Rep. Kimmi Lewis

Current law allows a taxpayer to claim a state income tax credit for a portion of the value of a perpetual conservation easement that is granted by the taxpayer on real property located in the state. The bill places a 3-year moratorium on the ability of a taxpayer to claim the credit from January 1, 2019, through December 31, 2021.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

A conservation easement is an agreement in which a property owner agrees to limit the use of his or her land in perpetuity in order to protect one or more specified conservation purposes. The instruments creating the easement are recorded in the public records affecting the ownership of the property. The easement is held by a third party (holder), which monitors the use of the land and ensures that the terms of the agreement are upheld. Current law allows a taxpayer to claim a state income tax credit for a portion of the value of a perpetual conservation easement that is granted by the taxpayer on real property located in the state. The aggregate amount of credits that may be claimed each year by all taxpayers is capped at $45 million; except that the amount of credits allowed in recent years has been substantially lower than that amount. There is currently no centralized public source of information to identify the number, size, location, or validity of conservation easements in the state and whether the conservation purposes of the easements are being monitored and defended. The bill requires a comprehensive accounting of the conservation easements that have been created in the state since 1998. The state auditor shall contract with an independent contractor to perform the accounting. The accounting includes information about the instruments creating each easement, the size and location of each easement, the grantors and holders of each easement, tax credits claimed for the donation of each easement, and whether the conservation purposes of each easement are being protected. The accounting includes the creation of a corresponding map showing the location of each conservation easement in the state. Certain public entities are encouraged to provide information and input into the preparation of the accounting. The state auditor is directed to review the accounting and present it at a public meeting to the legislative audit committee by a specified date. The committee is required to conduct a subsequent meeting to allow public testimony on the accounting. The auditor is further directed to annually update the information in the accounting and make it available to the public on the auditor's website. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

A conservation easement is an agreement in which a landowner agrees to limit the use of his or her land in perpetuity in order to protect one or more specified conservation purposes. The easement is held by a third party (holder), which monitors the use of the land and ensures that the terms of the agreement are upheld. Current law allows a taxpayer to claim a state income tax credit for a portion of the value of a conservation easement that is granted in perpetuity. A landowner must submit an application for the tax credit along with a fee, an appraisal setting forth the value of the easement, and other materials to the division of real estate in the department of regulatory agencies (division). The division reviews the application and, if the easement and its appraised value meet the applicable statutory requirements, grants the application to claim the tax credit. Section 1 of the bill freezes the amount of the application fee to the amount charged as of January 1, 2018. Fees are not allowed to be reduced for multiple applicants. If the director of the division believes that the appraisal submitted by the landowner is not credible, the bill allows the landowner to submit 2 additional appraisals and the director must accept the average amount of the 3 appraisals as the value of the easement. The director is required to consider the appraisals as submitted and not attempt to influence the substance of the appraisals. Section 2 requires the governing body of a local government in which a conservation easement is located to hold a public hearing before a conservation easement is created, modified, or transferred. Public notice is required prior to the hearing and the grantor of the easement, the holder of the easement, and the public are allowed to testify. Section 3 limits the terms of conservation easements to 20 years. The instrument creating an easement is required to clearly set forth the conservation purposes of the easement and require the holder to provide a monitoring and compliance report to the landowner not less than annually. Prior to creating an easement a landowner is required to execute a disclosure form acknowledging certain specified consequences and risks associated with creating the easement. Prior to incurring any costs associated with creating an easement, a landowner must sign a good faith estimate of the costs associated with the creation of the easement. The landowner cannot be held liable subsequently for any costs that exceed amounts in the estimate. A holder of a conservation easement is prohibited from permitting or benefiting financially from any type of development on the property subject to the conservation easement including the development of wind, solar, oil, gas, or mineral resources on the property. Section 4 specifies that any instrument modifying the terms of an easement must be recorded in the public real property records. Section 5 allows a landowner to transfer or extinguish a conservation easement if the holder becomes insolvent, dissolved, or delinquent or otherwise fails to monitor and protect the conservation purposes of the easement.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

The bill amends the 'Colorado Food and Drug Act' to require a retailer to indicate the country of origin for beef sold to the public. The bill only applies to retailers who sell beef that has not been manufactured, cured, smoked, cooked, or processed. The bill authorizes the department of public health and environment to promulgate rules to implement the bill. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) , Read More

Under existing law, no land area that is 40 acres or more used primarily and zoned for agricultural uses may be included in any park and recreation district without the written consent of the land owners. Sections 1 and 2 of the bill make any metropolitan district providing parks or recreational facilities and programs subject to this limitation. Sections 3 and 4 clarify that only those signatures obtained after the approval by a county or municipality of the service plan of a proposed special district may be considered by the district court in determining whether the required number of taxpaying electors of such district have signed the petition for organization.(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

Under current law, a licensed chiropractor, whether or not he or she is registered with the state board of chiropractic examiners to perform animal chiropractic, must obtain a veterinary medical clearance from a licensed veterinarian before performing an act that falls within the chiropractor's scope of practice on an animal patient. The bill removes the veterinary medical clearance requirement for chiropractors who are registered with the state board as animal chiropractors. A licensed chiropractor who is registered as an animal chiropractor and performs animal chiropractic on an animal patient is encouraged, in a timely manner, to consult with a veterinarian treating the animal patient. (Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

A state income tax credit is allowed for a portion of the value of a perpetual conservation easement that is granted by a taxpayer on real property located in Colorado. In the past, when the department of revenue disputed the validity or amount of one of these credits, a taxpayer could attempt to resolve the dispute using an administrative appeal process within the department. If the taxpayer was not satisfied with the final determination resulting from the administrative process, the taxpayer could appeal the final determination to a district court. Starting in 2011, after a backlog of disputed conservation easement claims developed in the administrative process, the law was changed to allow taxpayers to elect to appeal directly to a district court and avoid the administrative appeal process. Unlike taxpayers who stayed in the administrative process, taxpayers who elected to appeal directly to district court were not required to provide a surety bond or other deposit in connection with their appeals, and additional interest and penalties ceased to accrue during their appeals. The bill provides that no surety bond or other deposit is required and no interest and penalties are to accrue for both the administrative appeal process and the district court appeal process. The law currently allows a conservation easement to be terminated in the same manner as any other easement. The bill specifies that, in addition, a court may exercise its equitable jurisdiction to terminate a conservation easement for which a tax credit has been claimed in certain circumstances if the claim has been rejected. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)