Law enforcement may get new powers to act immediately
by Eric Mullens
WALSENBURG — Imagine if you own rental property in Huerfano County or one of its towns or cities, come here to inspect it and find someone there who isn’t authorized to occupy the residence, or maybe you have taken an extended vacation and when you return to your home you find strangers living there?
There has been little in Colorado law prior to 2018 that protects a land or homeowner when their property has been invaded by squatters.
Acting from a KOAA Channel 5 investigative report that began last year, the Colorado General Assembly may be taking action this session to put some teeth into state law. Currently, depending on the circumstances, a land or property owner may have to go through a laborious civil process of eviction of people not allowed to live in a particular home or on private property that is not their own.
Lawmakers unanimously voted Monday, Jan 29 to approve Senate Bill 15 which addresses the ongoing squatting problem in southern Colorado. The legislation is now moving to the state House for approval.
While the issue has had most of its focus in the metro Colorado Springs area, there have been reports of squatter issues elsewhere.
If the current legislation passes and makes it to the governor’s desk, it would give law enforcement agencies the authority to immediately remove squatters without forcing the home or property owner to get an eviction order.
Most police agencies statewide currently see the issue as a civil, not criminal one, however burglary and trespassing laws have been enforced in some areas to deal with squatters.
Senate Bill 15 would allow a law enforcement agent from the appropriate jurisdiction to remove a person from a residential premises and to order the person to stay off the property if the owner or the owner’s agent, for example, a declared property manager, swears to a declaration making specified statements concerning the property owner and who exactly has the right to reside at the residence or on the property. The bill says the law enforcement officer must allow the person (squatter) reasonable opportunity to obtain evidence of his or her authority (i.e. legitimate lease/rental agreement) to physically occupy the property or residence.
Huerfano County Sheriff Bruce Newman said this week the county hasn’t faced a great deal of these issues despite the number of rental and vacation properties in the county. He said the majority of complaints have come from land owners who find, or who have been notified that unauthorized people are camping on their land; sometimes in tents, but on occasion, campers have been parked illegally and occupied by people who do not have the land owner’s permission to be there.
Newman did relate a case from some time back in Walsenburg, where a third party illegally represented himself as an authorized agent and rented a home (with a lease) to another party without the real property owner’s knowledge or consent. The individual renting the property wasn’t a true squatter as addressed in the current proposed legislation.
But, on either side of the issue, the home/property owner and a potential renter should do their homework and ensure all transactions are legal, and business is being done with the appropriate persons.
The sponsors of SB 15 are; Sen. Bob Gardner (R-Colorado Springs), Sen. Owen Hill (R-Colorado Springs), Rep Dave Williams (R-Colorado Springs), and Rep. Larry Liston (R-Colorado Springs).
