Polis Budget Move Shields Senior Tax Breaks in Northern Colorado
Gov. Jared Polis is proposing to disaffiliate Pinnacol Assurance from the state to fund Colorado's Senior Homestead Exemption. The move would extend the portable homestead tax reduction past 2026 despite an expected loss of TABOR surplus this fiscal year.
"Without revenues derived from a disaffiliation of Pinnacol, the state would likely be unable to maintain the Homestead exemption next fiscal year," according to the Governor's Office announcement released Jan. 2.
For qualifying seniors in Larimer and Weld counties, the exemption delivers significant relief. "For qualifying seniors: 50% of the first $200,000 in actual value of the primary residence is exempt from property tax. The State will pay the exempted property tax," according to the Larimer County Assessor. That means up to $100,000 in taxable value removed from a qualifying senior's primary home.
Starting in tax years 2025–2026, Colorado offers a portable classification that lets seniors who lost exemptions while moving reapply in their new location. "The classification will be available in tax years 2025 and 2026 to senior citizens who previously had a senior tax exemption in any Colorado county and lost it between Jan. 1, 2020 and Dec. 31, 2024," according to Larimer County materials.
The exemption program depends on annual state funding from the Colorado Legislature. With no TABOR surplus projected this fiscal year, Polis' Pinnacol proposal becomes essential to preserving the benefit for Northern Colorado seniors.
The Pinnacol disaffiliation is part of Polis' broader 2025–26 budget plan that maintains a 13% reserve and protects K–12 and public safety funding. "We are focused on protecting the issues that Coloradans care most about—education, access to health care and safety—while delivering a balanced budget for Colorado," Polis said in the statement.
Assessors in both counties are accepting 2025 portability applications through March 15, even as the state awaits legislative action on Pinnacol disaffiliation. General Senior Homestead Exemption applications are due by July 15, 2026 in both Larimer and Weld counties.