Understanding Property Taxes in Mesa County

One of the most common questions I hear on the campaign trail is: Who decides how much we pay in property taxes? It’s a great question — and the answer is that it takes several steps and several different entities to get to the final number on your tax bill.

Let’s break it down in a simple, neutral, and helpful way.

Step 1: Property Valuation (County Assessor)

The process starts with the Mesa County Assessor. Every odd-numbered year, the Assessor’s Office reappraises all properties to determine their market value.

Your home’s value is then multiplied by the assessment rate (set by the State of Colorado) to get what’s called your assessed value.

For most homes, the residential assessment rate is currently around 6.7%.

• Example: a $400,000 home × 6.7% = $26,800 assessed value.

Step 2: Setting the Tax Rate (Mill Levies)

Once the Assessor has certified all the values, each local taxing authority sets its mill levy — the tax rate applied to those values.

• This includes school districts, county government, cities, fire districts, libraries, and other special districts.

• A mill is just a fancy term meaning $1 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value.

Each entity decides how many mills it needs based on its budget and the total value of property in its boundaries. Those mill levies are then certified by the Board of County Commissioners in December.

Step 3: Tax Bill & Collection (County Treasurer)

Finally, the County Treasurer takes the property values from the Assessor and the mill levies from each taxing entity and calculates your property tax bill. The Treasurer sends out the notices in January and is responsible for collecting and distributing those funds to the right entities.

Why Property Taxes Sometimes Go Up

When property values rise sharply (as they have in Colorado in recent years), tax bills can increase even if mill levies stay the same. Some local governments choose to temporarily reduce their mill levies to help offset those higher values, while others leave the rate unchanged, which means more revenue and higher bills.

My Commitment as a Candidate for Treasurer

As your next Mesa County Treasurer, I will:

• Ensure property tax bills are calculated accurately and delivered on time.

• Provide clear, transparent information so you can understand whether your bill went up because of increased value, mill levy changes, or both.

• Work to make the Treasurer’s Office a place where citizens get answers, not confusion.

Property taxes fund our schools, fire districts, libraries, and other critical services — but understanding them shouldn’t feel like rocket science. I want to make this process as clear and open as possible for every Mesa County resident.