El Paso County treasurer unveils prepaid property-tax option through third-party portal

El Paso County Treasurer Chuck Broerman told the Board of County Commissioners on July 8 that his office will offer property owners a way to prepay their annual property tax bills in monthly installments through a third‑party portal called Escrow Tax, which is built on AutoAgent software.

Broerman said the service will let homeowners and business owners set an amount and make recurring payments by e‑check, ACH, credit card or certain digital wallets; Escrow Tax will collect payments in an escrow account and remit a single mass payment to the county by statutory due dates. “We are offering a way for residential and business property owners to prepay their property tax in smaller amounts over a longer period of time,” Broerman said.

The treasurer framed the program as a voluntary, zero‑cost service to the county: residents would contract with Escrow Tax directly and the county would receive the mass transmittals without taking on software or maintenance costs. Broerman said 49 of Colorado’s 64 counties already use AutoAgent for mortgage escrow transmittals and that the county’s IT staff helped turn a concept into an online portal in about 10 weeks.

The program’s key enrollment rules, as described by Broerman, are that accounts must be current and the property must not be held in a mortgage escrow that would cause duplicate payments; Broerman clarified during questions that the program is aimed at owners who pay taxes outside a mortgage escrow account (for example, homeowners who pay their taxes directly after their mortgage is paid off). He said the portal estimates monthly amounts using the prior year’s tax bill and allows a “true up” before the final remittance date if valuations or levy changes cause a difference.

Broerman told commissioners the treasurer’s office and county communications would push a public information campaign, and he said Holland & Knight reviewed the contract to confirm state compliance. He described nominal customer costs: $1 per month for e‑check processing or a 2.5% fee for credit‑card payments.

Commissioners and other elected officials praised the approach during the meeting. Commissioner Applegate called the program “impeccable timing” for residents whose mortgages recently were paid off, and Commissioner Wysong and Vice Chair Williams commended Broerman for pursuing a market solution rather than a county‑funded software rewrite. Commissioner Nelson thanked the treasurer for responding to a citizen need with a practical solution.

Broerman emphasized the program is voluntary and not a change to statutory due dates. “Property owners can still use the one large payment in April or the two half payments,” he said. He also cautioned homeowners to consider how recurring prepayments affect personal cash flow and noted that Escrow Tax will notify payors of adjustments if certification or valuations change.

The board did not take a separate vote to adopt the service; Broerman asked for the commissioners’ assistance in publicizing the portal, which he said would go live on the treasurer’s website starting July 9.

Ending — Broader context: Broerman placed the program against recent state‑level conversations about altering tax‑payment schedules, noting past legislative proposals (a 12‑month monthly plan and a four‑payment schedule) that he said would have required major statutory and software changes. He characterized the Escrow Tax offering as “first in the country” in its current configuration, a claim he made during the presentation; the county will act only as a recipient of remittances from the third‑party provider.