Set your locationfor programs and installers near you

ShippingReturnsHow it worksFind an order

Emberbreakby Ridgewell Home
CartEmpty Build my kit
Menu

Find programsColoradoBoulder County

Boulder County, Colorado

From October 2026, Colorado home insurers must show your wildfire risk score and either price in or discount verified mitigation, and you can appeal with proof of the work.

Insurance
2
Grants, rebates, and tax breaks
4
Rules for homeowners
1
Free help
1
Build my kit

Insurance

Rules that make insurers count mitigation, and the certification many of them recognize.

Insurance ruleIn effectReady to proceed

Wildfire risk scores and mitigation discounts (HB25-1182)

Colorado. Colorado Division of Insurance

Admitted home insurers and the Colorado FAIR Plan that use wildfire risk models must account for property-level and community-level mitigation in pricing, or give a discount for qualified mitigation if their model does not. From October 1, 2026, applicants and policyholders get a notice with their wildfire risk score, the property features that drove it, the effect of mitigation, and the right to appeal.

A premium discount or an improved wildfire risk score after you show completed mitigation; each insurer sets and posts its own amounts.

Ready to proceed. It applies to insurers in your state. Keep the record of the work.

Details and how to use it
Details
The law doesn’t list actions. Each insurer posts which actions it credits and its discounts; the Division of Insurance points to work certified under IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home as an example. Evidence can be receipts, photos, certificates, or inspection reports.
How
Check your insurer's website for its list of qualifying actions, discounts, and appeal instructions. After the work is done, send evidence such as receipts, photos, completion certificates, or inspection reports by the electronic method named in your notice; the insurer must acknowledge within 10 calendar days and decide within 30. Under the draft rule you have at least 30 days from a renewal or nonrenewal notice to appeal, and if evidence is short the insurer must say what is missing and give 30 more days.
We prepare
Mitigation record and Request for a mitigation review

Official source: Colorado Division of InsuranceChecked Nov 3, 2026.

CertificationOpenReady to proceed

Wildfire Prepared Home

Nationwide. Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS)

A certification from the insurance industry’s research institute that a house meets its wildfire standard. An evaluator visits and documents the work, and many insurers in the states where it’s offered recognize it.

Discounts vary by insurer and state and aren’t guaranteed. A designation lasts 3 years, with a yearly photo review to keep it active.

Ready to proceed. It applies to insurers in your state. Keep the record of the work.

Work it may recognize
Vents, gutters and gutter guards, and the first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
A fee and a yearly review
Details and how to use it
Details
Essential, the ember level, also asks for a Class A roof and 6 in of noncombustible wall base. Enhanced adds gutter guards, enclosed eaves, tempered windows, and noncombustible siding and decks. Garage doors aren’t named.
How
Do the work with the How-To Prepare checklist, then apply online with photos of every side of the house and the 0 to 5 ft zone. An evaluator visits; if something falls short, you have 60 days to fix it and send photos.
We prepare
Certification checklist and Mitigation record

Official source: Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS)Checked Nov 3, 2026.

Grants, rebates, and tax breaks

Money back for work on your house. Read what each one needs before you buy.

RebateOpenApply before buying

Boulder West Wildfire Authority home hardening rebate

Four Mile, Gold Hill, Sugarloaf, and Sunshine Fire Protection Districts (west Boulder County). Boulder West Wildfire Authority with Wildfire Partners

An extra rebate for homeowners in four west Boulder County fire districts who gravel the first 5 ft around the home or screen vents. Youth corps crews can also help vulnerable and underserved residents with the work for free.

Up to $500 from BWWA, stackable with a $500 Wildfire Partners rebate for up to $1,000, for work done August 1, 2025 to May 1, 2027.

Apply before buying. It wants an assessment before you buy parts or start work.

Work it may recognize
Vents and the first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
An assessment before the work, itemized receipts, and a home inside the program’s boundary
Details and how to claim
Details
Named items: gravel purchase or installation in the first 5 ft, vent mesh purchase or installation, and other approved work that creates a noncombustible zone around the home. The Wildfire Partners general rebate is closed for 2026; the page does not say whether the BWWA portion pays on its own.
How
Get a Wildfire Partners Individual Home Assessment, do the work, then submit receipts for materials or contractor costs to [email protected] or call 303-449-3333.
Deadline
May 1, 2027
We prepare
Grant or rebate packet

Official source: Boulder West Wildfire Authority with Wildfire PartnersChecked Nov 3, 2026.

Tax creditOpenConfirm your property’s eligibility

Wildfire mitigation income tax credit

Colorado. Colorado Department of Revenue

A state income tax credit for landowners who pay a third party for defensible space, fuel breaks, or thinning on private Colorado land. The older wildfire mitigation subtraction ended after tax year 2024, so the credit is the only option for 2025 and 2026.

Tax years 2025 to 2027: 100 percent of eligible out-of-pocket costs, up to a $1,000 credit per year. Federal taxable income limit $129,200 for 2025; 2026 limit not yet published. Nonrefundable, no carryforward.

Confirm your property’s eligibility. It needs household income under its limit. Check its limits on the official page.

Work it may recognize
The first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
Itemized receipts and an income limit
Details and how to claim
Details
Counts only work paid to a contractor for defensible space, fuel breaks, woody vegetation thinning, and slash treatment that meets Colorado State Forest Service or DFPC standards. Home hardening such as vents, gutter guards, and seals is not eligible per the 2026 legislative tax expenditure report. Your own labor, materials you buy, equipment, inspection fees, and grant-reimbursed costs do not count. Joint filers share one $1,000 cap. Not limited to the WUI.
How
Keep contractor receipts for the work. File Individual Credit Schedule DR 0104CR with your DR 0104 return and attach the receipts, or upload them through Revenue Online.
We prepare
Cost record for taxes

Official source: Colorado Department of RevenueChecked Nov 3, 2026.

RebateClosed for now

Wildfire Partners wildfire mitigation rebate

All of Boulder County, including the City of Boulder and other municipalities. Boulder County Wildfire Partners

A countywide rebate, paid from the county's wildfire mitigation sales tax, for owners and renters who do ember-focused work at a Boulder County home. Closed for 2026.

Up to $500 per home (2024 program terms).

Closed for now. Not taking applications. Work done while it’s closed may not count. Check the official page before you buy.

Work it may recognize
Vents and the first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
A home inside the program’s boundary
Details and how to claim
Details
2024 eligible projects: removing junipers, noncombustible material in the first five feet, replacing the first five feet of attached fence with noncombustible material, and screening vents with 1/8 in mesh or replacing them with flame-resistant vents. Gutters and garage seals were not listed. A separate multi-family rebate also closed for 2026.
How
The general rebate is closed for 2026. Watch wildfirepartners.org/rebate for the next round; a Wildfire Partners home assessment is a useful first step.
We prepare
Grant or rebate packet

Official source: Boulder County Wildfire PartnersChecked Nov 3, 2026. Figures for 2024.

RebateClosed for now

City of Boulder Wildfire Resilience Assistance Program (WRAP)

City of Boulder wildland-urban interface. City of Boulder Fire-Rescue

Reimburses City of Boulder WUI property owners for approved home hardening and vegetation work, funded by the city's climate tax. The 2026 cycle is closed and the program returns in 2027.

Up to $2,000 per property; owners at or below 60 percent of Boulder County area median income may get part of the payment upfront.

Closed for now. Not taking applications. Expected back in 2027. Work done while it’s closed may not count. Check the official page before you buy.

Work it may recognize
Vents and the first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
An assessment before the work, itemized receipts, before and after photos, and a home in a mapped hazard zone
Details and how to claim
Details
Pays for materials and contractor work in the approved scope. The page names a 0 to 5 ft noncombustible zone and gable vent ember screening among funded projects and links a separate eligible-item list. Owner labor, equipment, routine maintenance, outbuildings, and HOA common elements are not eligible. After photos are required; before photos are not mentioned.
How
Get a Detailed Home Assessment from Boulder Fire-Rescue and join the city email list for the 2027 opening. Submit one application per property when the round opens (first come, first served); work done while the program is closed may not be reimbursed. After approved work, submit a paid itemized invoice and after photos.
We prepare
Grant or rebate packet

Official source: City of Boulder Fire-RescueChecked Nov 3, 2026. Figures for 2026.

Rules for homeowners

What you may owe when you sell, rebuild, or keep up the ground around the house.

Building codeIn effect

Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code (8 CCR 1507-39)

Colorado. Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control, Wildfire Resiliency Code Board; enforced by local building officials

A statewide minimum wildfire code that local governments enforce in mapped WUI areas. It applies to new homes, additions of 500 sq ft or more, and replacing 25 percent or more of a roof or exterior wall; existing homes generally do not have to retrofit.

Asks about
Vents, gutters and gutter guards, garage door seals, sealing gaps, and the first 5 ft around the house
You’ll need
A home in a mapped hazard zone
Details and how to comply
Details
Vents must be ASTM E2886 listed or use noncombustible mesh with openings of 1/8 in or less. Gutters and downspouts must be noncombustible. The 0 to 5 ft zone must be hard noncombustible surface with no new trees, and fences within 8 ft of the house must be noncombustible or ignition resistant. In moderate and high intensity areas, exterior doors need weather-stripping or overlaps to limit ember gaps (garage doors are not named separately) and roof valleys and gaps need ember protection. Also covers Class A roofs, siding, windows, decks, and 5 to 100 ft vegetation. Replacing 25 percent or more of siding also triggers the 5 ft zone rules.
How
Ask your city or county building department whether your parcel is in a mapped WUI area and which class applies; you can request a ground-truthing review of the classification. Plan permitted remodels, reroofs over 25 percent, and siding jobs to meet the code.
We prepare
Mitigation record

Official source: Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control, Wildfire Resiliency Code Board; enforced by local building officialsChecked Nov 3, 2026.

Free help

Assessments and services you don’t pay for.

Neighborhood programOpen

Firewise USA

Nationwide. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

A neighborhood program. Residents form a small board, get a risk assessment, write an action plan, and log the work they do each year to stay recognized. Some state insurance rules and some insurers count a recognized neighborhood.

Details and how to use it
Details
Community work: clearing, chipping days, and education. Your own retrofit work counts toward the neighborhood’s yearly total.
How
Look up recognized sites near you, or start one with your neighbors through NFPA’s Firewise USA portal. Your state forestry agency usually helps with the assessment.

Official source: National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)Checked Nov 3, 2026.

In progress in Colorado

HB25-1182 was signed May 28, 2025 and takes effect July 1, 2026; disclosure notices start October 1, 2026 for admitted insurers and the Colorado FAIR Plan. The Division of Insurance proposed Regulation 5-1-28 (notices of premium reduction options and the appeal process; draft lists a February 14, 2026 effective date) and a companion draft regulation on filing requirements for wildfire models and mitigation discounts; final adopted text was not confirmed. The wildfire mitigation income tax subtraction (C.R.S. 39-22-104(4)(n)) ended after tax year 2024 under HB24-1036; only the credit (C.R.S. 39-22-543) remains for 2025 and 2026. A 2026 legislative tax expenditure report says the credit runs through tax year 2030 and that HB26-1289 limits it to individual taxpayers starting tax year 2026, while the Department of Revenue page shows tax years 2023 to 2027. The Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code (8 CCR 1507-39) took effect July 1, 2025 and is enforced by local governments in mapped WUI areas; a 2028 code cycle is underway.

General information, not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Rules and funding change, so open the official page before you apply or buy for a program.