LCO No. 2629 1 of 18
General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6102
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 2629
Referred to Committee on PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Introduced by:
(PD)
AN ACT CONCERNING A SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICT WITHIN THE
CITY OF WEST HAVEN.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (Effective from passage) (a) For the purposes of this section: 1
(1) "District" means that certain real property, situated in the City of 2
West Haven, County of New Haven and the State of Connecticut, West 3
Haven Special Improvement District, a body politic and corporate, 4
consisting of the area bounded and described as follows: Beginning at a 5
point located on the southerly side of Elm Street and at the northeasterly 6
corner of lands now or formerly of SZS Enterprises, LLC, said point 7
being the northwesterly corner of the parcel described in this section; 8
thence running N64°23'05"E a distance of 752.16 feet along the southerly 9
street line of Elm Street to the mean high water line of New Haven 10
Harbor; thence running in a southerly direction a distance of 1,951.3 feet 11
along the mean high water line of New Haven Harbor to the 12
northeasterly corner of lands now or formerly of Bayview 13
Condominiums; thence running S66°27'52"W a distance of 263.4 feet 14
along the northerly line of lands now or formerly of Bayview 15 Raised Bill No. 6102
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Condominiums to the easterly street line of Bayview Place; thence 16
running S66°27'52"W a distance of 50 feet crossing Bayview Place to the 17
westerly street line of Bayview Place; thence running S23°32'08"E a 18
distance of 104.6 feet along the westerly street line of Bayview Place to 19
lands now or formerly of Christopher W. and Bonnie A. Jones; thence 20
running S67°06'19"W a distance of 143 feet along the northerly line of 21
lands now or formerly of Christopher W. and Bonnie A. Jones to a point; 22
thence running S23°32'08"E a distance of 5.32 feet to lands now or 23
formerly of Brittany M. Shaw; thence running S66°05'44"W a distance of 24
144.19 feet to the easterly street line of First Avenue; thence running 25
N24°14'02"W a distance of 280.93 feet along the easterly street line of 26
First Avenue to a point; thence running N34°18'02"W a distance of 27
1,293.57 feet along the easterly street line of First Avenue to the 28
southerly line of lands now or formerly of SZS Enterprises, LLC; thence 29
running N36°06'22"W a distance of 100 feet along lands now or formerly 30
of SZS Enterprises, LLC, to the point and place of the beginning. The 31
parcel described in this section contains 1,142,714 square feet or 26.233 32
acres of land. The project boundaries shall also include any off-site 33
locations mandated by any permitting agency for improvements 34
associated with the project's traffic management requirements. 35
(2) "Voter" means (A) any person who is an elector of the district, (B) 36
any citizen of the United States of the age of eighteen years or more who, 37
jointly or severally, is liable to the district for taxes assessed against such 38
citizen on an assessment of not less than one thousand dollars on the 39
last-completed grand list of such district, as the case may be, or who 40
would be so liable if not entitled to an exemption under subdivision (17), 41
(19), (22), (23) or (26) of section 12-81 of the general statutes, or (C) any 42
holder of record of an interest in real property within the district. 43
(3) "Holder of record of an interest in real property" means an owner 44
of a fee simple interest in such property. 45
(b) (1) Upon the petition of fifteen or more persons eligible to vote in 46
the city of West Haven, specifying the district for any or all of the 47
purposes set forth in this section, the mayor of such city shall call a 48 Raised Bill No. 6102
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meeting of the voters to act upon such petition, which meeting shall be 49
held at such place within such city and such hour as the mayor 50
designates, not later than thirty days after such petition has been 51
received by the mayor. Such meeting shall be called by publication of a 52
written notice of the same, signed by the mayor, at least fourteen days 53
before the time fixed for such meeting in two successive issues of a 54
newspaper published or circulated in such city. Not later than twenty-55
four hours before such meeting, (A) two hundred or more voters or ten 56
per cent of the total number of voters of such proposed district, 57
whichever is less, may petition the mayor, in writing, for a referendum 58
of the voters of such proposed district, or (B) the mayor in his or her 59
discretion may order a referendum of the voters of such proposed 60
district, on the sole question of whether the proposed district should be 61
established. Any such referendum shall be held not less than seven or 62
more than fourteen days after the receipt of such petition or the date of 63
such order, on a day to be set by the mayor for a vote by paper ballots 64
or by a "yes" or "no" vote on the voting machines, during the hours 65
between twelve o'clock noon and eight o'clock p.m.; except that such 66
city may, by vote of its city council, provide for an earlier hour for 67
opening the polls but not earlier than six o'clock a.m., notwithstanding 68
the provisions of any special act. If voters representing at least two-69
thirds of the assessments of holders of record within the proposed 70
district cast votes in such referendum in favor of establishing the 71
proposed district, the mayor shall reconvene such meeting not later than 72
seven days after the day on which the referendum is held. Upon 73
approval of the petition for the proposed district by voters representing 74
at least two-thirds of the assessments of holders of record within the 75
proposed district present at such meeting, or if a referendum is held, 76
upon the reconvening of such meeting after the referendum, the voters 77
may name the district and, upon the vote of voters representing a 78
majority of assessments of holders of record within the proposed 79
district, choose necessary officers therefor to hold office until the first 80
annual meeting thereof; and the district shall, upon the filing of the first 81
report filed in the manner provided in subsection (c) of section 7-325 of 82
the general statutes, thereupon be a body corporate and politic and have 83 Raised Bill No. 6102
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the powers provided in sections 7-324 to 7-329, inclusive, of the general 84
statutes, not inconsistent with the general statutes or this section, in 85
relation to the objects for which it was established, that are necessary for 86
the accomplishment of such objects, including the power to lay and 87
collect taxes. The clerk of such district shall cause its name and a 88
description of its territorial limits and of any additions that may be made 89
thereto to be recorded in, and a caveat be placed upon, the land records 90
of the city of West Haven. 91
(2) At the meeting called for the purpose of establishing the district 92
as provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection, the voters may 93
establish the district for any or all of the following purposes: To 94
extinguish fires, to light streets, to plant and care for shade and 95
ornamental trees, to plan, lay out, acquire, construct, maintain and 96
finance roads, sidewalks, crosswalks, drains, sewer infrastructure, 97
parking facilities, open space, bulkhead repairs, environmental 98
remediation and other public and private infrastructure improvements, 99
including related site preparation and demolition costs, to acquire, 100
construct, maintain and regulate the use of recreational facilities, parks, 101
playgrounds and public artwork, to plan, lay out, acquire, construct, 102
reconstruct, repair, maintain, supervise and manage a flood or erosion 103
control system, to plan, lay out, acquire, construct, maintain, operate, 104
finance and regulate the use of a community water system, all as 105
referred to in this section as the "improvements". The district may 106
acquire, operate, maintain, repair and replace the improvements and 107
may contract with a town, city, borough or other district for carrying out 108
any of the purposes or the purchase or sale of any of the improvements 109
for which such district was established. Any transfer to the district of 110
real property and the improvements related to such real property shall 111
be deemed development for municipal purposes and shall be expressly 112
excluded from the purposes for which a subdivision, as defined in 113
section 8-18 of the general statutes, may be made. 114
(3) At the meeting called for the purpose of establishing the district 115
as provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection, the voters shall fix the 116
date of the annual meeting of the voters for the election of district 117 Raised Bill No. 6102
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officers and the transaction of such other business as may properly come 118
before such annual meeting. At such organizational meeting of the 119
district, the voters shall elect five directors and four officers as follows: 120
A president, a vice-president, a clerk and a treasurer; provided, upon its 121
organization and at all times thereafter, one director may be appointed 122
by the mayor of the city of West Haven. The directors not appointed by 123
the mayor shall be elected to serve for terms of one, two, three and four 124
years, respectively, and thereafter at the annual meeting such directors, 125
as each term ends, shall be elected to serve for a term of four years. Not 126
less than three members of the board of directors shall be residents of 127
the state of Connecticut. Subject to the provisions of subdivision (4) of 128
this subsection, not fewer than fifteen voters of the district shall 129
constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at such 130
organizational meeting of the district; and if fifteen voters are not 131
present at such meeting, the mayor may adjourn such meeting from 132
time to time, until at least fifteen voters are present. Special meetings of 133
the district may be called on the application of ten per cent of the total 134
number of voters of such district or twenty of the voters of such district, 135
whichever is less, or by the president or any three directors upon giving 136
notice as provided in this section. Any special meeting called on the 137
application of the voters shall be held not later than twenty-one days 138
after receiving such application. Notice of the holding of the annual 139
meeting and all special meetings shall be given by publication of a notice 140
of such meetings in a newspaper having a general circulation in such 141
district at least ten days before the day of such meetings, signed by the 142
president or any three directors, which notice shall designate the time 143
and place of such meetings and the business to be transacted at such 144
meetings. Two hundred or more persons or ten per cent of the total 145
number of voters of such district, whichever is less, may petition the 146
clerk of such district, in writing, at least twenty-four hours prior to any 147
such meeting, requesting that any item or items on the call of such 148
meeting be submitted to the voters not less than seven or more than 149
fourteen days thereafter, on a day to be set by the district meeting or, if 150
the district meeting does not set a date, by the board of directors, or a 151
vote by paper ballots or by a "yes" or "no" vote on the voting machines, 152 Raised Bill No. 6102
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during the hours between twelve o'clock noon and eight o'clock p.m., 153
except that any district may, by vote of its board of directors, provide 154
for an earlier hour for opening the polls but not earlier than six o'clock 155
a.m. The paper ballots or voting machine ballot labels, as the case may 156
be, shall be provided by the clerk. When such a petition has been filed 157
with the clerk, the president, after completion of other business and after 158
reasonable discussion, shall adjourn such meeting and order such vote 159
on such item or items in accordance with the petition; and any item so 160
voted may be rescinded in the same manner. The clerk shall phrase such 161
item or items in a form suitable for printing on such paper ballots or 162
ballot labels. Subject to the provisions of subdivision (4) of this 163
subsection, not fewer than fifteen voters of the district shall constitute a 164
quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting of the district; 165
and if fifteen voters are not present at such meeting, the president of the 166
district or, in such president's absence, the vice-president, may adjourn 167
such meeting from time to time, until at least fifteen voters are present; 168
and all meetings of the district where a quorum is present may be 169
adjourned from time to time by a vote of a majority of the voters voting 170
on the question. At any annual or special meeting, the voters may, by a 171
majority vote of those present, discontinue any purposes for which the 172
district is established or undertake any additional purpose or purposes 173
enumerated in subdivision (2) of this subsection. 174
(4) (A) A quorum for the transaction of business at the meeting called 175
for the purpose of establishing the district, as provided in subdivision 176
(1) of this subsection, shall be either fifteen voters of such district or a 177
majority of the holders of record of interests in real property within such 178
district, as long as the assessments of such holders of record constitute 179
more than one-half of the total of assessments for all interests in real 180
property within such district. If fifteen voters or a majority of the holders 181
of record of interests in real property within such district are not present 182
at such meeting or the assessments of such holders of record constitute 183
less than one-half of the total of assessments for all interests in real 184
property within such district, the mayor may adjourn such meeting, 185
from time to time, until at least fifteen voters or a majority of the holders 186 Raised Bill No. 6102
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of record of interests in real property within such district are present 187
and the assessments of such holders of record constitute more than one-188
half of the total of assessments for all interests in real property within 189
such district. 190
(B) For the transaction of business at any meeting of the district other 191
than a meeting described in subparagraph (A) of this subdivision, a 192
quorum shall be either fifteen voters of the district or a majority of the 193
holders of record of interests in real property within such district, as 194
long as the assessments for such holders of record constitute more than 195
one-half of the total of assessments for all interests in real property 196
within such district. At any meeting of the district other than a meeting 197
described in subparagraph (A) of this subdivision, each holder of record 198
of an interest in real property shall be entitled to cast one vote for each 199
interest in real property that it owns within the district, except as 200
provided in subparagraph (B) of subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of this 201
section. All actions, resolutions and proceedings at such meeting at 202
which a quorum is present shall require a majority vote, each, of (i) the 203
voters of the district present and voting, and (ii) the holders of record of 204
interests in real property within the district representing at least one-205
half of the assessments of all holders of record of interests in real 206
property within the district, present and voting; provided, the 207
provisions of this sentence may be amended at an annual or special 208
meeting of the district at which a quorum is present only upon a 209
majority vote, each, of (I) all of the voters of the district, and (b) all of the 210
holders of record of interests in real property within the district 211
representing at least two-thirds of the assessments of all holders of 212
record of interests in real property within the district. For the purpose 213
of determining a holder of record of an interest in real property within 214
the district as used in this subdivision (B), such term shall mean an 215
owner of a fee simple interest in such real property. If fifteen voters or a 216
majority of the holders of record of interests in real property within such 217
district are not present at such meeting or the assessments of such 218
holders of record constitute less than one-half of the total assessments 219
for all interests in real property within such district, the president of the 220 Raised Bill No. 6102
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district, or in such president's absence, the vice-president, may adjourn 221
such meeting, from time to time, until at least fifteen voters or a majority 222
of the holders of record of interests in real property within such district 223
are present and the assessments of such holders of record constitute 224
more than one-half of the total of assessments for all interests in real 225
property within such district. 226
(5) In any case in which an action for a vote by the voters of the district 227
is to be initiated by the petition of such voters, in addition to such other 228
requirements as the general statutes or any special act may impose, such 229
petition shall be on a form prescribed or approved by the clerk of such 230
district, and each page of such petition shall contain a statement, signed 231
under penalty of false statement, by the person who circulated such 232
page, setting forth such circulator's name and address, and stating that 233
each person whose name appears on such page signed such page in 234
person in the presence of such circulator, that the circulator either knows 235
each such signer or that the signer satisfactorily identified himself to the 236
circulator and that all the signatures on such page were obtained not 237
earlier than six months prior to the filing of such petition. Any page of 238
a petition that does not contain such a statement by the circulator shall 239
be invalid. Any circulator who makes a false statement in the statement 240
required to be contained on each page of such petition shall be subject 241
to the penalty provided for false statement. No petition shall be valid 242
for any action for a vote by the voters at any regular or special district 243
meeting unless such petition was circulated by a voter eligible to vote in 244
such district. 245
(c) Whenever the officers of such district vote to terminate its 246
corporate existence and whenever a petition signed by ten per cent of 247
the total voters of such district or twenty of the voters of such district, 248
whichever is less, applying for a special meeting to vote on the 249
termination of the district is received by the clerk, the clerk shall call a 250
special meeting of the voters of such district, the notice of which shall 251
be signed by the officers thereof, by advertising such notice in the same 252
manner as provided in section 7-325 of the general statutes. Not later 253
than twenty-four hours before any such meeting, two hundred or more 254 Raised Bill No. 6102
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voters or ten per cent of the total number of voters, whichever is less, 255
may petition the clerk of the district, in writing, that a referendum on 256
the question of whether the district should be terminated be held in the 257
manner provided in section 7-327 of the general statutes. If, at such 258
meeting, a two-thirds majority of the voters present vote to terminate 259
the corporate existence of the district, or, if a referendum is held, two-260
thirds of the voters casting votes in such referendum vote to terminate 261
the corporate existence of the district, the officers shall proceed to 262
terminate the affairs of such district. The district shall pay all 263
outstanding indebtedness and turn over the balance of the assets of such 264
district to the city in which the district is located, if the legislative body 265
of the city authorizes such action. No district shall be terminated under 266
this section until all of its outstanding indebtedness is paid unless the 267
legislative body of the city in which the district is located agrees in 268
writing to assume such indebtedness. On completion of the duties of the 269
officers of such district, the clerk shall cause a certificate of the vote of 270
such meeting to be recorded in the land records of the city in which the 271
district is located and the clerk shall notify the Secretary of the Office of 272
Policy and Management. 273
(d) (1) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision, 274
for the purposes of voting at meetings held by such district, any tenant 275
in common of any interest in real property shall have a vote equal to the 276
fraction of such tenant in common's ownership of such interest. Any 277
joint tenant of any interest in real property shall vote as if each such 278
tenant owned an equal fractional share of such real property. A 279
corporation shall have its vote cast by the chief executive officer of such 280
corporation, or such officer's designee. Any entity that is not a 281
corporation shall have its vote cast by a person authorized by such entity 282
to cast its vote. The district shall not have a vote for any interests in real 283
property that it owns within the district. 284
(B) The district shall not have a vote for any interest in real property 285
within the district owned by such district. 286
(2) No holder of record of an interest in real property within the 287 Raised Bill No. 6102
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district shall be precluded from participating in any district meeting or 288
referendum because of the form of entity that holds such interest, 289
whether such holder of record is (A) a corporation, partnership, 290
unincorporated association, trustee, fiduciary, guardian, conservator or 291
other form of entity, or any combination thereof, or (B) an individual 292
who holds interests jointly or in common with another individual or 293
individuals, or with any one or more of the entities listed in 294
subparagraph (A) of this subdivision. 295
(e) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, including 296
sections 7-324 to 7-329, inclusive, of the general statutes, the district shall 297
have the power to assess, levy and collect benefit assessments upon the 298
land and buildings in the district that, in the judgment of such district, 299
are benefited by the improvements. 300
(f) (1) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, 301
including sections 7-324 to 7-329, inclusive, of the general statutes, the 302
district shall have the power to fix, revise, charge, collect, abate and 303
forgive reasonable taxes, fees, rents and benefit assessments, and other 304
charges for the cost of the improvements, financing costs, operating 305
expenses and other services and commodities furnished or supplied to 306
the real property in the district in accordance with the applicable 307
provisions of the general statutes that apply to districts established 308
under section 7-325 of the general statutes, and this section and in the 309
manner prescribed by the district. Notwithstanding any provision of the 310
general statutes, the district may pay the entire cost of any 311
improvements, including the costs of financing such improvements, 312
capitalized interest and the funding of any reserve funds necessary to 313
secure such financing or the debt service of bonds or notes issued to 314
finance such costs, from taxes, fees, rents, benefit assessments or other 315
revenues and may assess, levy and collect said taxes, fees, rents or 316
benefit assessments concurrently with the issuance of bonds, notes or 317
other obligations to finance such improvements based on the estimated 318
cost of the improvements prior to the acquisition or construction of the 319
improvements or upon the compl etion or acquisition of the 320
improvements. 321 Raised Bill No. 6102
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(2) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, whenever 322
the district constructs, improves, extends, equips, rehabilitates, repairs, 323
acquires or provides a grant for any improvements or finances the cost 324
of such improvements, such proportion of the cost or estimated cost of 325
the improvements and financing thereof as determined by the district, 326
may be assessed by the district, referred to in this section as "benefit 327
assessments", in the manner prescribed by such district, upon the 328
property benefited by such improvements and the balance of such costs 329
shall be paid from the general funds of the district. The district may 330
provide for the payment of such benefit assessments in annual 331
installments, not exceeding twenty, and may forgive such benefit 332
assessments in any single year without causing the remainder of 333
installments of benefit assessments to be forgiven. Benefit assessments 334
to buildings or structures constructed or expanded after the initial 335
benefit assessment may be assessed as if the new or expanded buildings 336
or structures had existed at the time of the original benefit assessment. 337
For the purposes of this section, the provision of open space, whether 338
within the district or in the city of West Haven, shall be deemed a benefit 339
to all the property in the district. 340
(3) In order to provide for the collection and enforcement of its taxes, 341
fees, rents, benefit assessments and other charges, the district is hereby 342
granted all the powers and privileges with respect thereto as districts 343
organized pursuant to section 7-325 of the general statutes, and as held 344
by the city of West Haven or as otherwise provided in this section. Such 345
taxes, fees, rents or benefit assessments, if not paid when due, shall 346
constitute a lien upon the premises served and a charge against the 347
owners thereof, which lien and charge shall bear interest at the same 348
rate as delinquent property taxes. Each such lien may be continued, 349
recorded and released in the manner provided for property tax liens and 350
shall take precedence over all other liens or encumbrances except any 351
lien for taxes, blight, sewer user fees or any other amounts due and 352
owing to the city of West Haven or any political subdivision of said city 353
as a collector of such taxes, user fees or amounts. Each such lien may be 354
continued, recorded and released in the manner provided for property 355 Raised Bill No. 6102
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tax liens. 356
(4) The budget, taxes, fees, rents, benefit assessments and any other 357
charges of the district of general application shall be adopted and 358
revised by the board at least annually no more than thirty days before 359
the beginning of the fiscal year in accordance with the procedures to be 360
established by the board at a meeting called by the board, assuring that 361
interested persons are afforded notice and an opportunity to be heard. 362
The board shall hold at least two public hearings on its schedule of fees, 363
rates, rents, benefit assessments and other charges or any revision 364
thereof before adoption, notice of which shall be delivered to the mayor 365
and city council of the city of West Haven and be published in at least 366
two newspapers of general circulation in the city of West Haven at least 367
ten days in advance of the hearing. Not later than the date of the 368
publication, the board shall make available to the public and deliver to 369
the mayor and the city council of the city of West Haven the proposed 370
schedule of fees, rates, rents, benefit assessments and other charges. The 371
procedures regarding public hearing and appeal provided by section 7-372
250 of the general statutes shall apply for all benefit assessments made 373
by the district except that the board shall be substituted for the water 374
pollution control authority. If the benefit assessments are assessed and 375
levied prior to the acquisition or construction of the improvements, the 376
amount of the benefit assessments shall be adjusted to reflect the actual 377
cost of the improvements, including all financing costs, once the 378
improvements have been completed, provided the actual cost is greater 379
than or less than the estimated costs. If the benefit assessments are 380
assessed and levied after the acquisition or construction of the 381
improvements, the amount of the benefit assessments shall reflect the 382
actual cost of the improvements, including all financing costs, and such 383
costs may be included in the bonds or budget of the district, as 384
determined by the board. Benefit assessments shall be due and payable 385
at such times as are fixed by the board, provided the district shall give 386
notice of such due date not less than thirty days prior to such due date 387
by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the city of West 388
Haven and by mailing such notice to the owners of the property 389 Raised Bill No. 6102
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assessed at their last-known address. 390
(g) (1) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, 391
including sections 7-324 to 7-329, inclusive, of the general statutes, 392
whenever the district has authorized the acquisition or construction of 393
the improvements or has made an appropriation therefor, the district 394
may authorize the issuance of up to forty million dollars of bonds, notes 395
or other obligations to finance the cost of the improvements, the creation 396
and maintenance of reserves required to sell the bonds, notes or 397
obligations and the cost of issuance of the bonds, notes or obligations, 398
except that, until such time the district enters into an interlocal 399
agreement with the city of West Haven to share said city's revenue from 400
incremental increase in real property taxes on property within the 401
district, in accordance with the procedures provided by section 7-339c 402
of the general statutes, including at least one public hearing on the 403
proposed agreement and ratification by the city council of said city, no 404
bonds secured by a pledge of revenues derived from the interlocal 405
agreement shall be issued. The bonds, notes or other obligations may be 406
secured as to both principal or interest by (A) the full faith and credit of 407
the district, (B) fees, revenues or benefit assessments, or (C) a 408
combination of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this subdivision. Such 409
bonds, notes or obligations shall be authorized by resolution of the 410
board. The district is authorized to secure such bonds by the full faith 411
and credit of the district or by a pledge of or lien on all or part of its 412
revenues, fees or benefit assessments. The bonds of each issue shall be 413
dated, shall bear interest at the rates and shall mature at the time or 414
times not exceeding twenty years from their date or dates, as 415
determined by the board, and may be redeemable before maturity, at 416
the option of the board, at the price or prices and under the terms and 417
conditions fixed by the board before the issuance of the bonds. The 418
board shall determine the form of the bonds, and the manner of 419
execution of the bonds, and shall fix the denomination of the bonds and 420
the place or places of payment of principal and interest, which may be 421
at any bank or trust company within the state of Connecticut and other 422
locations as designated by the board. In case any officer whose signature 423 Raised Bill No. 6102
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or a facsimile of whose signature shall appear on any bonds or coupons 424
shall cease to be an officer before the delivery of the bonds, the signature 425
or facsimile shall nevertheless be valid and sufficient for all purposes 426
the same as if the officer had remained in office until the delivery. 427
(2) While any bonds or notes issued by the district remain 428
outstanding, the powers, duties or existence of the district shall not be 429
diminished or impaired in any way that will affect adversely the 430
interests and rights of the holders of the bonds or notes. Bonds or notes 431
issued under this section, unless otherwise authorized by law, shall not 432
be considered to constitute a debt of the state of Connecticut or the city 433
of West Haven, or a pledge of the full faith and credit of the state of 434
Connecticut or the city of West Haven, but the bonds or notes shall be 435
payable solely by the district or as special obligations payable from 436
particular district revenues. Any bonds or notes issued by the district 437
shall contain on their face a statement to the effect that neither the state 438
of Connecticut nor the city of West Haven shall be obliged to pay the 439
principal of or the interest thereon, and that neither the full faith and 440
credit or taxing power of the state of Connecticut or the city of West 441
Haven is pledged to the payment of the bonds or notes. All bonds or 442
notes issued under this section shall have and are hereby declared to 443
have all the qualities and incidents of negotiable instruments, as 444
provided in title 42a of the general statutes. 445
(h) (1) The board may authorize that the bonds be secured by a trust 446
agreement by and between the district and a corporate trustee, which 447
may be any trust company or bank having the powers of a trust 448
company within the state of Connecticut. The trust agreement may 449
pledge or assign the revenues. Either the resolution providing for the 450
issuance of bonds or the trust agreement may contain covenants or 451
provisions for protecting and enforcing the rights and remedies of the 452
bondholders as may be necessary, reasonable or appropriate and not in 453
violation of law. 454
(2) All expenses incurred in carrying out the trust agreement may be 455
treated as a part of the cost of the operation of the district. The pledge 456 Raised Bill No. 6102
LCO No. 2629 15 of 18
by any trust agreement or resolution shall be valid and binding from 457
time to time when the pledge is made; the revenues or other moneys so 458
pledged and then held or thereafter received by the board shall 459
immediately be subject to the lien of the pledge without any physical 460
delivery thereof or further act; and the lien of the pledge shall be valid 461
and binding as against all parties having claims of any kind in tort, 462
contract or otherwise against the board, irrespective of whether the 463
parties have notice thereof. Notwithstanding any provision of the 464
Uniform Commercial Code, neither this subsection, the resolution or 465
any trust agreement by which a pledge is created need be filed or 466
recorded except in the records of the board, and no filing need be made 467
under title 42a of the general statutes. 468
(i) Bonds or notes issued under this section are hereby made 469
securities in which all public officers and public bodies of the state of 470
Connecticut and its political subdivisions, all insurance companies, trust 471
companies, banking associations, investment companies, executors, 472
administrators, trustees and other fiduciaries may properly and legally 473
invest funds, including capital in their control and belonging to them; 474
and such bonds shall be securities which may properly and legally be 475
deposited with and received by any state or municipal officer or any 476
agency or political subdivision of the state of Connecticut for any 477
purpose for which the deposit of bonds or notes of the state of 478
Connecticut is now or may hereafter be authorized by law. 479
(j) Bonds may be issued under this section without obtaining the 480
consent of the state of Connecticut or the city of West Haven, and 481
without any proceedings or the happening of any other conditions or 482
things other than those proceedings, conditions or things that are 483
specifically required thereof by this section, and the validity of and 484
security for any bonds issued by the district shall not be affected by the 485
existence or nonexistence of the consent or other proceedings, 486
conditions or things. 487
(k) The district and all its receipts, revenues, income and real and 488
personal property, except when such property is used for commercial 489 Raised Bill No. 6102
LCO No. 2629 16 of 18
purposes, shall be exempt from taxation and benefit assessments and 490
the district shall not be required to pay any tax, excise or assessment to 491
or from the state of Connecticut or any of its political subdivisions. The 492
principal and interest on bonds or notes issued by the district shall be 493
free from taxation at all times, except for estate and gift, franchise and 494
excise taxes, imposed by the state of Connecticut or any political 495
subdivision thereof, provided nothing in this section shall act to limit or 496
restrict the ability of the state of Connecticut or the city of West Haven 497
to (1) tax the individuals and companies, or their real or personal 498
property, or any person living or business operating within the 499
boundaries of the district, or (2) enforce any lien, fee, ordinance or future 500
lien, fee or ordinance. 501
(l) The board shall at all times keep accounts of its receipts, 502
expenditures, disbursements, assets and liabilities, which shall be open 503
to inspection by a duly appointed officer or duly appointed agent of the 504
state of Connecticut or the city of West Haven. The fiscal year of the 505
district shall begin on July first and end on the following June thirtieth 506
or as otherwise established by section 7-327 of the general statutes. The 507
district shall be subject to an audit of its accounts in the manner 508
provided in the general statutes. 509
(m) (1) The clerk of the district shall submit project activity reports 510
quarterly to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management and 511
to the chairpersons of the joint standing committee of the General 512
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to finance, revenue and 513
bonding. Such reports shall provide information and updates on the 514
projects undertaken by the district, including the status of the design, 515
financing, construction, sales of commercial and residential property 516
and such other items as the secretary or chairpersons may request. 517
(2) The district shall take affirmative steps to provide for the full 518
disclosure of information relating to the public financing and 519
maintenance of improvements to real property undertaken by the 520
district. Such information shall be provided to any existing residents 521
and to all prospective residents of the district. The district shall furnish 522 Raised Bill No. 6102
LCO No. 2629 17 of 18
each developer of a residential development within the district with 523
sufficient copies of such information and provide each prospective 524
initial purchaser of property in such district with a copy, and any 525
developer of a residential development within the district, when 526
required by law to provide a public offering statement, shall include a 527
copy of such information relating to the public financing and 528
maintenance of improvements in the public offering statement. 529
(n) (1) This section shall be deemed to provide an additional, 530
alternative and complete method of accomplishing the purposes of this 531
section and exercising the powers authorized hereby and shall be 532
deemed and construed to be supplemental and additional to, and not in 533
derogation of, powers conferred upon the district by law and 534
particularly by sections 7-324 to 7-329, inclusive, of the general statutes; 535
provided insofar as the proceedings of this section are inconsistent with 536
any general statute or special act, or any resolution or ordinance of the 537
city of West Haven, this section shall be controlling. 538
(2) Except as specifically provided in this section, all other statutes, 539
ordinances, resolutions, rules and regulations of the state of Connecticut 540
and the city of West Haven shall be applicable to the property, residents 541
and businesses located in the district. Nothing in this section shall in any 542
way obligate the city of West Haven to pay any costs for the acquisition, 543
construction, equipping or operation and administration of the 544
improvements located within the district or to pledge any money or 545
taxes to pay debt service on bonds or notes issued by the district except 546
as may be agreed to in any interlocal agreements executed by the city of 547
West Haven and the district. 548
(o) This section being necessary for the welfare of the city of West 549
Haven and its inhabitants shall be liberally construed to affect the 550
purposes hereof. 551
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section Raised Bill No. 6102
LCO No. 2629 18 of 18
Statement of Purpose:
To permit the establishment of a special taxing district in West Haven
and authorize such district to make expenditures for public and private
infrastructure improvements and issue bonds to finance the
improvements.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]