More Denver residents could qualify for the city’s property tax assistance program under a proposed change to the municipal code now making its way to the City Council.

Members of the Community Planning and Housing Committee on Tuesday considered lowering the age of eligibility for the Denver Property Tax Relief Program from 65 to 62 for income-qualifying homeowners and those with disabilities.

The program provides a partial refund of property taxes paid, or the equivalent in rent, to qualifying Denver residents.  

Eligible applicants, according to officials, receive at least $372 in payment.

The average refund in the 2024-2025 program year was $1,148, and the average refund to date in the 2025-2026 program year is $1,153.

However, the eligibility for renters would be phased out by April 30, 2030.

Income qualifications for the program would also increase from 60% AMI to 80% AMI for homeowners and from 25% to 30% AMI for renters.

The proposed changes, put forth by Councilmembers Stacie Gilmore and Amanda Sawyer, would also make the tax relief available to homeowners who are a surviving and unremarried spouse.

Officials said the decision to add the new eligibility category mirrors that of other comparable municipalities.

“This came from a lot of pure city research in other cities that have a similar provision,” Matt Walter, a senior aide for Sawyer, said. “Normally, it’s (for) surviving spouses of veterans, but the council members thought that for any surviving spouse, not remarried, going through that circumstance, this would provide a significant change to their financial status.”

In the 2023 program year, city officials noted that 60% of program beneficiaries were renters and 40% were homeowners.

“This is really our single tool to help homeowners stay in their homes and age in place and maintain that generational wealth,” Sawyer, one of the bill sponsors, said. “And we know that that is where we are seeing current residents and longtime residents under threat in our city.”

A senior council aide to Sawyer said the $4.9 million allocated for the relief program is based on projections from the city’s Housing Stability Office, which administers the program.

Other tax relief programs such as state-run programs also include an exemption for qualifying senior citizens and active duty military service members.

The proposed ordinance was approved by the committee and now advances to the full City Council.

This story has been updated to reflect recent state legislative changes to the the tax growth eligibility category (those facing property tax increases of 4% or more), which has been eliminated from the program.