Property Tax Collection and Distribution

The Archuleta County Treasurer collects property taxes on behalf of all local governments and special districts located within Archuleta County. This includes School Districts, the Town of Pagosa Springs, various Metro Districts, Water and Sanitation Districts, Fire Districts, Health Services and the Library. Collected property taxes are then apportioned and distributed by the Treasurer to the various taxing authorities.

In general, only about 1/3 of total property taxes go to support the Archuleta County budget.

The property taxes on any particular property are determined by the tax rates applicable to the Tax District where the property is located, and by the assessed value of the individual property being taxed, as determined by the County Assessor. As of 2012, there were thirty one (31) Tax Districts in the County, each with different overall rates.

What Services Do My Property Taxes Support?

You can use the County’s Tax Distribution Calculator to see an estimate of the services your particular property tax supports in the current year budget.

IMPORTANT NOTE: While the property tax “total” that displays may be very close to the actual tax due, the distribution of that tax by services provided is approximate only. In particular, the distribution of the General-Archuleta County amounts (for General Government, Public Safety, etc…) are based simply on the Calendar Year “Original” Expense Budget for those functions, as initially approved by the Board of County Commissioners. During the course of the year, adjustments to that budget may be made, but not reflected in the Tax Distribution Calculator. Also, no attempt is made to reflect other complexities such as unbudgeted additional revenues, the effect of using existing fund balances, etc… Nevertheless, the Tax Calculator does provide a rough estimate of your property tax contribution to services provided to the citizens of the County.