Jim: At your request, I contacted Property Tax Administrator Mary Huddleston, and asked the question as to whether when the counties get our reimbursement from the State for the amount of taxes otherwise lost due to the new Homestead Exemption, we are able to deduct the usual Treasurer’s collection fees before distributing the funds to the taxing entities.

Ms. Huddleston responded informally that, yes, those funds would indeed be subject to the same collection fees as the other funds which we distribute to the taxing entities. She also suggested though that I contact my County Attorney and make sure that they give the same answer.

I did that, and did get the same answer. Specifically, the state statute provides that once we get the reimbursement from the state for the amount of tax revenue lost due to the exemption, that we are to distribute the money "…as if the lost tax revenues had been regularly paid" (C.R.S. 39-3-207 (4)(b). Thus the funds are to be treated as taxes actually collected. As such, prior to allocation and distribution of those funds, we are directed to deduct the fee for collection costs provided elsewhere in statute.

Please feel free to distribute this to our membership.

Steve Hutt

Denver Treasurer