Colorado § 24-46-402 - Definitions.

§ 24-46-402. Definitions.

As used in this part 4, unless the context otherwise requires:

(1) "Aerial transit facility" means one or more physical structures that use aerial cables to move passengers and that link directly to another form of mass transit, such as passenger rail, light rail, other types of trains, trolleys, or buses.

(2) (a) "Base year revenue" means an amount equal to the state sales tax revenue collected on in-person sales made within a proposed transit investment area during the twelve-month period immediately prior to the month in which a transit investment project is authorized, as determined by the department.

(b) After the first twelve months of state sales tax collection pursuant to section 24-46-406 (1), and annually thereafter, the department shall adjust the base year revenue by the amount of the baseline growth rate established by the commission.

(3) "Baseline growth rate" means the forecasted growth in state sales tax revenue collected on in-person sales made within a proposed transit investment area above the base year revenue that would be collected on in-person sales made within a proposed transit investment area if the proposed transit investment project did not occur, as determined by the commission pursuant to section 24-46-404 (3).

(4) "Bond" means a bond or other contractual obligation and form of indebtedness for the payment of which a financing entity has promised to pledge state sales tax increment revenue or any other legally available revenues pledged at the discretion of the financing entity.

(5) "Commission" means the Colorado economic development commission created in section 24-46-102.

(6) "County revitalization authority" has the meaning set forth in section 30-31-103 (6).

(7) "Department" means the department of revenue created in section 24-35-101.

(8) "Director" means the director of the Colorado office of economic development created in section 24-48.5-101.

(9) "Eligible costs" means the costs of:

(a) Designing, constructing, financing, and maintaining eligible improvements designated by the commission as part of an approved transit investment project. These costs include the costs of:

(I) Engineering, including construction engineering;

(II) Surveying, including construction surveying;

(III) Construction labor and materials;

(IV) Design, including bonding, insurance, and permitting fees;

(V) Planning;

(VI) Legal services;

(VII) Accounting;

(VIII) Overhead or administrative staffing;

(IX) Financing;

(X) Bond issuance or reissuance and underwriting;

(XI) Interest payments;

(XII) Loan origination fees;

(XIII) Operations; and

(XIV) Similar necessary and convenient costs incurred by the financing entity in exercising its powers pursuant to this part 4;

(b) Funds advanced by private developers within the transit investment project to, or on behalf of, the financing entity for eligible improvements, whether a private developer advances those funds pursuant to loans or contractual funding and reimbursement agreements;

(c) Reasonable interest on the funds advanced by a private developer pursuant to subsection (8)(b) of this section;

(d) A financing entity's costs for purchasing eligible improvements constructed and owned by third parties either before or after designation of the transit investment project; and

(e) Costs and expenses incurred by a financing entity pursuant to section 24-35-124 and in complying with its annual report and audit obligations under this part 4.

(10) "Eligible improvements" means the specific improvements authorized by the commission as part of an approved transit investment project, including:

(a) Roads;

(b) Streets;

(c) State highways;

(d) Rights-of-way;

(e) Lighting;

(f) Direction and location signage and similar signage;

(g) Land acquisition;

(h) Surveying, engineering, soils testing, site planning, grading, and similar activities necessary or convenient for site preparation and development;

(i) Trails and paths;

(j) Public safety facilities;

(k) Landscaping;

(l) Street trees;

(m) Public plazas and pedestrian spaces;

(n) Transportation facilities;

(o) Bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure;

(p) Surface and structured parking facilities; and

(q) Any other facilities or improvements necessary or convenient for the completion of an approved project.

(11) (a) "Financing entity" means the entity designated by the commission in connection with its approval of a transit investment project to receive and use state sales tax increment revenue.

(b) A county revitalization authority, a metropolitan district, an urban renewal authority, or any transit investment authority to be formed pursuant to this part 4 may qualify as a financing entity.

(12) "Financing term" means the aggregate period not to exceed thirty years authorized by the commission pursuant to this part 4 during which the financing entity is authorized to receive and use state sales tax increment revenue to finance eligible costs.

(13) "Inflation or deflation" means the annual percentage change in the United States department of labor's bureau of labor statistics consumer price index, or a successor index, for Denver-Aurora-Lakewood for all items paid for by urban consumers.

(14) "Local government" means a city, county, city and county, town, or a group of contiguous cities, counties, cities and counties, or towns.

(15) "Office of economic development" means the Colorado office of economic development created in section 24-48.5-101.

(16) "Passenger rail station" has the meaning set forth in section 32-22-102 (8).

(17) (a) "State sales tax increment revenue" means an annual amount equal to the total of:

(I) The annual revenue derived from state sales taxes collected on in-person sales made within a designated transit investment area in excess of the amount of base year revenue adjusted to account for the baseline growth rate; and

(II) Twenty percent of the amount calculated pursuant to subsection (17)(a)(I) of this section, which twenty percent approximates sales delivered from without the designated transit investment area that are unable to be measured and therefore not included as in-person sales made within a designated transit investment area.

(b) (I) Except that, as applied for a transit investment area that is within a regional tourism zone established by the commission pursuant to section 24-46-305 (3), "state sales tax increment revenue" means an annual amount equal to the lesser of:

(A) State sales tax increment revenue as determined pursuant to subsection (17)(a) of this section; or

(B) The excess, if any, of the regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue over the payable regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue.

(II) As used in this subsection (17)(b), unless the context otherwise requires:

(A) "Payable regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue" means the amount of regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue that, pursuant to section 24-46-307 (1)(b), the department allocates and pays into a special fund created by a financing entity in accordance with the amount of regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue authorized for allocation by the department to the financing entity by the commission pursuant to section 24-46-305 (4).

(B) "Regional tourism act state sales tax increment revenue" means the amount of "state sales tax increment revenue", as defined in section 24-46-303 (12), attributed to the portion of a regional tourism zone that is within the transit investment area.

(C) "Regional tourism zone" has the meaning set forth in section 24-46-303 (11).

(18) "Transit agency" means a local or regional transit district, or a regional transportation authority that provides public transit.

(19) "Transit and housing investment zone" means the area designated by the office of economic development in the transit and housing investment zone map pursuant to section 24-48.5-136.

(20) "Transit investment area" means a geographic area that is within a transit and housing investment zone and that the commission approves as part of a transit investment project pursuant to section 24-46-404 (3)(d)(I)(B). A transit investment area:

(a) Shall not extend into the territorial boundaries of any local government, unless the local government requests that the transit investment area is within its boundaries at least in part;

(b) May only include part of a local government's jurisdiction;

(c) May include noncontiguous tracts or parcels of property in the same transit investment area; and

(d) May extend beyond the relevant transit investment zone designated by the office of economic development pursuant to section 24-48.5-136, if the relevant transit investment zone encompasses a community that is not evenly distributed due to geographical constraint including mountains, water features, and other natural topographical features, but in so doing shall not extend further than three miles from a transportation facility as calculated by measuring the distance along a road or pedestrian network that is used to access the transportation facility.

(21) "Transit investment authority" or "authority" means a corporate body organized pursuant to this part 4 for the purposes, with the powers, and subject to the restrictions set forth in this part 4 and the formation of which has been approved by the commission pursuant to this part 4.

(22) "Transit investment project" or "project" means a development project that is planned to include a transportation facility or significant improvements to a transportation facility together with ancillary uses, structures, and improvements, and that the commission approves pursuant to section 24-46-404 (3).

(23) (a) "Transit station" means an in-person location designed to integrate and facilitate the connection between multiple modes of transportation, including:

(I) Public transit, such as buses;

(II) Light rail, aerial transit, and commuter rail;

(III) Active transportation, such as bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure;

(IV) Shared mobility services including car share, bike share, and scooter share;

(V) Ride-hailing and demand-responsive services; and

(VI) Private vehicles.

(b) A transit station may include related infrastructure that supports seamless and efficient multimodal travel, such as park-and-ride facilities, electric vehicle charging stations, bicycle storage, wayfinding systems, and passenger amenities.

(24) "Transportation facility" means a transit station or passenger rail station.

(25) "Urban renewal authority" has the meaning set forth in section 31-25-103 (8.5).

Source: L. 2026: Entire part added, (HB 26-1065), ch. 157, p. 892, § 2, effective May 27.