General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5502
February Session, 2012 *_____HB05502JUD___040212____*
General Assembly
Substitute Bill No. 5502
February Session, 2012
*_____HB05502JUD___040212____*
AN ACT CONCERNING STANDING TO APPEAL A ZONING DECISION AND ESTABLISHING CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF MUNICIPAL BLIGHT ORDINANCES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 8-8 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2012):
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Aggrieved person" means [a] any person owning land in this state who is aggrieved by a decision of a board and includes any officer, department, board or bureau of the municipality charged with enforcement of any order, requirement or decision of the board. In the case of a decision by a zoning commission, planning commission, combined planning and zoning commission or zoning board of appeals, "aggrieved person" includes any person owning land in this state that abuts or is within a radius of one hundred feet of any portion of the land involved in the decision of the board.
(2) "Board" means a municipal zoning commission, planning commission, combined planning and zoning commission, zoning board of appeals or other board or commission the decision of which may be appealed pursuant to this section, or the chief elected official of a municipality, or such official's designee, in a hearing held pursuant to section 22a-250, whose decision may be appealed.
Sec. 2. Subparagraph (H)(xv) of subdivision (7) of subsection (c) of section 7-148 of the 2012 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2012):
(xv) Make and enforce regulations for the prevention and remediation of housing blight, including regulations reducing assessments and authorizing designated agents of the municipality to enter property during reasonable hours for the purpose of remediating blighted conditions, provided such regulations define housing blight and provide written notice of any violation to the owner or occupant of the property and a reasonable opportunity for the owner or occupant to remediate the blighted conditions prior to any enforcement action being taken, and further provided such regulations shall not authorize such municipality or its designated agents to enter any dwelling house or structure on such property, and including regulations establishing a duty to maintain property and specifying standards to determine if there is neglect; prescribe [fines] civil penalties for the violation of such regulations of not less than ten or more than one hundred dollars for each day that a violation continues and, if such [fines] civil penalties are prescribed, such municipality shall adopt a citation hearing procedure in accordance with section 7-152c.
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2012) Any person who, after written notice and a reasonable opportunity to remediate blighted conditions, wilfully violates a regulation adopted pursuant to subparagraph (H)(xv) of subdivision (7) of subsection (c) of section 7-148 of the general statutes, as amended by this act, concerning the prevention and remediation of housing blight shall be fined not more than two hundred fifty dollars for each day that such violation continues.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2012 8-8(a)
Sec. 2 October 1, 2012 7-148(c)(7)(H)(xv)
Sec. 3 October 1, 2012 New section
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
October 1, 2012
8-8(a)
Sec. 2
October 1, 2012
7-148(c)(7)(H)(xv)
Sec. 3
October 1, 2012
New section
JUD Joint Favorable Subst.
JUD
Joint Favorable Subst.