Eastern Plains
Baca County
Property taxes, marriage licenses, vehicle services, and many public records run through Baca County. Permits and local rules may sit with a town or city instead, so match the office to the exact address.
Official county shortcuts
Take the task to the office that handles it
These links go straight to the official county or regional office shown. Check that page for current documents, hours, appointments, fees, and address-specific instructions. A city may run its own permit office.
Property tax snapshot
Typical property tax in Baca County
The average total mill levy across Baca County was about 81.3 mills for tax year 2023 — below the statewide average of about 81 mills. On a $500,000 home, that comes to roughly $2,636 a year, using Colorado's 2026 residential rules: 7.05% on school mills, and 6.8% on the rest after the local actual-value adjustment.
This is the county average across all tax areas. Your parcel's actual mill levy depends on its exact tax area — a metro or special district can add many mills on top — so confirm the real number with the county assessor.
Sales tax: the state charges 2.9% and Baca County adds no county sales tax — cities and special districts still can. See Colorado sales tax rates ->
Source: Colorado Division of Property Taxation, 53rd Annual Report (2023) — Average Levies by County.
Incorporated places in this county
These cities and towns touch Baca County. Some cross a county line. Every name opens a direct place page, and selected places include a fuller local guide.
Get to know Baca County
The history, land, and character behind the place.
Water and land
In Baca County, well water mostly comes from the ground, not a river
Much of Baca County depends on groundwater rather than surface streams, so a well permit and the aquifer beneath a property are worth understanding before you buy.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
The Comanche National Grassland is public land you can walk in Baca County
A large share of Baca County's open country is federal grassland managed by the Forest Service, with its own access rules and a ranger office in Springfield.
Read note ->History and culture
You can still find Santa Fe Trail wagon ruts in southern Baca County
The Cimarron Route of the Santa Fe Trail crossed about 14 miles of southern Baca County, and on the Carrizo Unit grassland you can still walk out to faint wagon ruts and old markers.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Two Buttes is a State Wildlife Area, not a state park
Two Buttes Reservoir near Baca County is a Colorado State Wildlife Area, which means access depends on a license or pass and conditions can change with the water.
Read note ->Money and taxes (1)
Home and property (1)
Outdoors and wildfire (4)
Outdoors and wildfire
Carrizo Canyon is a creek-fed canyon with old rock carvings
Carrizo Canyon in the Comanche National Grassland follows a fork of Carrizo Creek through juniper and cottonwood, and its walls hold American Indian petroglyphs.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Hunting the Comanche Grassland means knowing two sets of rules
Hunting on Comanche National Grassland means following CPW game rules and Forest Service land rules while keeping clear of private property.
Read note ->Cars and driving (1)
Local rules (1)
History and culture (3)
History and culture
The Dust Bowl shaped Baca County's land and its people
Baca County was at the heart of the 1930s Dust Bowl, and that history still explains its grasslands, its small towns, and how the land is used today.
Read note ->History and culture
Picture Canyon holds rock art worth treating with care
Picture Canyon in Baca County's Comanche National Grassland holds ancient rock art on its walls, and visiting it respectfully helps protect it.
Read note ->Nearby counties
Other Eastern Plains counties — rules, rates, and districts shift across county lines.