General Information
All owners of taxable personal property are to complete and file a personal property declaration schedule no later than April 15 each year as required by § 39-5-108, C.R.S. The taxpayer must make a full and complete disclosure of all personal property owned by, under the control of, or in the possession of the taxpayer on the schedule, including any costs incurred for acquisition, sales/use tax, installation, and freight to the point of use of the personal property as required by § 39-1-103(13)(b), C.R.S. The taxpayer must also submit any other information requested by the assessor so that the assessor may place a value on the property as required by § 39-5-115(1), C.R.S. Declaration schedules have been developed by the Division of Property Taxation for use by the county assessors as required by § 39-2-109(1)(d), C.R.S.
The primary form used by commercial business taxpayers is the Personal Property Declaration Schedule - DS 056. Other forms have been developed for residential rental taxpayers, lessors of personal property, renewable energy, and natural resource operations.
All completed declarations should be returned to the county assessor.
Declaration Schedule Forms
All of the declaration schedules are available in PDF format. The forms are also available in Microsoft Word (.docx) format by request.
The correct declaration schedule depends on the type of property being reported to the county assessor. The following declarations are available: Personal Property Declaration Schedule (DS-056), Personal Property Declaration Schedule - Short Form (DS-056S), Renewable Energy Property (DS-058), Lessor Personal Property (DS-060), Residential Personal Property (DS-155), Coal Real and Personal Property (DS-618), Producing Mines Real and Personal Property (DS-628), Earth or Stone Products Real and Personal Property (DS-648), Oil and Gas Pipelines (DS-654), Oil and Gas Rotary Drilling Rigs (DS-656), Oil and Gas Real and Personal Property (DS-658), and Oil and Gas Real and Personal Property - Short Form (DS-658S).
Moveable Equipment Certification of Ad Valorem Taxation (Form 301)
Mobile machinery and self-propelled construction equipment is designated as Class F personal property and is commonly referred to as Special Mobile Machinery (SMM). SMM is subject to registration and annual specific ownership taxation in lieu of ad valorem taxation as provided in §§ 42-3-103(1) and 106(1), C.R.S.
The assessor should list this SMM for ad valorem tax valuation in cases where taxable SMMs are exempt from the requirement to pay specific ownership tax as required by § 42-3-104(3), C.R.S., or for oil and gas drilling rigs as required by § 39-5-113.3, C.R.S.
A problem develops when mobile equipment that has already been accounted for by the assessor is transported over the highways to a repair facility or to its new owner. This equipment could operate exclusively on property owned or leased by the equipment owner, it may be a piece of equipment that belongs to a skid-mounted drilling rig, or it may otherwise already be accounted for by the local county assessor. If such equipment passes through a port of entry station or a portable weight check station, it may be detained since it does not display an SMM plate or decal and there is no proof that it has already been accounted for by a Colorado county assessor.
To solve this problem, the Division of Property Taxation and Ports of Entry Division agreed to allow movable equipment to pass through check stations if an appropriate form showing proof of current year property tax assessment accompanies the mobile equipment. Form 301 has been approved by both Divisions for this purpose. Form 301 must be completed in its entirety. There should be no spaces left blank. Movable equipment must be adequately described by year, make, model, common name or description (such as pressure booster pump), serial or identification number (very important), date of purchase, and purchase price.
The certification of assessment must be completed and signed by either the assessor or chief deputy. The document also must be embossed with the county seal. Copies or facsimiles of Form 301 may not be accepted by the Ports of Entry agents. Upon stopping at a port of entry, the owner, agent, or driver should present the form for clearance and point out which of the SMMs listed are being transported at the time. The form will be returned to the driver.
Personal Property Appraisal Record (AR290)
The personal property appraisal record is a one-year value calculation worksheet for developing cost approach estimates for all machinery, equipment, and furnishings. The appraisal record provides for the determination of current replacement or reproduction cost new less depreciation (RCNLD) and for adjusting the current value to the correct level of value. Computerized output documents may be used in lieu of the following manual form.