Allowed Minimum Lot Size for Subject Jurisdictions

Second Regular Session Seventy-fifth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO REENGROSSED This Version Includes All Amendments Adopted in the House of Introduction HOUSE BILL 26-1114 LLS NO. 26-0572.01 Caroline Martin x5902 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Stewart R. and Woodrow, Boesenecker, Froelich, Lindsay, Mabrey, Nguyen, Rutinel, Sirota SENATE SPONSORSHIP Ball, House Committees Senate Committees Transportation, Housing & Local Government A BILL FOR AN ACT JURISDICTIONS.

The bill requires that, on or after October 1, 2031, a subject jurisdiction shall not require that a parcel have an area larger than 2,000 square feet if the parcel's residential use is limited to a single family home. The bill exempts certain types of parcels from this requirement.

Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.

Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing law. Dashes through the words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law.

February 25, 2026 (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://leg.colorado.gov.) HOUSE Bill Summary 3rd Reading Unamended CONCERNING AN ALLOWED MINIMUM LOT SIZE FOR SUBJECT HOUSE Amended 2nd Reading February 24, 2026

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add part 5 to article 35 of title 29 as follows:

PART 5 MINIMUM LOT SIZE

29-35-501. Legislative declaration.

(1) THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY FINDS AND DECLARES THAT:

(a) HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IS A MAJOR ISSUE THAT AFFECTS ALL COLORADANS. HOUSING AFFORDABILITY AFFECTS WHERE PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO LIVE, WHICH IN TURN AFFECTS TRANSIT, COMMUTING, THE WORKFORCE, AND THE ENVIRONMENT, THEREBY AFFECTING THE WELL-BEING OF PEOPLE ACROSS COLORADO;

(b) RISING LAND COSTS ARE A SIGNIFICANT DRIVER OF UNAFFORDABLE HOUSING IN COLORADO, WITH LAND VALUES RISING FROM THIRTY-ONE PERCENT OF COLORADO HOME VALUES IN 2012 TO FIFTY-EIGHT PERCENT IN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE;

ACCORDING TO THE AMERICAN

(c) LAND VALUE MODELING SHOWS THAT, IN THE MAJORITY OF CORE-BASED STATISTICAL AREAS IN COLORADO, IT IS FEASIBLE TO BUILD A SINGLE FAMILY STARTER HOME THAT CAN BE SOLD FOR LESS THAN FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ON A LOT THAT IS TWO THOUSAND SQUARE FEET OR SMALLER;

(d) THE SMALLER THE LOT SIZE, THE MORE AFFORDABLE SINGLE FAMILY STARTER HOMES CAN BE. IN ORDER FOR DEVELOPERS TO BUILD STARTER HOMES THAT COLORADANS CAN AFFORD, THEY MUST BE ABLE TO BUILD ON SMALLER LOTS. IN MANY JURISDICTIONS, DEVELOPERS ARE NOT ABLE TO BUILD ON SMALLER LOTS DUE TO UNNECESSARILY LARGE MINIMUM LOT SIZE REQUIREMENTS; AND (e) THERE IS COLORADO-SPECIFIC GUIDANCE FOR SUBJECT JURISDICTIONS TO FOLLOW IN IMPLEMENTING THE NEW MINIMUM LOT SIZE ALLOWANCE. THE COLORADO STARTER HOME INITIATIVE IS PUBLISHING A STARTER HOME ZONING TEMPLATE, WHICH IS A FLEXIBLE ROADMAP THAT WILL HELP COMMUNITIES CREATE CONDITIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, AND INCLUDES GUIDANCE RELATED TO LOT SIZES.

(2) THEREFORE, THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY FINDS, DETERMINES, AND DECLARES THAT:

(a) ALLOWING A CONSISTENT MINIMUM LOT SIZE FOR SINGLE FAMILY AFFORDABILITY, THEREBY HELPING ALL COLORADANS;

RESIDENTIAL LOTS WILL HELP TO INCREASE HOUSING

(b) THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY DOES NOT INTEND TO CREATE ANY ADDITIONAL BURDEN ON SUBJECT JURISDICTIONS IN ALLOWING MINIMUM LOT SIZE REQUIREMENTS, AND THEREFORE HAS PROVIDED THAT IMPLEMENTATION MAY HAPPEN AT ANY POINT BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 2031, WHICH ALLOWS SUBJECT JURISDICTIONS TO IMPLEMENT THE REQUIREMENT AS A PART OF AN EXISTING PROCESS; AND

(c) ALLOWING A CONSISTENT MINIMUM LOT SIZE FOR SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL LOTS IS A MATTER OF MIXED STATE AND LOCAL CONCERN. THE AFFORDABILITY OF HOUSING IN ONE COMMUNITY AFFECTS NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES, AND COLORADO'S HOUSING SUPPLY IMPACTS TRANSIT, TRANSPORTATION, EMPLOYMENT, ECONOMY, ENERGY, WATER, AND INFRASTRUCTURE AND REQUIRES COLLABORATIVE SOLUTIONS.

29-35-502. Definitions.

AS USED IN THIS PART 5, UNLESS THE CONTEXT OTHERWISE REQUIRES:

(1) "EXEMPT LOT" MEANS A LOT THAT IS:

(a) NOT SERVED BY A DOMESTIC WATER AND SEWAGE TREATMENT SYSTEM, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 24-65.1-104 (5);

(b) SERVED BY A WELL THAT IS NOT CONNECTED TO A WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 25-9-102 (6);

(c) SERVED BY A SEPTIC TANK, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 25-10-103 (18);

(d) LOCATED WITHIN A COMMON INTEREST COMMUNITY, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 38-33.3-103 (8), THAT IS LOCATED WITHIN A SUBJECT JURISDICTION AND WAS CREATED BEFORE THE SUBJECT JURISDICTION CAME INTO COMPLIANCE WITH THIS PART 5; OR

(e) A HISTORIC PROPERTY, AS DEFINED IN SECTION 29-35-402 (11), THAT IS LOCATED OUTSIDE OF A HISTORIC DISTRICT, AS DEFINED IN

SECTION 29-35-402 (10).

(2) "SUBJECT JURISDICTION" HAS THE MEANING SET FORTH IN

SECTION 29-35-402 (21).

Permitted minimum lot size for subject jurisdictions. (1) ON OR AFTER OCTOBER 1, 2031, A SUBJECT JURISDICTION SHALL NOT REQUIRE:

(a) THAT A LOT HAVE AN AREA LARGER THAN TWO THOUSAND SQUARE FEET IF THE LOT'S RESIDENTIAL USE IS LIMITED TO A SINGLE FAMILY HOME; OR (b) MINIMUM LOT FRONTAGE, SETBACKS, OPEN SPACE, OR MAXIMUM LOT COVERAGE DIMENSIONS THAT HAVE THE PRACTICAL EFFECT OF PREVENTING THE CONSTRUCTION OF A SINGLE FAMILY HOME ON A LOT THAT HAS AN AREA OF TWO THOUSAND SQUARE FEET AND THAT HAS A RESIDENTIAL USE LIMITED TO A SINGLE FAMILY HOME.

(2) THIS SECTION APPLIES TO A LOT WITH A RESIDENTIAL USE THAT IS LIMITED TO A SINGLE FAMILY HOME REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE RESIDENTIAL USE ALLOWS ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS OR GROUP HOMES, BUT DOES NOT APPLY TO AN EXEMPT LOT.

(3) NOTHING IN THIS SECTION PREVENTS A SUBJECT JURISDICTION FROM:

(a) APPLYING AND ENFORCING A LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE STANDARD , TRANSPORTATION, OR PUBLIC WORKS CODE;

INCLUDING A STANDARD RELATED TO UTILITIES ,

(b) APPLYING AND ENFORCING A LOCAL LIFE SAFETY CODE, INCLUDING A BUILDING, FIRE, UTILITY, OR STORMWATER CODE;

(c) APPLYING AND ENFORCING A REGULATION RELATED TO HUMAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND SAFETY, INCLUDING OIL AND GAS SETBACKS, FLOODPLAIN REGULATIONS, AND AIRPORT INFLUENCE AREAS;

(d) ADOPTING GENERALLY APPLICABLE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PAYMENT OF IMPACT FEES OR OTHER SIMILAR DEVELOPMENT CHARGES IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 29-20-104.5, OR THE MITIGATION OF IMPACTS IN ACCORDANCE WITH PART 2 OF ARTICLE 20 OF THIS TITLE 29;

(e) REQUIRING A STATEMENT BY A WATER OR WASTEWATER SERVICE PROVIDER REGARDING THE PROVIDER'S CAPACITY TO SERVICE A LOT; OR

(f) APPLYING THE DESIGN STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES OF A HISTORIC DISTRICT TO A LOT LOCATED WITHIN A HISTORIC DISTRICT.

SECTION 2.

Safety clause. The general assembly finds, determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state institutions.