Summary
Under Colorado's current real property tax lien statutes (C.R.S. §§ 39-11-101 et seq.), a county treasurer is required to issue a treasurer's deed for a property encumbered by a tax lien, upon the presentation of a certificate of purchase of a tax lien for that property, if the statutory period of redemption and certain conditions are satisfied; Sections 1 to 3 of Bill 24-1056 end that requirement. Section 5 of this Bill establishes a process after a public auction which conveys a certificate purchase to property encumbered by a tax lien. This new process requires the lawful holder of a certificate of purchase of a tax lien to apply for a public auction for the sale of a certificate of option for treasurer's deed. If during the public auction, the purchaser of the sale of a certificate of option for treasurer's deed pays an amount in excess of the minimum bid amount acceptable by a county treasurer, then the amount of the overbid must be paid in order of recording priority to junior lienors who have filed a notice of intent to redeem. If any overbid amount remains after payment to all lienors, it must be paid to the owner of the property subject to the tax lien. Section 4 requires county treasurers to follow the process established in Section 5, but notably, Colorado's current real property tax lien process will stay in effect until July 1, 2024. This Bill was introduced to bring Colorado law into compliance with Tyler v. Hennepin Cty., 598 U.S. 631 (2023).