Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

General Assembly                       Raised Bill No. 470
       February Session, 2020                LCO No. 3010
     Referred to Committee on PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
     Introduced by:
       (PD)
 AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE OFFICE
 OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT.
 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
 Assembly convened:
       Section 1. Subsection (b) of section 12-81g of the general statutes is
    repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1,
    2020):
      (b) (1) Effective for the assessment year commencing October 1, [2013]
   2020, and each assessment year thereafter, any municipality may, upon
   approval by its legislative body or, in any town in which the legislative
   body is a town meeting, by the board of selectmen, provide that, in lieu
   of the additional exemption prescribed under subsection (a) of this
   section, any person entitled to an exemption from property tax in
   accordance with subdivision (20) of section 12-81, reflecting any increase
   made pursuant to the provisions of section 12-62g, as amended by this
   act, who has a disability rating of one hundred per cent, as determined
   by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, shall be entitled to
   an additional exemption from such tax in an amount equal to three times
   the amount of the exemption provided for such person pursuant to
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 subdivision (20) of section 12-81, provided such person's total adjusted
 gross income as determined for purposes of the federal income tax, [plus
 any other income not included in such adjusted income,] excluding
 veterans' disability payments, individually if unmarried, or jointly with
 spouse if married, during the calendar year ending immediately
 preceding the filing of a claim for any such exemption, is not more than
 twenty-four thousand dollars if such person is married or not more than
 twenty-one thousand dollars if such person is not married.
    (2) The provisions of this subsection shall not limit the applicability
 of the provisions of subsection (a) of this section for persons not eligible
 for the property tax exemption provided by this subsection.
    Sec. 2. Section 12-81cc of the general statutes is repealed and the
 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2020, and
 applicable to assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 2020):
    Any person who has established his or her entitlement to a property
 tax exemption under [subdivisions] subdivision (19), (20), (22), (23), (24),
 (25), (26), (28) or (53) of section 12-81 or section 12-81g, as amended by
 this act, for a particular assessment year shall be issued a certificate as
 to such entitlement by the tax assessor of the relevant municipality. Such
 person shall be entitled to such exemption in any municipality in this
 state for such assessment year provided a copy of such certificate is
 provided to the tax assessor of any municipality in which such
 exemption is claimed and further provided such person would
 otherwise have been eligible for such exemption in such municipality if
 he or she had filed for such exemption as provided under the general
 statutes.
    Sec. 3. Subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 12-170e of the
 general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu
 thereof (Effective July 1, 2020):
   (2) The amounts of income at each level of qualifying income, as
 provided in the table in subdivision (1) of this subsection, shall be
 adjusted annually in a uniform manner to reflect the annual inflation
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 adjustment in Social Security income. Each such adjustment of
 qualifying income shall be determined to the nearest one hundred
 dollars and shall be applicable in determining the amount of grant
 allowed under this subsection with respect to charges for rents,
 electricity, gas, water and fuel actually paid during the preceding
 calendar year. Each such adjustment of qualifying income shall be
 prepared by the [Commissioner of Housing] Secretary of the Office of
 Policy and Management in relation to the annual inflation adjustment
 in Social Security, if any, becoming effective at any time during the
 twelve-month period immediately preceding the first day of October
 each year and shall be distributed to the assessors in each municipality
 not later than the thirty-first day of December next following.
    Sec. 4. Subsections (c) and (d) of section 7-325 of the general statutes
 are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July
 1, 2020):
     (c) The clerk of each district created pursuant to this chapter or any
 provisions of the general statutes or any special act, shall report to the
 town clerk of each town in which such district is located: (1) If created
 by approval of a petition pursuant to subsection (a) of this section on or
 after July 1, 1987, within seven days of such approval; and (2) on or
 before July 31, 1993, and [annually thereafter for each such district,
 irrespective of the date of creation] any time the charter or special act of
 such district is amended. The first report filed after the creation of a
 district shall include a list of the officers of such district, a copy of the
 charter or special act of such district and such other information on the
 organization and the financial status of such district as the Secretary of
 the Office of Policy and Management may recommend. A copy of the
 charter or special act of such district shall be included in any subsequent
 report if such charter or special act was amended after the date of the
 previous filing. No district, irrespective of the date of creation, created
 by approval of a petition pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall
 exist as a body corporate and politic until the clerk of such district has
 filed at least one report required by this subsection. If a district is located
 in more than one town, the report shall be filed by the district clerk with
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 the town clerk of each town in which the district is located.
    (d) [Any fine imposed on and after July 1, 1992, on a clerk for failure
 to file a report required pursuant to subsection (c) of this section shall
 be waived.] Not later than July 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, the tax
 collector of each district shall submit a statement to the Secretary of the
 Office of Policy and Management on a form prescribed by the secretary.
 Such statement shall include complete information concerning the mill
 rate and tax levy in the district for the preceding year. Any tax collector
 who neglects to submit a true and correct statement shall forfeit one
 hundred dollars to the state.
    Sec. 5. Subsection (a) of section 19a-308 of the general statutes is
 repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1,
 2020):
    (a) In any town in which there is a burial ground or cemetery
 containing more than six places of interment [and not under the control
 or management of any currently functioning cemetery association,] that
 has been neglected and allowed to grow up to weeds, briars and bushes,
 or about which the fences have become broken, decayed or dilapidated,
 the selectmen of such town may cause such burial ground or cemetery
 to be cleared of weeds, briars and bushes, may mow the ground's lawn
 areas and may cause its fences or walls to be repaired and kept in
 orderly and decent condition and its memorial stones to be straightened,
 repaired and restored.
    Sec. 6. Section 12-62 of the general statutes is repealed and the
 following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2020, and
 applicable to assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 2021):
   (a) As used in this chapter:
    (1) "Assessor" means the person responsible for establishing property
 assessments for purposes of a town's grand list and includes a board of
 assessors;
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    (2) "Field review" means the process by which an assessor, a member
 of an assessor's staff or person designated by an assessor examines each
 parcel of real property in its neighborhood setting, compares observable
 attributes to those listed on such parcel's corresponding property
 record, makes any necessary corrections based on such observation and
 verifies that such parcel's attributes are accounted for in the valuation
 being developed for a revaluation;
    (3) "Full inspection" or "fully inspect" means to measure or verify the
 exterior dimensions of a building or structure and to enter and examine
 the interior of such building or structure in order to observe and record
 or verify the characteristics and conditions thereof, provided permission
 to enter such interior is granted by the property owner or an adult
 occupant;
   (4) "Planning region" has the same meaning as provided in section 4-
 124i;
    [(4)] (5) "Real property" means all the property described in section
 12-64;
   [(5)] (6) "Revaluation" or "revalue" means to establish the present true
 and actual value of all real property in a town as of a specific assessment
 date;
    (7) "Revaluation zone" means one of five geographic areas in the state
 established by the secretary utilizing the boundaries of the nine
 planning regions;
   [(6)] (8) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Office of Policy and
 Management, or said secretary's designee; and
   [(7)] (9) "Town" means any town, consolidated town and city or
 consolidated town and borough.
   (b) (1) (A) Commencing October 1, 2006, and until September 30,
 2021, each town shall implement a revaluation not later than the first
 day of October that follows, by five years, the October first assessment
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 date on which the town's previous revaluation became effective,
 provided, a town that opted to defer a revaluation, pursuant to section
 12-62l, shall implement a revaluation not later than the first day of
 October that follows, by five years, the October first assessment date on
 which the town's deferred revaluation became effective.
     (B) Commencing October 1, 2021, (i) each town shall implement a
 revaluation not later than the first day of October that follows, by five
 years, an October first assessment date set in accordance with a
 revaluation date schedule prescribed by the secretary for each
 revaluation zone, (ii) any town's required revaluation subsequent to any
 delayed revaluation implemented pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this
 subdivision shall be implemented in accordance with this section, and
 (iii) any such revaluation subsequent to any delayed revaluation shall
 recommence on the date set in such revaluation date schedule
 prescribed for the revaluation zone in which such town is located, which
 revaluation date schedule applied to such town prior to such delay.
    (C) The town shall use assessments derived from each such
 revaluation for the purpose of levying property taxes for the assessment
 year in which such revaluation is effective and for each assessment year
 that follows until the ensuing revaluation becomes effective.
    (2) When conducting a revaluation, an assessor shall use generally
 accepted mass appraisal methods which may include, but need not be
 limited to, the market sales comparison approach to value, the cost
 approach to value and the income approach to value. Prior to the
 completion of each revaluation, the assessor shall conduct a field
 review. Except in a town that has a single assessor, the members of the
 board of assessors shall approve, by majority vote, all valuations
 established for a revaluation.
    (3) An assessor, member of an assessor's staff or person designated
 by an assessor may, at any time, fully inspect any parcel of improved
 real property in order to ascertain or verify the accuracy of data listed
 on the assessor's property record for such parcel. Except as provided in
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 subdivision (4) of this subsection, the assessor shall fully inspect each
 such parcel once in every ten assessment years, provided, if the full
 inspection of any such parcel occurred in an assessment year preceding
 that commencing October 1, 1996, the assessor shall fully inspect such
 parcel not later than the first day of October of 2009, and shall thereafter
 fully inspect such parcel in accordance with this section. Nothing in this
 subsection shall require the assessor to fully inspect all of a town's
 improved real property parcels in the same assessment year and in no
 case shall an assessor be required to fully inspect any such parcel more
 than once during every ten assessment years.
    (4) An assessor may, at any time during the period in which a full
 inspection of each improved parcel of real property is required, send a
 questionnaire to the owner of such parcel to (A) obtain information
 concerning the property's acquisition, and (B) obtain verification of the
 accuracy of data listed on the assessor's property record for such parcel.
 An assessor shall develop and institute a quality assurance program
 with respect to responses received to such questionnaires. If satisfied
 with the results of said program concerning such questionnaires, the
 assessor may fully inspect only those parcels of improved real property
 for which satisfactory verification of data listed on the assessor's
 property record has not been obtained and is otherwise unavailable. The
 full inspection requirement in subdivision (3) of this subsection shall not
 apply to any parcel of improved real property for which the assessor
 obtains satisfactory verification of data listed on the assessor's property
 record.
    (c) The following shall be available for public inspection in the
 assessor's office, in the manner provided for access to public records in
 subsection (a) of section 1-210, not later than the date written notices of
 real property valuations are mailed in accordance with subsection (f) of
 this section: (1) Any criteria, guidelines, price schedules or statement of
 procedures used in such revaluation by the assessor or by any
 revaluation company that the assessor designates to perform mass
 appraisal or field review functions, all of which shall continue to be
 available for public inspection until the town's next revaluation becomes
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 effective; and (2) a compilation of all real property sales in each
 neighborhood for the twelve months preceding the date on which each
 revaluation is effective, the selling prices of which are representative of
 the fair market values of the properties sold, which compilation shall
 continue to be available for public inspection for a period of not less than
 twelve months immediately following a revaluation's effective date. If
 the assessor changes any property valuation as determined by the
 revaluation company, the assessor shall document, in writing, the
 reason for such change and shall append such written explanation to the
 property card for the real estate parcel whose revaluation was changed.
 Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit the assessor to
 post a plan or drawing of a dwelling unit of a residential property's
 interior on the Internet or to otherwise publish such plan or drawing.
     (d) (1) The chief executive officer of a town shall notify the Secretary
 of the Office of Policy and Management that the town is effecting a
 revaluation by sending a written notice to the secretary not later than
 thirty days after the date on which such town's assessor signs a grand
 list that reflects assessments of real property derived from a revaluation.
 Any town that fails to effect a revaluation for the assessment date
 required by this section shall be subject to a penalty effective for the
 fiscal year commencing on the first day of July following such
 assessment date, and continuing for each successive fiscal year in which
 the town fails to levy taxes on the basis of such revaluation, provided
 the secretary shall not impose such penalty with respect to any
 assessment year in which the provisions of subsection (b) of section 12-
 117 are applicable. Such penalty shall be the forfeit of the amount
 otherwise allocable to such town pursuant to section 7-536, as ame