Agricultural Stewardship Tax Credit

This tax credit is meant to encourage the practice of qualified stewardship practices on a farm or ranch, including any practice that:

• increases soil health,
• improves water efficiency, or
• creates more diverse and beneficial ecosystems while maintaining the productivity of the farm or ranch.

Sign up here to get email updates about the Agricultural Stewardship Tax Credit. 

Materials for Current & Future Applicants

• The application & attestation statement are on our Hub Site--the homebase for all interested future applicants and recipients
• This User Guide will walk future applicants through the process of submitting a tax credit application 

Visit the Hub Site   Read the User Guide 

Program Background

This tax credit was created through HB24-1249. CDA and Department of Revenue (DOR) will manage the tax credit program. 

The Ag Stewardship Tax Credit (ASTC):

• Is based on practices implemented on farms or ranches
• Is refundable (producers can get a tax rebate if they do not owe taxes)
• Is on a first-come, first-served basis
• Cannot overlap with existing grants or tax credits (it cannot be applied to the same practice on the same acreage as another grant)
• You must be a qualified taxpayer to receive an agricultural stewardship tax credit.  A qualified taxpayer is an individual or an entity (such as an LLC or partnership) that pays income taxes in the state of Colorado. Please consult a tax professional to determine if you or your entity is eligible to receive this tax credit.

Up to $3 million per year is available in tax credits and producers can apply for practices that are new or preexisting. 

Program Rules

• As of July 15, 2025, the permanent rules for the Ag Stewardship Tax Credit have been adopted.
• You can download and read the adopted rule here. 

Program Details

• Learn more about the program details in this overview presentation
• Use this tax credit calculator to see estimates of how acreage and practices correlate with credit payments
  • Tax Credit Calculator (Version 2)
    • Please note that this calculator is a live document and there could be multiple users on it at the same time (wait your turn!)
    • Download an Excel version of the Tax Credit Calculator (Version 2) here. This will work with Microsoft 365, Excel 2021 or later.
    • If you are a Google user, you can make a copy of the calculator here and use it independently.
• CDA hosted two informational webinars about the application process. You can watch a recording of the webinar here.