Las Animas Assessor: New State Tax Math To Raise Bills, Delay Notices

Las Animas County Assessor Jodi Amato told local media that a statewide restructuring of residential property-tax calculations will push many homeowners' bills higher and delay mailing of tax statements for the 2025 tax year (payable 2026). Amato contacted reporters on Feb. 26, 2026 to explain the practical consequences for county taxpayers as local offices rebuild calculation systems to comply with the new law.

At a Feb. 4 Las Animas County Board of Commissioners meeting Amato delivered a legislative update in which she said she is tracking seven new property-tax bills and singled out one freshly introduced measure, House Bill 25-195. The World Journal reported Amato saying, "We’re scrambling to get everybody on the same page," as she warned the board about the volume and potential ripple effects of the new measures, including procedural changes for County Board of Equalization hearings tied to HB 25-195.

Local summaries of state legislation identify HB 24B-1001 as the driver of the multi-year restructuring that begins with the 2025 tax year. "HB 24B-1001 significantly changes how Colorado residential property taxes are calculated starting with the 2025 tax year, including two different assessment rates and a new school-district-specific rate that will increase many tax bills," the Lasanimascounty Colorado summary states. Under that structure, residential property will no longer use a single statewide assessment rate; instead the law creates separate rates for local government (non-school) and for school districts.

The split matters because the school-district assessment rate is higher than the local-government rate, and school districts are not subject to the same revenue-growth limits as other local governments. Local reporting explains that this difference means the school-district portion of bills will increase many taxpayers' total bills even if property values do not change. County assessors statewide have also confirmed an unusual procedural change: "2025 tax bills will not list an assessed value, due to the new calculation structure required by HB 24B-1001."

Implementation challenges are already prompting counties, including Las Animas, to delay 2025 tax bills while software, forms, and calculation systems are rebuilt to match the new law. A local summary put it bluntly: "Tax Bill Delays Are Expected Counties, including Las Animas, are delaying 2025 tax bills because software, forms, and calculation systems all had to be rebuilt to comply with the new law."

The law carries further changes into 2026 (payable 2027). "Beginning in 2026, assessors will apply: • New assessment rates again, and • A 10% exemption on the first $70,000 of residential value (effectively reducing taxable value for most homeowners)," local summaries note, describing that later adjustment as slight tax relief for many taxpayers while the 2025 shift increases bills.

Board business on Feb. 4 also included passage of a Retention and Destruction Policy to meet state and federal records mandates, and a speaker identified only as "Lopez" warned that 283 bills had been introduced in just over a month, cautioning the board about strain on county resources and about a modular housing bill that may not suit Las Animas County's topography and fire risks.

County officials have not published a revised mailing schedule or county-specific rate numbers; Amato's Feb. 26 outreach and her Feb. 4 warning make clear that timelines and final dollar impacts remain in flux as Las Animas County rebuilds systems to comply with the new state framework.