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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 7192
January Session, 2019
AN ACT CONCERNING MU NICIPAL AND REGIONAL
OPPORTUNITIES AND EF FICIENCIES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 7-395 of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 2
(a) The secretary shall review each audit report filed with said 3
secretary as provided in section 7-393, except said secretary shall 4
review the audit reports on each audited agency biennially and may 5
review the audit reports on any municipality or regional school district 6
biennially, provided such secretary shall, in any year in which he does 7
not review the report of any such municipality or regional school 8
district, review the comments and recommendations of the 9
independent auditor who made such audit. If, upon such review of the 10
audit report, evidence of fraud or embezzlement is found, he shall 11
report such information to the state's attorney for the judicial district in 12
which such municipality, regional school district or audited agency is 13
located. If, in the review of such audit report said secretary finds that 14
such audit has not been prepared in compliance with the provisions of 15
subsection (a) of section 7-394a, or said secretary finds evidence of any 16
unsound or irregular financial practice in relation to commonly 17
accepted standards in municipal finance, said secretary shall prepare a 18
report concerning such finding, including necessary details for proper 19 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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evaluation of such finding and recommendations for corrective action 20
and shall refer such report to the Municipal Finance Advisory 21
Commission established under section 7-394b. A copy of such report 22
shall be filed with: (1) The chief executive officer of such municipality 23
or audited agency or the superintendent of such school district and, in 24
the case of a town, city or borough, with the clerk of such town, city or 25
borough; and (2) the Auditors of Public Accounts. 26
(b) If, upon such review of the audit report, the secretary finds (1) 27
that such audit has not been prepared in accordance with subsection 28
(a) of section 7-394a, and the municipality, regional school district or 29
audited agency did not request permission to have the audit report 30
prepared in a manner not in compliance with said subsection; or (2) 31
evidence of unsound or irregular financial practices or management 32
letter comments or lack of internal controls in relation to commonly 33
accepted standards in municipal finance, then the secretary shall 34
prepare a report concerning such finding, including, but not limited to, 35
information to aid in the evaluation of such finding and 36
recommendations for corrective action. The secretary shall submit such 37
report to (A) the Municipal Finance Advisory Commission established 38
pursuant to section 7-394b; (B) the Auditors of Public Accounts; and 39
(C) the chief executive officer and clerk of the municipality, 40
superintendent of schools for the regional school district or chief 41
executive officer of the audited agency. 42
(c) Upon receipt of a report submitted pursuant to subsection (b) of 43
this section, the chief executive officer of a municipality or audited 44
agency or superintendent of schools for the regional school district 45
shall attest to and explain the secretary's findings and submit a plan 46
for corrective action, in writing, to the secretary. 47
(d) The secretary shall refer to the Municipal Finance Advisory 48
Commission any municipality that has not been previously referred to 49
said commission pursuant to subsection (b) of this section or section 7-50
576, 7-576a or 7-576c, provided the municipality has: 51 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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(1) A negative fund balance percentage; 52
(2) Reported a fund balance percentage of less than five per cent in 53
the three immediately preceding fiscal years; 54
(3) Reported a declining fund balance trend in the two immediately 55
preceding fiscal years; 56
(4) Issued tax or bond anticipation notes in the three immediately 57
preceding fiscal years to meet cash liquidity; 58
(5) Had a general fund annual operating budget deficit of one and 59
one-half per cent or more of such municipality's general fund revenues 60
in the immediately preceding fiscal year; 61
(6) Had a general fund annual operating budget deficit of two per 62
cent or more of such municipality's average general fund revenues in 63
the two immediately preceding fiscal years; or 64
(7) Received a bond rating below A from a bond rating agency. 65
(e) The secretary may, at the secretary's discretion and based upon 66
the review conducted pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, refer to 67
the Municipal Finance Advisory Commission any municipality that 68
has not been previously referred to said commission pursuant to 69
subsection (b) of this section or section 7-576, 7-576a or 7-576c. 70
(f) For the purposes of this section, "deficit", "fund balance" and 71
"fund balance percentage" have the same meanings as provided in 72
section 7-560. 73
Sec. 2. Section 2-79a of the general statutes is repealed and the 74
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 75
(a) (1) There shall be a Connecticut Advisory Commission on 76
Intergovernmental Relations. The purpose of the commission shall be 77
to enhance coordination and cooperation between the state and local 78
governments. [The] 79 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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(2) Before July 1, 2019, the commission shall consist of the president 80
pro tempore of the Senate, the speaker of the House of 81
Representatives, the minority leader of the Senate, the minority leader 82
of the House of Representatives, the Secretary of the Office of Policy 83
and Management, the Commissioners of Education, Energy and 84
Environmental Protection, Economic and Community Development, 85
or their designees, and sixteen additional members as follows: [(1)] (A) 86
Six municipal officials appointed by the Governor, four of whom shall 87
be selected from a list of nominees submitted to [him] the Governor by 88
the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and two of whom shall 89
be selected from a list submitted by the Council of Small Towns. Two 90
of such six officials shall be from towns having populations of twenty 91
thousand or less persons, two shall be from towns having populations 92
of more than twenty thousand but less than sixty thousand persons 93
and two shall be from towns having populations of sixty thousand or 94
more persons; [(2)] (B) two local public education officials appointed 95
by the Governor, one of whom shall be selected from a list of nominees 96
submitted to [him] the Governor by the Connecticut Association of 97
Boards of Education and one of whom shall be selected from a list 98
submitted by the Connecticut Association of School Administrators; 99
[(3)] (C) one representative of a regional council of governments 100
appointed by the Governor from a list of nominees submitted to [him] 101
the Governor by the Regional Planning Association of Connecticut; 102
[(4)] (D) five persons who do not hold elected or appointed office in 103
state or local government, one of whom shall be appointed by the 104
Governor, one of whom shall be appointed by the president pro 105
tempore of the Senate, one of whom shall be appointed by the speaker 106
of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be appointed by 107
the minority leader of the Senate and one of whom shall be appointed 108
by the minority leader of the House of Representatives; [(5)] (E) one 109
representative of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities 110
appointed by said conference; and [(6)] (F) one representative of the 111
Council of Small Towns appointed by said council. [Each] 112
(3) On and after July 1, 2019, the commission shall consist of the 113 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of 114
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 115
planning and development, or their designees, the Secretary of the 116
Office of Policy and Management and seventeen additional members 117
as follows: (A) Six municipal officials appointed by the Governor, four 118
of whom shall be selected from a list of nominees submitted to the 119
Governor by the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and two of 120
whom shall be selected from a list submitted by the Council of Small 121
Towns. Two of such six officials shall be from towns having 122
populations of twenty thousand or less persons, two shall be from 123
towns having populations of more than twenty thousand but less than 124
sixty thousand persons and two shall be from towns having 125
populations of sixty thousand or more persons; (B) two local public 126
education officials appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be 127
selected from a list of nominees submitted to the Governor by the 128
Connecticut Association of Boards of Education and one of whom shall 129
be selected from a list submitted by the Connecticut Association of 130
School Administrators; (C) one representative of a regional council of 131
governments appointed by the Governor from a list of nominees 132
submitted to the Governor by the Regional Planning Association of 133
Connecticut; (D) one representative of organized labor appointed by 134
the Governor from a list of nominees submitted to the Governor by the 135
Connecticut AFL-CIO; (E) five persons who do not hold elected or 136
appointed office in state or local government, one of whom shall be 137
appointed by the Governor, one of whom shall be appointed by the 138
president pro tempore of the Senate, one of whom shall be appointed 139
by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of whom shall be 140
appointed by the minority leader of the Senate and one of whom shall 141
be appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives; 142
(F) one representative of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities 143
appointed by said conference; and (G) one representative of the 144
Council of Small Towns appointed by said council. 145
(4) Before July 1, 2019, each member of the commission appointed 146
pursuant to [subdivisions (1) to (6)] subparagraphs (A) to (F), 147 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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inclusive, of subdivision (2) of this subsection shall serve for a term of 148
two years. On and after July 1, 2019, each member of the commission 149
appointed pursuant to subparagraphs (A) to (G), inclusive, of 150
subdivision (3) of this subsection shall serve for a term of two years 151
and may serve until a successor is appointed and has qualified. All 152
other members shall serve for terms which are coterminous with their 153
terms of office. The Governor shall appoint a chairperson and a vice-154
chairperson from among the commission members. Members of the 155
General Assembly may serve as gubernatorial appointees to the 156
commission. Members of the commission shall not be compensated for 157
their services but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses incurred 158
in the performance of their duties. 159
(b) The commission shall: (1) Serve as a forum for consultation 160
among state and local government officials; (2) conduct research on 161
intergovernmental issues, including, but not limited to, the sharing 162
and consolidation of government services as well as the direct and 163
indirect impacts of changes in the provision of services at different 164
levels of government; (3) encourage and coordinate studies of 165
intergovernmental issues by universities, research and consulting 166
organizations and others; and (4) [initiate policy development and 167
make] develop models for sustainable, recurring savings and revenue 168
growth while initiating policy development and making 169
recommendations for consideration by all levels and branches of 170
government. The commission shall issue, from time to time, public 171
reports of its findings and recommendations. [and] Before July 1, 2019, 172
the commission shall issue, annually, a public report on its activities. 173
On and after July 1, 2019, the commission shall issue, annually, a 174
public report on its activities and a work plan, as described in 175
subsection (c) of this section, for the next year. On and after July 1, 176
2020, such public report shall describe the status of all items in the 177
prior year's work plan, including statistics to measure progress made, 178
if any, from the prior year. 179
(c) In developing any work plan to be issued on and after July 1, 180 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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2019, the commission, in consultation with other commissions 181
established to address consolidation and sharing of government 182
services, shall, on or before October 15, 2019, and every six months 183
thereafter until October 15, 2021, consider, analyze and make specific 184
recommendations to the secretary for the accomplishment of, all 185
aspects of sharing government services among state, regional and local 186
bodies, which aspects may include, but not be limited to: 187
(1) Standardization and alignment of various regions; 188
(2) Consolidation of government services, including, but not limited 189
to, joint purchasing, for a municipality and its respective local or 190
regional school district, as applicable; 191
(3) Consolidation and sharing of government services, including, 192
but not limited to, joint purchasing, among municipalities; 193
(4) Types of government services that may be provided in a more 194
efficient, high-quality or cost-effective manner by another level of 195
government or by regional councils of governments, regional 196
educational service centers or other similar regional bodies; 197
(5) Standardization of government services, including, but not 198
limited to, the issuance of permits, across state, regional and local 199
bodies; 200
(6) Standardization, enhancement or streamlining of reporting by 201
and among state, regional and local bodies; 202
(7) Standardization, enhancement or streamlining of collection and 203
sharing of data; 204
(8) Opportunities for the use of e-government solutions to deliver 205
government services and conduct government programs; 206
(9) Alternative sources of revenue for municipal governments, 207
regional councils of governments and regional educational service 208 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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centers; 209
(10) Regional revenue sharing; 210
(11) Coalition bargaining and other changes to relations between 211
municipalities and municipal employees; 212
(12) Reduction of long-term liabilities of municipalities; and 213
(13) Sequencing of and timeliness for planning and implementation 214
of aspects described in this subsection. 215
[(c)] (d) On or before [October 1, 2019] the second Wednesday after 216
the convening of the regular session of the General Assembly in 2020, 217
and every four years thereafter on such second Wednesday, the 218
commission shall submit to the General Assembly a report which lists 219
each existing state mandate, as defined in subsection (a) of section 2-220
32b, and which (1) categorizes each mandate as constitutional, 221
statutory or executive, [(2) provides the date of original enactment or 222
issuance along with a brief description of the history of the mandate, 223
and (3) analyzes the costs incurred by] and (2) describes the potential 224
impacts on local governments [in] implementing the mandate. In each 225
report the commission may also make recommendations on state 226
mandates for consideration by the commission. On and after October 227
1, 1996, the report shall be submitted to the joint standing committee of 228
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 229
appropriations and budgets of state agencies, to any other joint 230
standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance and, 231
upon request, to any member of the General Assembly. A summary of 232
the report shall be submitted to each member of the General Assembly 233
if the summary is two pages or less and a notification of the report 234
shall be submitted to each member if the summary is more than two 235
pages. Submission shall be by mailing the report, summary or 236
notification to the legislative address of each member of the 237
committees or the General Assembly, as applicable. The provisions of 238
this subsection shall not be construed to prevent the commission from 239 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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making more frequent recommendations on state mandates. 240
[(d)] (e) Commencing on or before [the second Wednesday after the 241
convening of the 1997 regular session of the General Assembly] 242
January 15, 1997, and every year thereafter except a year in which a 243
report is filed pursuant to subsection [(c)] (d) of this section, the 244
commission shall submit to the General Assembly a supplement to the 245
report required in [said subsection (c)] said subsection identifying any 246
new mandates adopted and any mandates changed in the previous 247
year. 248
[(e)] (f) The Office of Policy and Management shall provide such 249
staff as is necessary for the performance of the functions and duties of 250
the Connecticut Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental 251
Relations. Such persons may be exempt from the classified service. 252
Sec. 3. Section 2-32c of the general statutes is repealed and the 253
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 254
On and after [January 1, 2019] July 1, 2019, the Connecticut 255
Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, established 256
pursuant to section 2-79a, as amended by this act, shall, not more than 257
ninety days after adjournment of any regular or special session of the 258
General Assembly or [September first] November fifteenth 259
immediately following adjournment of a regular session, whichever is 260
[sooner] later, submit to the speaker of the House of Representatives, 261
the president pro tempore of the Senate, the majority leader of the 262
House of Representatives, the majority leader of the Senate, the 263
minority leader of the House of Representatives, [and] the minority 264
leader of the Senate and the chief elected official of each municipality a 265
report [which] that lists each state mandate enacted during said 266
regular or special session of the General Assembly. [Within five days 267
of] Not later than five days after receipt of the report, the speaker and 268
the president pro tempore shall [submit the report to the Secretary of 269
the Office of Policy and Management and] refer each state mandate to 270
the joint standing committee or select committee of the General 271 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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Assembly having cognizance of the subject matter of the mandate. 272
[The secretary shall provide notice of the report to the chief elected 273
official of each municipality.] 274
Sec. 4. Section 4-66k of the general statutes is repealed and the 275
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 276
(a) There is established an account to be known as the "regional 277
planning incentive account" which shall be a separate, nonlapsing 278
account within the General Fund. The account shall contain any 279
moneys required by law to be deposited in the account. Moneys in the 280
account shall be expended by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 281
Management in accordance with subsection (b) of this section for the 282
purposes of first providing funding to regional planning organizations 283
in accordance with the provisions of subsections (b) [and (c)] to (d), 284
inclusive, of this section and then to providing grants under the 285
regional performance incentive program established pursuant to 286
section 4-124s, as amended by this act. 287
(b) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2014, funds from the regional 288
planning incentive account shall be distributed to each regional 289
planning organization, as defined in section 4-124i, revision of 1958, 290
revised to January 1, 2013, in the amount of one hundred twenty-five 291
thousand dollars. Any regional council of governments that is 292
comprised of any two or more regional planning organizations that 293
voluntarily consolidate on or before December 31, 2013, shall receive 294
an additional payment in an amount equal to the amount the regional 295
planning organizations would have received if such regional planning 296
organizations had not voluntarily consolidated. 297
(c) [Beginning in] For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, and 298
[annually thereafter] each fiscal year thereafter until July 1, 2019, funds 299
from the regional planning incentive account shall be distributed to 300
each regional council of governments formed pursuant to section 4-301
124j, in the amount of one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars plus 302
fifty cents per capita, using population information from the most 303 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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recent federal decennial census. Any regional council of governments 304
that is comprised of any two or more regional planning organizations, 305
as defined in section 4-124i, revision of 1958, revised to January 1, 2013, 306
that voluntarily consolidated on or before December 31, 2013, shall 307
receive a payment in the amount of one hundred twenty-five thousand 308
dollars for each such regional planning organization that voluntarily 309
consolidated on or before said date. 310
(d) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, and each fiscal year 311
thereafter, funds from the regional planning incentive account shall be 312
distributed to each regional council of governments formed pursuant 313
to section 4-124j, in the amount of seventy-five thousand dollars plus 314
thirty cents per capita, using population information from the most 315
recent federal decennial census. The secretary may distribute, 316
annually, an additional amount to each regional council of 317
governments. 318
Sec. 5. Section 4-66r of the general statutes is repealed and the 319
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 320
For the fiscal year ending June 30, [2018] 2020, and each fiscal year 321
thereafter, each regional council of governments shall [, within 322
available appropriations,] receive a grant-in-aid to be known as a 323
regional services grant, the amount of which shall be based on [a 324
formula to be determined by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 325
Management. No such council shall receive a grant for the fiscal year 326
ending June 30, 2018, unless the secretary approves a spending plan 327
for such grant moneys submitted by such council to the secretary on or 328
before November 1, 2017. No such council shall receive a grant for the 329
fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, or any fiscal year thereafter, unless the 330
secretary approves a spending plan for such grant moneys submitted 331
by such council to the secretary on or before July 1, 2018, and annually 332
thereafter] the formula established pursuant to section 4-66k, as 333
amended by this act. Each regional council of governments shall use 334
such grant funds for planning purposes and to achieve efficiencies in 335
the delivery of municipal services, without diminishing the quality of 336 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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such services. On or before October 1, [2018] 2020, and annually 337
thereafter, each regional council of governments shall submit a report, 338
in accordance with section 11-4a, to the joint standing committees of 339
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 340
planning and development and finance, revenue and bonding, and to 341
the secretary. Such report shall (1) summarize the expenditure of such 342
grant funds, (2) describe any regional program, project or initiative 343
currently provided or planned by the council, (3) review the 344
performance of any existing regional program, project or initiative 345
relative to its initial goals and objectives, (4) analyze the existing 346
services provided by member municipalities or by the state that, in the 347
opinion of the council, could be more effectively or efficiently 348
provided on a regional basis, and (5) provide recommendations for 349
legislative action concerning potential impediments to the 350
regionalization of services. 351
Sec. 6. Subsections (b) to (e), inclusive, of section 4-124s of the 352
general statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 353
thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 354
(b) There is established a regional performance incentive program 355
that shall be administered by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 356
Management. [On or before December 31, 2011, and annually 357
thereafter, any regional council of governments, any two or more 358
municipalities acting through a regional council of governments, any 359
economic development district, any regional educational service center 360
or any combination thereof may submit a proposal to the secretary for: 361
(1) The joint provision of any service that one or more participating 362
municipalities of such council, educational service center or agency 363
currently provide but which is not provided on a regional basis, (2) a 364
planning study regarding the joint provision of any service on a 365
regional basis, or (3) shared information technology services. A copy of 366
said proposal shall be sent to the legislators representing said 367
participating municipalities.] The secretary may provide funding for: 368
(1) The joint provision of any government service, or (2) a planning 369 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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study regarding the joint provision of any service on a regional basis. 370
Any local or regional board of education or regional educational 371
service center serving a population greater than one hundred thousand 372
may submit a proposal to the secretary for a regional special education 373
initiative. 374
(c) (1) [A regional council of governments, an economic 375
development district, a regional educational service center or a local or 376
regional board of education shall submit each proposal in the form and 377
manner the secretary prescribes and shall, at a minimum, provide the 378
following information for each proposal: (A) Service or initiative 379
description; (B) the explanation of the need for such service or 380
initiative; (C) the method of delivering such service or initiative on a 381
regional basis; (D) the organization that would be responsible for 382
regional service or initiative delivery; (E) a description of the 383
population that would be served; (F) the manner in which regional 384
service or initiative delivery will achieve economies of scale; (G) the 385
amount by which participating municipalities will reduce their mill 386
rates as a result of savings realized; (H) a cost benefit analysis for the 387
provision of the service or initiative by each participating municipality 388
and by the entity or board of education submitting the proposal; (I) a 389
plan of implementation for delivery of the service or initiative on a 390
regional basis; (J) a resolution endorsing such proposal approved by 391
the legislative body of each participating municipality; and (K) an 392
explanation of the potential legal obstacles, if any, to the regional 393
provision of the service or initiative] On or before December 1, 2019, 394
and annually thereafter, the Connecticut Advisory Commission on 395
Intergovernmental Relations established pursuant to section 2-79a, as 396
amended by this act, may recommend to the secretary any specific 397
proposal for achieving additional cost savings through regional 398
efficiencies. The secretary may provide funding, within available 399
resources, to a regional council of governments, an economic 400
development district, a regional educational service center or any 401
combination thereof for the purpose of administering any such 402
proposal. Said commission shall submit each proposal in the form and 403 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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manner prescribed by the secretary. 404
(2) The secretary shall review each proposal and shall award grants 405
for proposals the secretary determines best meet the requirements of 406
this section. [In awarding such grants, the secretary shall give priority 407
to a proposal submitted by (A) any entity specified in subsection (a) of 408
this section that includes participation of all of the member 409
municipalities of such entity, and which may increase the purchasing 410
power of participating municipalities or provide a cost savings 411
initiative resulting in a decrease in expenses of such municipalities, 412
allowing such municipalities to lower property taxes, (B) any economic 413
development district, and (C) any local or regional board of 414
education.] 415
(d) On or before December 31, 2013, and annually thereafter until 416
December 31, 2018, in addition to any proposal submitted pursuant to 417
this section, any municipality or regional council of governments may 418
apply to the secretary for a grant to fund: (1) Operating costs 419
associated with connecting to the state-wide high speed, flexible 420
network developed pursuant to section 4d-80, including the costs to 421
connect at the same rate as other government entities served by such 422
network; and (2) capital cost associated with connecting to such 423
network, including expenses associated with building out the internal 424
fiber network connections required to connect to such network, 425
provided the secretary shall make any such grant available in 426
accordance with the two-year schedule by which the Bureau of 427
Enterprise Systems and Technology recommends connecting each 428
municipality and regional council of governments to such network. 429
Any municipality or regional council of governments shall submit each 430
application in the form and manner the secretary prescribes. 431
(e) The secretary shall submit to the Governor and the joint standing 432
[committee] committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of 433
matters relating to planning and development and finance, revenue 434
and bonding a report on the grants provided pursuant to this section. 435
Each such report shall include information on the amount of each 436 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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grant, and the potential of each grant for leveraging other public and 437
private investments. The secretary shall submit a report for the fiscal 438
year commencing July 1, 2011, not later than February 1, 2012, and 439
shall submit a report for each subsequent fiscal year not later than the 440
first day of March in such fiscal year. [Such reports shall include the 441
property tax reductions achieved by means of the program established 442
pursuant to this section.] 443
Sec. 7. Subsection (a) of section 32-665 of the general statutes is 444
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 445
1, 2019): 446
(a) Except as otherwise provided in sections 32-650 to 32-668, 447
inclusive, the following provisions of the general statutes, including 448
regulations adopted thereunder, shall not apply to the overall project: 449
Section 3-14b, subdivisions (13) to (15), inclusive, of section 4-166, 450
sections 4-167 to 4-174, inclusive, 4-181a, 4a-1 to 4a-59a, inclusive, 4a-63 451
to 4a-76, inclusive, title 4b, section 16a-31, chapters 97a, 124 and 126, 452
sections 14-311 to 14-314c, inclusive, 19a-37, 22a-16 and subsection (a) 453
of section 22a-19. For the purposes of section 22a-12, construction plans 454
relating to the overall project shall not be considered construction 455
plans required to be submitted by state agencies to the Council on 456
Environmental Quality. Notwithstanding any provision of any special 457
act, charter, ordinance, home rule ordinance or chapter 98, no 458
provision of any such act, charter or ordinance or said chapter 98, 459
concerning licenses, permits or approvals by a political subdivision of 460
the state pertaining to building demolition or construction shall apply 461
to the overall project and, notwithstanding any provision of the 462
general statutes, the State Building Inspector and the State Fire 463
Marshal shall have original jurisdiction with respect to the 464
administration and enforcement of the State Building Code and the 465
Fire Safety Code, respectively, with respect to all aspects of the overall 466
project, including, without limitation, the conduct of necessary reviews 467
and inspections and the issuance of any building permit, certificate of 468
occupancy or other necessary permits or certificates related to building 469 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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construction, occupancy or fire safety. For the purposes of part III of 470
chapter 557, the stadium facility project, the convention center project 471
and the parking project shall be deemed to be a public works project 472
and consist of public buildings except that the provisions relating to 473
payment of prevailing wages to workers in connection with a public 474
works project including, but not limited to, section 31-53 shall not 475
apply to the stadium facility project, the convention center project and 476
the parking project if the project manager or the prime construction 477
contractor has negotiated other wage terms pursuant to a project labor 478
agreement. The provisions of section 2-32c, as amended by this act, 479
and subsection [(c)] (d) of section 2-79a, as amended by this act, shall 480
not apply to any provisions of public act 99-241, as amended by public 481
act 00-140, or chapter 588x concerning the overall project. Any building 482
permit application with respect to the overall project shall be exempt 483
from the assessment of an education fee under subsection (b) of section 484
29-252a. 485
Sec. 8. Subsection (b) of section 4-66n of the general statutes is 486
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 487
1, 2019): 488
(b) Moneys transferred to the account in accordance with section 87 489
of public act 13-247 shall be expended by the Office of Policy and 490
Management as follows: (1) For the Nutmeg Network, [two million 491
one hundred seventy-four thousand] two million one hundred four 492
thousand dollars; (2) for a tax incidence study, seven hundred 493
thousand dollars; (3) for the universal chart of accounts, [four hundred 494
fifty thousand] two hundred seventy thousand dollars; (4) to audit 495
private providers of special education services, in accordance with 496
section 2-90 and sections 10-91g to 10-91i, inclusive, three hundred 497
sixty-six thousand dollars; [and] (5) for the Department of Education, 498
to conduct the study described in section 4 of public act 16-144, two 499
hundred fifty thousand dollars; and (6) to promote and facilitate the 500
implementation of shared or regional government services, two 501
hundred fifty thousand dollars. Such moneys for the universal chart of 502 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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accounts may be used to reimburse expenses incurred on or after July 503
1, 2013. 504
Sec. 9. Section 12-62 of the general statutes is repealed and the 505
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 506
(a) As used in this chapter: 507
(1) "Assessor" means the person responsible for establishing 508
property assessments for purposes of a town's grand list and includes 509
a board of assessors; 510
(2) "Field review" means the process by which an assessor, a 511
member of an assessor's staff or person designated by an assessor 512
examines each parcel of real property in its neighborhood setting, 513
compares observable attributes to those listed on such parcel's 514
corresponding property record, makes any necessary corrections based 515
on such observation and verifies that such parcel's attributes are 516
accounted for in the valuation being developed for a revaluation; 517
(3) "Full inspection" or "fully inspect" means to measure or verify 518
the exterior dimensions of a building or structure and to enter and 519
examine the interior of such building or structure in order to observe 520
and record or verify the characteristics and conditions thereof, 521
provided permission to enter such interior is granted by the property 522
owner or an adult occupant; 523
(4) "Real property" means all the property described in section 12-524
64; 525
(5) "Revaluation" or "revalue" means to establish the present true 526
and actual value of all real property in a town as of a specific 527
assessment date; 528
(6) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Office of Policy and 529
Management, or said secretary's designee; [and] 530 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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(7) "Town" means any town, consolidated town and city or 531
consolidated town and borough; [.] 532
(8) "Revaluation zone" means one of five geographic areas in the 533
state established by the secretary utilizing the boundaries of the nine 534
planning regions; and 535
(9) "Planning region" has the same meaning as provided in section 536
4-124i. 537
(b) (1) (A) Commencing October 1, 2006, and until September 30, 538
2020, each town shall implement a revaluation not later than the first 539
day of October that follows, by five years, the October first assessment 540
date on which the town's previous revaluation became effective, 541
provided, a town that opted to defer a revaluation, pursuant to section 542
12-62l, shall implement a revaluation not later than the first day of 543
October that follows, by five years, the October first assessment date 544
on which the town's deferred revaluation became effective. 545
(B) Commencing October 1, 2020, (i) each town shall implement a 546
revaluation not later than the first day of October that follows, by five 547
years, an October first assessment date set in accordance with a 548
revaluation date schedule prescribed by the secretary for each 549
revaluation zone, (ii) any town's required revaluation subsequent to 550
any delayed revaluation implemented pursuant to subparagraph (A) 551
of this subdivision shall be implemented in accordance with this 552
section, and (iii) any such revaluation subsequent to any delayed 553
revaluation shall recommence on the date set in such revaluation date 554
schedule prescribed for the revaluation zone in which such town is 555
located, which revaluation date schedule applied to such town prior to 556
such delay. 557
(C) The town shall use assessments derived from each such 558
revaluation for the purpose of levying property taxes for the 559
assessment year in which such revaluation is effective and for each 560
assessment year that follows until the ensuing revaluation becomes 561 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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effective. 562
(2) When conducting a revaluation, an assessor shall use generally 563
accepted mass appraisal methods which may include, but need not be 564
limited to, the market sales comparison approach to value, the cost 565
approach to value and the income approach to value. Prior to the 566
completion of each revaluation, the assessor shall conduct a field 567
review. Except in a town that has a single assessor, the members of the 568
board of assessors shall approve, by majority vote, all valuations 569
established for a revaluation. 570
(3) An assessor, member of an assessor's staff or person designated 571
by an assessor may, at any time, fully inspect any parcel of improved 572
real property in order to ascertain or verify the accuracy of data listed 573
on the assessor's property record for such parcel. Except as provided in 574
subdivision (4) of this subsection, the assessor shall fully inspect each 575
such parcel once in every ten assessment years, provided, if the full 576
inspection of any such parcel occurred in an assessment year 577
preceding that commencing October 1, 1996, the assessor shall fully 578
inspect such parcel not later than the first day of October of 2009, and 579
shall thereafter fully inspect such parcel in accordance with this 580
section. Nothing in this subsection shall require the assessor to fully 581
inspect all of a town's improved real property parcels in the same 582
assessment year and in no case shall an assessor be required to fully 583
inspect any such parcel more than once during every ten assessment 584
years. 585
(4) An assessor may, at any time during the period in which a full 586
inspection of each improved parcel of real property is required, send a 587
questionnaire to the owner of such parcel to (A) obtain information 588
concerning the property's acquisition, and (B) obtain verification of the 589
accuracy of data listed on the assessor's property record for such 590
parcel. An assessor shall develop and institute a quality assurance 591
program with respect to responses received to such questionnaires. If 592
satisfied with the results of said program concerning such 593
questionnaires, the assessor may fully inspect only those parcels of 594 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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improved real property for which satisfactory verification of data 595
listed on the assessor's property record has not been obtained and is 596
otherwise unavailable. The full inspection requirement in subdivision 597
(3) of this subsection shall not apply to any parcel of improved real 598
property for which the assessor obtains satisfactory verification of data 599
listed on the assessor's property record. 600
(c) The following shall be available for public inspection in the 601
assessor's office, in the manner provided for access to public records in 602
subsection (a) of section 1-210, not later than the date written notices of 603
real property valuations are mailed in accordance with subsection (f) 604
of this section: (1) Any criteria, guidelines, price schedules or statement 605
of procedures used in such revaluation by the assessor or by any 606
revaluation company that the assessor designates to perform mass 607
appraisal or field review functions, all of which shall continue to be 608
available for public inspection until the town's next revaluation 609
becomes effective; and (2) a compilation of all real property sales in 610
each neighborhood for the twelve months preceding the date on which 611
each revaluation is effective, the selling prices of which are 612
representative of the fair market values of the properties sold, which 613
compilation shall continue to be available for public inspection for a 614
period of not less than twelve months immediately following a 615
revaluation's effective date. If the assessor changes any property 616
valuation as determined by the revaluation company, the assessor 617
shall document, in writing, the reason for such change and shall 618
append such written explanation to the property card for the real 619
estate parcel whose revaluation was changed. Nothing in this 620
subsection shall be construed to permit the assessor to post a plan or 621
drawing of a dwelling unit of a residential property's interior on the 622
Internet or to otherwise publish such plan or drawing. 623
(d) (1) The chief executive officer of a town shall notify the Secretary 624
of the Office of Policy and Management that the town is effecting a 625
revaluation by sending a written notice to the secretary not later than 626
thirty days after the date on which such town's assessor signs a grand 627 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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list that reflects assessments of real property derived from a 628
revaluation. Any town that fails to effect a revaluation for the 629
assessment date required by this section shall be subject to a penalty 630
effective for the fiscal year commencing on the first day of July 631
following such assessment date, and continuing for each successive 632
fiscal year in which the town fails to levy taxes on the basis of such 633
revaluation, provided the secretary shall not impose such penalty with 634
respect to any assessment year in which the provisions of subsection 635
(b) of section 12-117 are applicable. Such penalty shall be the forfeit of 636
the amount otherwise allocable to such town pursuant to section 7-536, 637
and the loss of fifty per cent of the amount of the grant that is payable 638
to such town pursuant to sections 3-55i, 3-55j and 3-55k. Upon 639
imposing said penalty, the secretary shall notify the chief executive 640
officer of the amount of the town's forfeiture for said fiscal year and 641
that the secretary's certification to the State Comptroller for the 642
payments of such grant in said year shall reflect the required 643
reduction. 644
(2) The secretary may waive such penalty if, in the secretary's 645
opinion, there appears to be reasonable cause for the town not having 646
implemented a revaluation for the required assessment date, provided 647
the chief executive officer of the town submits a written request for 648
such waiver. Reasonable cause shall include: (A) An extraordinary 649
circumstance or an act of God, (B) the failure on the part of any 650
revaluation company to complete its contractual duties in a time and 651
manner allowing for the implementation of such revaluation, and 652
provided the town imposed the sanctions for such failure provided in 653
a contract executed with said company, (C) the assessor's death or 654
incapacitation during the conduct of a revaluation, which results in a 655
delay of its implementation, or (D) an order by the superior court for 656
the judicial district in which the town is located postponing such 657
revaluation, or the potential for such an order with respect to a 658
proceeding brought before said court. The chief executive officer shall 659
submit such written request to the secretary not earlier than thirty 660
business days after the date on which the assessor signs a grand list 661 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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that does not reflect real property assessments based on values 662
established for such required revaluation, and not later than thirty 663
days preceding the July first commencement date of the fiscal year in 664
which said penalty is applicable. Such request shall include the reason 665
for the failure of the town to comply with the provisions of subsection 666
(b) of this section. The chief executive officer of such town shall 667
promptly provide any additional information regarding such failure 668
that the secretary may require. Not later than sixty days after receiving 669
such request and any such additional information, the secretary shall 670
notify the chief executive officer of the secretary's decision to grant or 671
deny the waiver requested, provided the secretary may delay a 672
decision regarding a waiver related to a potential court order until not 673
later than sixty days after the date such court renders the decision. The 674
secretary shall not grant a penalty waiver under the provisions of this 675
subsection with respect to consecutive years unless the General 676
Assembly approves such action. 677
(e) When conducting a revaluation, an assessor may designate a 678
revaluation company certified in accordance with section 12-2b to 679
perform [property] parcel data collection, analysis of such data and 680
any mass appraisal valuation or field review functions, pursuant to a 681
method or methods the assessor approves, and may require such 682
company to prepare and mail the valuation notices required by 683
subsection (f) of this section, provided nothing in this subsection shall 684
relieve any assessor of any other requirement relating to such 685
revaluation imposed by any provisions of the general statutes, any 686
public or special act, the provisions of any municipal charter that are 687
not inconsistent with the requirements of this section, or any 688
regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (g) of this section. 689
(f) Not earlier than the assessment date that is the effective date of a 690
revaluation and not later than the tenth calendar day immediately 691
following the date on which the grand list for said assessment date is 692
signed, the assessor shall mail a written notice to the last-known 693
address of the owner of each parcel of real property that was revalued. 694 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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Such notice shall include the valuation of such parcel as of said 695
assessment date and the valuation of such parcel in the last-preceding 696
assessment year, and shall provide information describing the 697
property owner's rights to appeal the valuation established for said 698
assessment date, including the manner in which an appeal may be 699
filed with the board of assessment appeals. 700
(g) The secretary shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the 701
provisions of chapter 54, which an assessor shall use when conducting 702
a revaluation. Such regulations shall include (1) provisions governing 703
the management of the revaluation process, including, but not limited 704
to, the method of compiling and maintaining property records, 705
documenting the assessment year during which a full inspection of 706
each parcel of improved real property occurs, and the method of 707
determining real property sales data in support of the mass appraisal 708
process, and (2) provisions establishing criteria for measuring the level 709
and uniformity of assessments generated from a revaluation, provided 710
such criteria shall be applicable to different classes of real property 711
with respect to which a sufficient number of property sales exist. 712
Certification of compliance with not less than one of said regulatory 713
provisions shall be required for each revaluation and the assessor shall, 714
not later than the date on which the grand list reflecting assessments of 715
real property derived from a revaluation is signed, certify to the 716
secretary and the chief executive officer, in writing, that the 717
revaluation was conducted in accordance with said regulatory 718
requirement. Any town effecting a revaluation with respect to which 719
an assessor is unable to certify such compliance shall be subject to the 720
penalty provided in subsection (d) of this section. In the event the 721
assessor designates a revaluation company to perform mass appraisal 722
valuation or field review functions with respect to a revaluation, the 723
assessor and the employee of said company responsible for such 724
function or functions shall jointly sign such certification. The assessor 725
shall retain a copy of such certification and any data in support thereof 726
in the assessor's office. The provisions of subsection (c) of this section 727
concerning the public inspection of criteria, guidelines, price schedules 728 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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or statement of procedures used in a revaluation shall be applicable to 729
such certification and supporting data. 730
(h) This section shall require the revaluation of real property (1) 731
designated within the 1983 Settlement boundary and taken into trust 732
by the federal government for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation 733
before June 8, 1999, or (2) taken into trust by the federal government 734
for the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut. 735
(i) Each assessor shall file with the secretary parcel data from each 736
revaluation implemented pursuant to this section upon forms 737
prescribed and furnished by the secretary, which forms shall be so 738
prescribed and furnished not later than thirty days prior to the date set 739
by the secretary for such filing. 740
Sec. 10. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) Not later than July 1, 2020, 741
each regional council of governments shall establish a regional 742
assessment division for the collection and processing of data for each 743
municipality with fifteen thousand parcels or fewer of real property 744
within such council's planning region, as defined in section 4-124i of 745
the general statutes. Such data shall include, but not be limited to, 746
regional geographical information systems, personal property 747
declarations, income and expense statements, property transfers, 748
valuation of motor vehicles and building permit information. Each 749
such municipality shall provide the data requested by the regional 750
assessment division pursuant to this subsection. 751
(b) Each municipality with fifteen thousand parcels or fewer of real 752
property that fails to provide the data requested pursuant to 753
subsection (a) of this section shall be subject to a penalty, imposed by 754
the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, effective for the 755
fiscal year commencing July 1, 2020, and continuing for each 756
successive fiscal year in which the municipality fails to provide such 757
data, provided the secretary shall not impose such penalty with 758
respect to any assessment year in which the provisions of subsection 759
(b) of section 12-117 of the general statutes are applicable. Such penalty 760 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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shall be the forfeit of the amount otherwise allocable to such 761
municipality pursuant to section 7-536 of the general statutes, and the 762
loss of fifty per cent of the amount of the grant that is payable to such 763
municipality pursuant to sections 3-55i, 3-55j and 3-55k of the general 764
statutes. Upon imposing such penalty, the secretary shall notify such 765
municipality's chief executive officer of the amount of such 766
municipality's forfeiture for such fiscal year and that the secretary's 767
certification to the State Comptroller for the payments of such grant in 768
such year shall reflect the required reduction. 769
Sec. 11. Section 7-148cc of the general statutes is repealed and the 770
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 771
[Two] Notwithstanding the provisions of the general statutes or any 772
special act, charter, special act charter, home-rule ordinance or local 773
law, two or more municipalities may jointly perform any function that 774
each municipality may perform separately under any provisions of the 775
general statutes or of any special act, charter or home rule ordinance 776
by entering into an interlocal agreement pursuant to sections 7-339a to 777
7-339l, inclusive. As used in this section, "municipality" means any 778
municipality, as defined in section 7-187, any district, as defined in 779
section 7-324, any metropolitan district or any municipal district 780
created under section 7-330 and located within the state of 781
Connecticut. 782
Sec. 12. Subdivision (6) of subsection (b) of section 7-576d of the 783
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 784
thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 785
(6) With respect to any proposed collective bargaining agreement or 786
amendments negotiated pursuant to sections 7-467 to 7-477, inclusive, 787
including any such agreement negotiated by a board of education, 788
notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (d) of section 7-474, or 789
pursuant to section 10-153d, the [board] Municipal Accountability 790
Review Board shall have the same opportunity and authority to 791
approve or reject, on not more than two occasions, collective 792 Substitute Bill No. 7192
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bargaining agreements or amendments as [is] are provided to the 793
legislative body of such municipality in said respective sections, except 794
that (A) any such agreement negotiated by a board of education shall 795
be submitted to the Municipal Accountability Review Board by the 796
bargaining representative of such board of education not later than 797
fourteen days after any such agreement is reached, and (B) the 798
Municipal Accountability Review Board shall act upon such 799
agreement, pursuant to this subdivision, not later than thirty days after 800
submission by such bargaining representative. 801
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2019 7-395
Sec. 2 July 1, 2019 2-79a
Sec. 3 July 1, 2019 2-32c
Sec. 4 July 1, 2019 4-66k
Sec. 5 July 1, 2019 4-66r
Sec. 6 July 1, 2019 4-124s(b) to (e)
Sec. 7 July 1, 2019 32-665(a)
Sec. 8 July 1, 2019 4-66n(b)
Sec. 9 July 1, 2019 12-62
Sec. 10 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 11 July 1, 2019 7-148cc
Sec. 12 July 1, 2019 7-576d(b)(6)
PS Joint Favorable Subst.