(1) (a) A grant authorized by section 39-31-101 or 39-31-104 shall be paid from the reserve for refunds created by section 39-22-622. Payments shall be made on a quarterly basis, with the amount of each payment equal to the total amount of the grant divided by the number of quarters remaining in the calendar year in which the grant is awarded, with the calculation including the quarter in which the grant is awarded. Claimants meeting all qualification requirements for an entire taxable year shall be entitled to a grant allowable pursuant to section 39-31-101 or 39-31104. Grants paid pursuant to this subsection (1) shall be included for informational purposes in the general appropriation bill or in supplemental appropriation bills for the purpose of complying with the limitation on state fiscal year spending imposed by section 20 of article X of the state constitution and section 24-77-103, C.R.S.
(b) The department of revenue shall update its database on a periodic basis as necessary to ensure that all eligible claimants are receiving the grants.
The executive director shall prescribe the forms to be used for the grants authorizedby section 39-31-101 or 39-31-104 and prepare any instructions related to the forms. The executive director may create an electronic form to be used in addition to the paper form. If a sales tax refund is allowed for any given income tax year in accordance with section 39-22-2002, the executive director shall include provisions on the forms to allow qualified individuals to apply for the refund pursuant to section 39-22-2003 (5)(c). To receive a grant, an individual must claim the grant on the executive director's form.
(a) If two or more persons, other than spouses, are entitled to a grant authorized by section 39-31-101 or 39-31-104, it may be claimed by either or any of such persons meeting the qualifications therefor. When two or more persons claim the grant for the same residence, the executive director is authorized to determine the proper allocation of such grant.
(b) No grant received pursuant to this section shall be treated as income for purposes of determining the eligibility of any person for old age pension benefits under article 2 of title 26, C.R.S.
A grant authorized by section 39-31-101 that is claimed for general property taxesshall not exceed the amount of the taxes actually paid. A grant for property taxes or taxequivalent amounts paid under section 39-31-101 shall not be made unless properly claimed on or before the expiration of twenty-four months after the end of the income tax year during which such taxes or tax-equivalent amounts were actually paid.
Any person who is claimed as an exemption for purposes of the Colorado income taxby any other person for the taxable year shall be ineligible for the grant authorized by this section.
The grant for heat or fuel expenses shall in no case exceed the amount of the heat orfuel expenses actually paid and shall not be made unless the appropriate form claiming the same is filed with the department of revenue on or before the expiration of twenty-four months after the end of the taxable year for which such credit or refund is claimed.
Source: L. 87: Entire article added, p. 1454, § 30, effective June 22. L. 93: (1) amended,
p. 1510, § 11, effective June 6. L. 94: (1) amended, p. 1805, § 3, effective May 31. L. 98, 2nd Ex. Sess.: (2) amended, p. 7, § 2, effective September 16. L. 99: (2) amended, p. 1317, § 3, effective August 4. L. 2004: (1) amended, p. 689, § 1, effective April 28. L. 2014: (1), (2), and (3)(a) amended, (SB 14-014), ch. 249, p. 967, § 3, effective July 1. L. 2019: (4) amended, (HB 19-1085), ch. 228, p. 2301, § 2, effective August 2.
Cross references: For the legislative declaration in SB 14-014, see section 1 of chapter 249, Session Laws of Colorado 2014.