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(Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund)

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks total return, consisting of current income exempt from federal income tax and Connecticut individual income tax and of capital appreciation, consistent with moderate fluctuation of principal.

Fees and Expenses of the Fund

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund. You may qualify for sales charge discounts if you and your family invest, or agree to invest in the future, at least $50,000 in certain classes of shares of eligible Columbia Funds. More information about these and other discounts is available from your financial advisor, in the Choosing a Share Class section beginning on page 20 of this prospectus and in Appendix S to the Statement of Additional Information under Sales Charge Waivers beginning on page S-1.

Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

Shareholder Fees (Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund)
Class A Shares
Class B Shares
Class C Shares
Class Z Shares
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases, as a % of offering price 4.75% none none none
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) imposed on redemptions, as a % of the lower of the original purchase price or current net asset value 1.00% [1] 5.00% [2] 1.00% [3] none
[1] Contingent deferred sales charges (CDSC) on certain investments of between $1 million and $50 million redeemed within 18 months of purchase, charged as follows: 1.00% CDSC if redeemed within 12 months of purchase, and 0.50% CDSC if redeemed more than 12, but less than 18, months of purchase, with certain limited exceptions.
[2] This charge decreases over time.
[3] This charge applies to investors who buy Class C shares and redeem them within one year of purchase, with certain limited exceptions.

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Annual Fund Operating Expenses (Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund)
Class A Shares
Class B Shares
Class C Shares
Class Z Shares
Management fees 0.47% 0.47% 0.47% 0.47%
Distribution and/or service (Rule 12b-1) fees 0.25% 1.00% 1.00% none
Other expenses [1] 0.30% 0.30% 0.30% 0.30%
Total annual Fund operating expenses 1.02% 1.77% 1.77% 0.77%
Fee waivers and/or reimbursements [2] (0.22%) (0.22%) (0.22%) (0.22%)
Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waivers and/or reimbursements 0.80% 1.55% 1.55% 0.55%
[1] Other expenses have been restated to reflect contractual changes to certain fees paid by the Fund.
[2] Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC (the Investment Manager) and certain of its affiliates have contractually agreed to waive fees and/or to reimburse expenses (excluding certain fees and expenses, such as transaction costs and certain other investment related expenses, interest, taxes, acquired fund fees and expenses, and extraordinary expenses) until February 28, 2014, unless sooner terminated at the sole discretion of the Fund's Board of Trustees. Under this agreement, the Fund's net operating expenses, subject to applicable exclusions, will not exceed the annual rates of 0.80% for Class A, 1.55% for Class B, 1.55% for Class C and 0.55% for Class Z.

Example

The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.

The example illustrates the hypothetical expenses that you would incur over the time periods indicated, and assumes that:

  • you invest $10,000 in Class A, Class B, Class C or Class Z shares of the Fund for the periods indicated,

  • your investment has a 5% return each year, and

  • the Fund's total annual operating expenses remain the same as shown in the table above.

Since the waivers and/or reimbursements shown in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table above expire on February 28, 2014, they are only reflected in the 1 year example and the first year of the 3, 5 and 10 year examples.

Based on the assumptions listed above, your costs would be:

Expense Example (Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund) (USD $)
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Class A Shares
553 763 991 1,645
Class B Shares
658 836 1,139 1,868
Class C Shares
258 536 939 2,066
Class Z Shares
56 224 406 934
Expense Example, No Redemption (Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund) (USD $)
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
Class B Shares
158 536 939 1,868
Class C Shares
158 536 939 2,066

Remember this is an example only. Your actual costs may be higher or lower.

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 14% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets in municipal bonds that pay interest exempt from federal income tax (including the federal alternative minimum tax) and Connecticut individual income tax. These securities are issued by the State of Connecticut and its political subdivisions, agencies, authorities and instrumentalities, by other qualified issuers and by mutual funds that invest in such securities. The Fund may invest up to 20% of its net assets in securities that pay interest subject to taxation. The Fund may invest in bonds of any maturity. Qualified issuers include issuers located in U.S. territories Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Fund primarily invests in municipal securities that, at the time of purchase, are rated investment grade or are unrated but determined to be of comparable quality. The Fund also may invest up to 25% of its total assets in securities that, at the time of purchase, are rated below investment grade or are unrated but determined to be of comparable quality, which are commonly referred to as "junk bonds." The Fund may also invest in zero-coupon bonds.

The Fund may invest in derivatives, including futures, such as exchange-traded futures contracts, primarily for hedging purposes.

The Fund is non-diversified, which means that it can invest a greater percentage of its assets in a single issuer than can a diversified fund.

Columbia Management Investment Advisers, LLC, the Fund's investment adviser (the Investment Manager) evaluates a number of factors in identifying investment opportunities and constructing the Fund's portfolio. The Investment Manager considers local, national and global economic conditions, market conditions, interest rate movements and other relevant factors to determine the allocation of the Fund's assets among different issuers, industry sectors and maturities.

The Investment Manager, in connection with selecting individual investments for the Fund, evaluates a security based on its potential to generate income and/or capital appreciation. The Investment Manager considers, among other factors, the creditworthiness of the issuer of the security and the various features of the security, such as its interest rate, yield, maturity, any call features and value relative to other securities.

The Investment Manager may sell a security if the Investment Manager believes that there is deterioration in the issuer's financial circumstances, or that other investments are more attractive; if there is deterioration in a security's credit rating; or for other reasons.

Principal Risks

  • Investment Strategy Risk – The Fund's manager uses the principal investment strategies and other investment strategies to seek to achieve the Fund's investment objective. There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. Investment decisions may not produce the expected returns, may cause the Fund's shares to lose value or may cause the Fund to underperform other funds with similar investment objectives.

  • Market Risk Market risk refers to the possibility that the market values of securities that the Fund holds will fall, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably, or fail to rise. Security values may fall because of factors affecting individual companies, industries or sectors, or the markets as a whole, reducing the value of an investment in the Fund. Accordingly, an investment in the Fund could lose money over short or even long periods, or fail to increase in value. The market values of the securities the Fund holds also can be affected by changes or perceived changes in U.S. or foreign economies and financial markets, and the liquidity of these securities, among other factors. In general, equity securities tend to have greater price volatility than debt securities.

  • State-Specific Municipal Securities Risk – Securities issued by a particular state and its instrumentalities are subject to the risk of unfavorable developments in such state. The value of Fund shares may be more volatile than the value of shares of funds that invest in municipal securities of issuers in more than one state, as unfavorable developments have the potential to impact more significantly the Fund than funds that invest in municipal securities of many different states. A municipal security can be significantly affected by adverse tax, legislative, demographic or political changes as well as changes in the state's financial or economic condition and prospects. The Statement of Additional Information provides greater detail about risks specific to the municipal securities of the state in which the Fund invests, which investors should carefully consider.

  • Municipal Securities Risk Municipal securities are debt obligations generally issued to obtain funds for various public purposes, including general financing for state and local governments, or financing for a specific project or public facility. Municipal securities may be fully or partially backed by the taxing authority of the local government, by the credit of a private issuer, by the current or anticipated revenues from a specific project or specific assets or by domestic or foreign entities providing credit support, such as letters of credit, guarantees or insurance, and are generally classified into general obligation bonds and special revenue obligations. General obligation bonds are backed by an issuer's taxing authority and may be vulnerable to limits on a government's power or ability to raise revenue or increase taxes. They may also depend for payment on legislative appropriation and/or funding or other support from other governmental bodies. Revenue obligations are payable from revenues generated by a particular project or other revenue source, and are typically subject to greater risk of default than general obligation bonds because investors can look only to the revenue generated by the project or other revenue source backing the project, rather than to the general taxing authority of the state or local government issuer of the obligations. Because many municipal securities are issued to finance projects in sectors such as education, health care, transportation and utilities, conditions in those sectors can affect the overall municipal market. Municipal securities generally pay interest that, in the opinion of bond counsel, is free from U.S. federal income tax (and, often, the federal alternative minimum tax). There is no assurance that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will agree with this opinion or that U.S. federal income tax law will not change. In the event the IRS determines that the issuer does not comply with relevant tax requirements or U.S. federal income tax law changes, interest payments from a security could become federally taxable, possibly retroactively to the date the security was issued, and the value of the security would likely fall. As a shareholder of the Fund, you may be required to file an amended tax return and pay additional taxes as a result.

  • Low and Below Investment Grade Securities Risk Debt securities with the lowest investment grade rating (e.g., BBB by Standard & Poor's, a division of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. (S&P), or Fitch, Inc. (Fitch) or Baa by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. (Moody's)), or that are below investment grade (which are commonly referred to as "junk bonds") (e.g., BB or below by S&P or Fitch or Ba by Moody's) and unrated securities of comparable quality are more speculative than securities with higher ratings and may experience greater price fluctuations. These securities tend to be more sensitive to credit risk than higher-rated securities, particularly during a downturn in the economy, which is more likely to weaken the ability of the issuers to make principal and interest payments on these securities. These securities typically pay a premium – a higher interest rate or yield – because of the increased risk of loss, including default. These securities also are generally less liquid than higher-rated securities. The securities ratings provided by Moody's, S&P and Fitch are based on analyses by these ratings agencies of the credit quality of the securities and may not take into account every risk related to whether interest or principal will be timely repaid.

  • Interest Rate Risk Debt securities are subject to interest rate risk. In general, if prevailing interest rates rise, the values of debt securities will tend to fall, and if interest rates fall, the values of debt securities will tend to rise. Changes in the value of a debt security usually will not affect the amount of income the Fund receives from it but may affect the value of the Fund's shares. Interest rate risk is generally greater for debt securities with longer maturities/durations.

  • Credit Risk Credit risk applies to most debt securities, but is generally less of a factor for obligations backed by the "full faith and credit" of the U.S. Government. The Fund could lose money if the issuer of a debt security owned by the Fund is unable or perceived to be unable to pay interest or repay principal when it becomes due. Various factors could affect the issuer's actual or perceived willingness or ability to make timely interest or principal payments, including changes in the issuer's financial condition or in general economic conditions. Debt securities backed by an issuer's taxing authority may be subject to legal limits on the issuer's power to increase taxes or otherwise to raise revenue, or may be dependent on legislative appropriation or government aid. Certain debt securities are backed only by revenues derived from a particular project or source, rather than by an issuer's taxing authority, and thus may have a greater risk of default.

  • Changing Distribution Levels Risk The amount of the distributions paid by the Fund generally depends on the amount of interest and/or dividends received by the Fund on the securities it holds. The Fund may not be able to pay distributions or may have to reduce its distribution level if the interest and/or dividends the Fund receives from its investments decline.

  • Reinvestment Risk Income from the Fund's debt securities portfolio will decline if and when the Fund invests the proceeds from matured, traded or called securities in securities with market interest rates that are below the current earnings rate of the Fund's portfolio.

  • Zero-Coupon Bonds Risk Zero-coupon bonds are bonds that do not pay interest in cash on a current basis, but instead accrue interest over the life of the bond. As a result, these securities are issued at a discount and their values may fluctuate more than the values of similar securities that pay interest periodically. Although these securities pay no interest to holders prior to maturity, interest accrued on these securities is reported as income to the Fund and affects the amounts distributed to its shareholders.

  • Prepayment and Extension Risk – Prepayment and extension risk is the risk that a loan, bond or other security might be called or otherwise converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity. This risk is primarily associated with asset-backed securities, including mortgage-backed securities and floating rate loans. If a loan or security is converted, prepaid or redeemed before maturity, particularly during a time of declining interest rates or spreads, the portfolio managers may not be able to invest the proceeds in securities or loans providing as high a level of income, resulting in a reduced yield to the Fund. Conversely, as interest rates rise or spreads widen, the likelihood of prepayment decreases. The portfolio managers may be unable to capitalize on securities with higher interest rates or wider spreads because the Fund's investments are locked in at a lower rate for a longer period of time.

  • Derivatives Risk – Derivatives are financial contracts whose values are, for example, based on (or "derived" from) traditional securities (such as a stock or bond), assets (such as a commodity like gold or a foreign currency), reference rates (such as LIBOR) or market indices (such as the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500® Index). Derivatives involve special risks and may result in losses or may limit the Fund's potential gain from favorable market movements. Derivative strategies often involve leverage, which may exaggerate a loss, potentially causing the Fund to lose more money than it would have lost had it invested in the underlying security or other asset. The values of derivatives may move in unexpected ways, especially in unusual market conditions, and may result in increased volatility, among other consequences. The use of derivatives may also increase the amount of taxes payable by shareholders holding shares in a taxable account. Other risks arise from the Fund's potential inability to terminate or to sell derivative positions. A liquid secondary market may not always exist for the Fund's derivative positions at times when the Fund might wish to terminate or to sell such positions. Over-the-counter instruments (investments not traded on an exchange) may be illiquid, and transactions in derivatives traded in the over-the-counter market are subject to the risk that the other party will not meet its obligations. The use of derivatives also involves the risks of mispricing or improper valuation and that changes in the value of the derivative may not correlate perfectly with the underlying security, asset, reference rate or index. The Fund also may not be able to find a suitable derivative transaction counterparty, and thus may be unable to engage in derivative transactions when it is deemed favorable to do so, or at all. U.S. federal legislation has recently been enacted that provides for new clearing, margin, reporting and registration requirements for participants in the derivatives market. While the ultimate impact is not yet clear, these changes could restrict and/or impose significant costs or other burdens upon the Fund's participation in derivatives transactions. For more information on the risks of derivative investments and strategies, see the Statement of Additional Information.

  • Derivatives Risk — Futures Contracts The Fund may buy or sell futures. A futures contract is a contract between a buyer (holding the "long" position) and a seller (holding the "short" position) for an asset with delivery deferred until a future date. The buyer agrees to pay a fixed price at the agreed future date and the seller agrees to deliver the asset. The seller hopes that the market price on the delivery date is less than the agreed upon price, while the buyer hopes for the contrary. The liquidity of the futures markets depends on participants entering into offsetting transactions rather than making or taking delivery. To the extent participants decide to make or take delivery, liquidity in the particular futures market could be reduced. Certain futures markets are more liquid than others. In addition, certain futures exchanges often impose a maximum permissible price movement on each futures contract for each trading session. To the extent that the Fund trades on such futures exchanges, the Fund may be disadvantaged if it is prohibited from executing a trade outside the daily permissible price movement.

  • Non-Diversified Mutual Fund Risk The Fund is non-diversified, which generally means that it may invest a greater percentage of its total assets in the securities of fewer issuers than may a "diversified" fund. This increases the risk that a change in the value of any one investment held by the Fund could affect the overall value of the Fund more than it would affect that of a diversified fund holding a greater number of investments. Accordingly, the Fund's value will likely be more volatile than the value of more diversified funds. The Fund may not operate as a non-diversified fund at all times.

Performance Information

The following bar chart and table show you how the Fund has performed in the past, and can help you understand the risks of investing in the Fund. Class A share performance (without sales charges) is shown in the bar chart because Class A is the oldest share class of the Fund. The inception date for the Fund's Class Z shares is September 27, 2010. The returns shown for Class Z shares include the returns of the Fund's Class A shares (without sales charges) for periods prior to its inception date. Except for differences in expenses and sales charges (where applicable), Class Z shares would have annual returns substantially similar to those of Class A shares, because all classes of the Fund's shares invest in the same portfolio of securities. The returns shown for Class Z shares have not been adjusted to reflect any differences in expenses between Class Z shares and Class A shares.

The Fund's past performance (before and after taxes) is no guarantee of how the Fund will perform in the future. Updated performance information can be obtained by calling toll-free 800.345.6611 or visiting www.columbiamanagement.com.

The bar chart shows how the Fund's Class A share performance (without sales charges) has varied for each full calendar year shown. If the sales charges were reflected, returns shown would be lower.

Year by Year Total Return (%) as of December 31 Each Year

Bar Chart

Best and Worst Quarterly Returns During this Period

Best:    3rd quarter 2009:    6.97%

Worst:   4th quarter 2010:   -5.29%

Average Annual Total Return as of December 31, 2012

The table compares the Fund's returns for each period with those of the Barclays Municipal Bond Index, the Barclays Connecticut Municipal Bond Index and the Lipper Connecticut Municipal Debt Funds Classification. The Barclays Municipal Bond Index, the Fund's primary benchmark, is considered representative of the broad market for investment-grade, tax-exempt bonds with maturity of at least one year. The Fund also measures itself against the Barclays Connecticut Municipal Bond Index, as a secondary benchmark, because the Investment Manager believes that the additional index provides a reasonable view of the available municipal investment opportunities in Connecticut and therefore provides an additional useful performance comparison. The Barclays Connecticut Municipal Bond Index is a subset of the Barclays Municipal Bond Index consisting solely of bonds issued by obligors located in the state of Connecticut. The Lipper Connecticut Municipal Debt Funds Classification is a calculation of average total returns of mutual funds that generally limit assets to those securities that pay interest exempt from U.S. federal and Connecticut state income taxes.

Average Annual Total Returns (Columbia Connecticut Tax-Exempt Fund)
1 Year
5 Years
10 Years
Class A Shares
1.95% 4.60% 3.99%
Class A Shares returns after taxes on distributions
1.83% 4.52% 3.85%
Class A Shares returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares
2.46% 4.42% 3.88%
Class B Shares
1.41% 4.53% 3.73%
Class C Shares
5.73% 5.17% 4.04%
Class Z Shares
7.35% 5.71% 4.54%
Barclays Municipal Bond Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
6.78% 5.91% 5.10%
Barclays Connecticut Municipal Bond Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)
3.98% 5.17% 4.45%
Lipper Connecticut Municipal Debt Funds Classification (reflects no deductions for taxes)
6.21% 4.90% 4.15%

The after-tax returns shown in the table above are calculated using the highest historical individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state, local or foreign taxes. Your actual after-tax returns will depend on your personal tax situation and may differ from those shown in the table. In addition, the after-tax returns shown in the table do not apply to shares held in tax-deferred accounts such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts (IRAs). The after-tax returns are shown only for Class A shares and will vary for other share classes.

Returns after taxes on distributions and sale of Fund shares are higher than before-tax returns for certain periods shown because they reflect the tax benefit of capital losses realized on the redemption of Fund shares.