’s 64 counties have even applied.
“I would just like to see us try to get the word out more effectively around the state,” Frizell said. “This is really something that can be really important, because I hear from my constituents all the time — especially from the senior population, property taxes are just decimating them.”
Young told the commission his office is working with county treasurers across the state on marketing efforts to increase awareness of the program. But it’s also important that people understand what they’re signing up for.
A number of senior homeowners, he said, apply thinking it’s a tax break rather than a deferred payment.
“I want to make sure they understand carefully what this means,” Young said. “This is not an exemption. This is a loan they’re going to have to pay back. But I also don’t want to find out that somebody had to lose their home because they didn’t understand this program was available.”
WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK
THE BIG STORY
Colorado Democratic Party mailer in 3rd District appears aimed at boosting Libertarian candidate
The Colorado Democratic Party sent voters in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District a mailer that appears aimed at persuading them to support the Libertarian candidate in the race in an attempt to siphon support from the Republican nominee.
The missive includes a picture of Libertarian James Wiley and labels the Puebloan “the strongest Trump supporter in the race.” It also includes a picture of Republican Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction attorney, and calls him “a corporate lawyer who won’t take a position on immigration or Trump.”
Adam Frisch, the Democrat running in the 3rd District, also appears on the mailer and is labeled as an “independent small business man.”
The 3rd District, which spans the Western Slope into Pueblo and southeastern Colorado, leans Republican. It’s currently represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, who is running for reelection in the 4th Congressional District on the other side of the state.
Frisch, who lost to Boebert by 546 votes in 2022, is expected to be competitive in the 3rd District despite its GOP lean because of his fundraising prowess and moderate stances. Hurd is an ill-defined first-time candidate who has refused to say if he voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020 or whether he will vote for him this year.
Democrats appear to see a path to victory in persuading Republican voters who would never back a Democrat to instead choose a Libertarian in the 3rd District this year.
“More Republican and unaffiliated voters in the (Republican) primary voted for other candidates than Jeff Hurd, so it’s clear that voters want a different choice in that race,” Shad Murib, chair of the Colorado Democratic Party, said in an interview Monday.
The Colorado Democratic Party reported spending more than $250,000 this month on mailers supporting Frisch. Murib said the mailer was sent to a “pretty wide range” of voters, though he didn’t get into specifics.
Nick Bayer, a consultant working for Hurd’s campaign, blasted the mailer in a written statement. He said Hurd is focusing on “talking about the issues that matter everyday to CD3 voters” rather than campaign tactics.
The Frisch campaign, which donated $115,000 to the party this month, denied any involvement in the mailer. But during the Republican primary in the 3rd District this year, Frisch bought TV ads aimed at persuading voters to back one of Hurd’s five Republican opponents because the Frisch campaign saw them as easier to beat in November. The ads specifically boosted the profile of former state Rep. Ron Hanks, an election denier.
The Frisch campaign’s primary ads were built on $900,000 in spending during the Republican primary by Rocky Mountain Values PAC, a Democratic group that purchased TV and radio spots, as well as mailers and newspaper ads, elevating Hank’s profile in the district and attacking Hurd.
Hannah Goodman, chairwoman for the Colorado Libertarian Party, chalked up the mailer to politics and usual. She doesn’t think it will be effective in swinging the race to Frisch.
“It’s almost like dumping a massive donation in his lap,” she said. “I’m really looking forward to capitalizing on what a gift and blessing that really is.”
The Sun also obtained copies of two other mailers set out recently in the district that question Hurd’s Republican bona fides.
One mailer says Hurd “won’t support Trump’s immigration plan” while another says “he does not agree with aggressive enforcement of our laws and even favors giving citizenship to illegals.”
The mailers don’t include a disclosure of who sent them. The Frisch campaign and the Colorado Democratic Party denied that they sent the missives.
The lack of disclosure may violate federal campaign finance laws.
Libertarian candidates have appeared to play spoiler before in Colorado.
In 2022, the Libertarian candidate in Colorado’s 8th Congressional District served as a spoiler after winning 9,280 votes, or 4% of the total. Democrat Yadira Caraveo beat her Republican opponent, state Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer, by roughly 1,600 votes — or less than a percentage point — in the district that spans the northeastern Denver suburbs along U.S. 85 into Greeley.
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THE POLITICAL TICKER
GOVERNOR’S OFFICE
Allie Kimmel has been named Gov. Jared Polis’ deputy chief of staff for policy and legislative affairs. Eleni Angelides has been named the governor’s legislative director, and Jamie Short and Casey Badmington have been named deputy legislative directors. The staffing changes follow David Oppenheim’s transition to chief of staff.
“I am grateful for the experience, leadership, and knowledge Allie, Eleni, Jamie, and Casey bring to my team, working each day to help deliver real results on the issues Coloradans care about most. I’m confident that they will continue working hard for the people of Colorado in these new roles,” the governor said in a written statement.
PROPOSITION 131
Republican Pam Anderson, a former Jefferson County clerk who ran unsuccessfully in 2022 to be Colorado secretary of state, has come out in opposition to Proposition 131, the all-candidate primary and ranked choice general election measure on the November ballot.
“It is a confusing mash-up of policies that would produce increased errors resulting in invalidated votes and likely not solve the political divisiveness the ads hint it will fix,” she said in a written statement. “It’s half-baked, covers only half the candidates and only tells half the story.”
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YOU HEARD IT HERE
Caraveo was acknowledging the importance of her race on the national stage as Democrats look to reclaim the U.S. House.
The 8th Congressional District, which Caraveo represents, is one of the most competitive U.S. House districts in the country this year. Caraveo faces Republican state Rep. Gabe Evans.
Also speaking at the canvas launch Saturday was Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Lafayette.
“I’m here because this, I believe, is the most critical race in the United States of America. And I don’t say that lightly,” Neguse said. “If we do not send this incredible woman back to represent our community in the United States Congress, then we won’t win a majority in the House.”
He added that Caraveo “has put herself on the line every day for the better part of the last 22 months in what can only be described as a grueling campaign.”
NEW CLF AD
The Congressional Leadership Fund, the Republican super PAC tied to House Speaker Mike Johnson, is running a new TV ad in the 8th District. The narrator in the 30-second spot attacks Caraveo for voting as a state legislator to defelonize fentanyl and labels her a “liberal extremist.”
The Congressional Leadership Fund has spent nearly $5.6 million in the district to help Evans.
The Mainstream Colorado Fund, a dark money-backed super PAC, has spent $1.4 million to help Caraveo after a new round of spending in recent days.
Super PACs have spent more than $23 million on the contest, most of it to help Caraveo.
DO THE MATH
$500,000
The donation Friday from Chevron to Voters First Colorado, the issue committee supporting Proposition 131
This major contribution is raising some eyebrows. Here are some other big contributions to issue committees in recent days that you should know about:
DARK MONEY EXPENDITURES
Nonprofits that don’t disclose their donors — what we call dark money groups — reported a new batch of direct spending on ballot measures. They are:
THE BIGGER PICTURE
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