What is a “Metro District?” FAQ
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Metropolitan Districts are a local unit of government created to fund public infrastructure for new development with debt repaid by taxes and/or fees levied only within the new district’s boundaries without burdening the existing taxpayers of that City or County. Public infrastructure can include streets, water, sewer, storm drainage, parks, and other similar improvements.
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A mill levy is a property tax. It is applied to a property based on its assessed value. The rate of the tax is expressed in mills and is equal to one dollar per $1,000 dollars of assessed value.
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District taxes function in the same manner as other property taxes in Colorado with a mill levy applied to Assessed Value of property as determined by the County Assessor and collected by the County Treasurer. For residential property, that calculation is:
Actual Value x Assessment Ratio x Mill Levy = Annual Tax Obligation
For a $400,000 home in a District with a 50 mill levy using the 2020 Assessment Ratio for residential property, the tax bill for the District would be:
$400,000 x 7.15% x 0.050 =$1,430/year
The actual mill levy for a District is comprised of a debt service levy and an operations levy and would be determined based on the provisions of the Service Plan, the total valuation of taxable property in the District, the District’s debt obligations and the District’s operational needs. Most Service Plans contain mill levy limitations to ensure that taxpayers obligations are limited regardless of the debt obligations outstanding.
If you’d like to calculate your tax obligation, visit the Larimer County Assessor Site Here
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The statutes provide for an elected Board of Directors, with the initial electors and Directors likely to be designees of the developer until new electors move into or buy property within the district and elect new Directors in biennial elections in May of even numbered years. Residents of the metropolitan district are eligible to be elected to the Board as a Director. The powers of the District and its Board are limited by the provisions of the approved Service Plan. For more information on how you can run for your metropolitan board go to https://cdola.colorado.gov/special-district-election-forms.
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New development is driven by market demand within the framework of a City or County’s land use regulations. Typically, these regulations start from a broad comprehensive land-use plan including input from elected officials, staff and citizens. As a new development proceeds through a land-use approval, the City or County approves the details of the specific development and required infrastructure to ensure they meet the goals of the comprehensive plan.
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As developers move through land-use approvals they work with the City or County to determine which infrastructure improvements will be funded by the City or County and which will be the obligation of the developer. At the same time, the City/County may create a special district on the development to fund some portion of the infrastructure that the developer is obligated to build. Typically, the portion of the infrastructure that the district will fund is determined by what can be repaid through a limited tax authorized in that district with the balance to be funded by the developer. Essentially, there are 2 steps to the allocation of the infrastructure funding:
1. City decides what they will fund, what the developer will be obligated to fund and what limited tax they will authorize in the district.
2. The district provides funding from bond investors to pay for a portion of the developer-obligated infrastructure based on the expected repayment from the limited tax.
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Developers operate as for-profit businesses with a broad market of options for investing time and capital in exchange for market returns relative to risk. Providing district funding for a portion of the infrastructure results in some combination of:
Projects get built that wouldn’t otherwise be feasible
Homes cost less
Infrastructure can be properly sized
Amenities like parks, playgrounds, trails, recreations centers can be added
Less burden allocated to City and existing taxpayers
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Horizontal infrastructure is required before vertical development can proceed and repayment for that infrastructure funding is typically dependent on the timing and value of the anticipated vertical development. Therefore, the funding of new infrastructure requires an assessment of this development risk and a corresponding market return. For the infrastructure not funded by the City, the developer and the district’s bond investors may each take a portion of this risk for a market return. Because the repayment source for the district’s debt is a limited tax, this development risk is not borne by the taxpayer whose annual obligations are limited regardless of the timing or value of the anticipated development. In this way, districts provide access to a large, efficient, tax-exempt capital market for infrastructure without transferring the development risk to the taxpayer.
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No, because (a) state law permits only public improvements to be financed, and (b) federal tax law (which applies to tax exempt district bonds) also permits only public improvements be financed.
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Below you’ll find links to external Special District Education resources. We’re also happy to assist you with any questions you may have. You can contact us by visiting the Contact page in the header navigation bar, or clicking HERE.