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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6466
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 3425
Referred to Committee on JUDICIARY
Introduced by:
(JUD)
AN ACT CONCERNING PR OPERTY THAT IS EXEMP T FROM A
JUDGMENT CREDITOR.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 52-352b of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 2
The following property of any natural person shall be exempt: 3
[(a)] (1) Necessary apparel, bedding, foodstuffs, household furniture 4
and appliances; 5
[(b)] (2) Tools, books, instruments, farm animals and livestock feed, 6
which are necessary to the exemptioner in the course of his or her 7
occupation, profession or farming operation; 8
[(c)] (3) Burial plot for the exemptioner and his or her immediate 9
family; 10
[(d)] (4) Public assistance payments and any wages earned by a public 11
assistance recipient under an incentive earnings or similar program; 12 Raised Bill No. 6466
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[(e)] (5) Health and disability insurance payments; 13
[(f)] (6) Health aids necessary to enable the exemptioner to work or to 14
sustain health; 15
[(g)] (7) Workers' compensation, Social Security, veterans and 16
unemployment benefits; 17
[(h)] (8) Court-approved payments for child support; 18
[(i)] (9) Arms and military equipment, uniforms or musical 19
instruments owned by any member of the militia or armed forces of the 20
United States; 21
[(j)] (10) One motor vehicle to the value of [three thousand five 22
hundred] seven thousand dollars, provided value shall be determined 23
as the fair market value of the motor vehicle less the amount of all liens 24
and security interests which encumber it; 25
[(k)] (11) Wedding and engagement rings; 26
[(l)] (12) Residential utility deposits for one residence, and one 27
residential security deposit; 28
[(m)] (13) Any assets or interests of an exemptioner in, or payments 29
received by the exemptioner from, a plan or arrangement described in 30
section 52-321a, as amended by this act; 31
[(n)] (14) Alimony and support, other than child support, but only to 32
the extent that wages are exempt from execution under section 52-361a; 33
[(o)] (15) An award under a crime reparations act; 34
[(p)] (16) All benefits allowed by any association of persons in this 35
state towards the support of any of its members incapacitated by 36
sickness or infirmity from attending to his usual business; 37
[(q)] (17) All moneys due the exemptioner from any insurance 38
company on any insurance policy issued on exempt property, to the 39 Raised Bill No. 6466
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same extent that the property was exempt; 40
[(r)] (18) Any interest of the exemptioner in any property not to 41
exceed in value one thousand dollars; 42
[(s)] (19) Any interest of the exemptioner not to exceed in value four 43
thousand dollars in any accrued dividend or interest under, or loan 44
value of, any unmatured life insurance contract owned by the 45
exemptioner under which the insured is the exemptioner or an 46
individual of whom the exemptioner is a dependent; 47
(20) The cash surrender value of any life insurance policy issued upon 48
the life of a citizen or resident of this state, unless the life insurance 49
policy was assigned to or was effected for the benefit of the creditor or 50
unless the purchase, sale, or transfer of the life insurance policy is made 51
with the intent to defraud the creditor; 52
[(t)] (21) The homestead of the exemptioner to the value of [seventy-53
five thousand dollars, or, in the case of a money judgment arising out of 54
services provided at a hospital, to the value of one hundred twenty-five 55
thousand dollars] two hundred fifty thousand dollars, provided value 56
shall be determined as the fair market value of the real property less the 57
amount of any statutory or consensual lien which encumbers it, except 58
that, in the case of a money judgment arising out of a claim of sexual 59
abuse or exploitation of a minor, sexual assault or other wilful, wanton, 60
or reckless misconduct committed by a natural person, to the value of 61
seventy-five thousand dollars; and 62
[(u)] (22) Irrevocable transfers of money to an account held by a debt 63
adjuster licensed pursuant to sections 36a-655 to 36a-665, inclusive, for 64
the benefit of creditors of the exemptioner. 65
Sec. 2. Subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 12-162 of the general 66
statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 67
(Effective October 1, 2021): 68
(b) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, upon 69 Raised Bill No. 6466
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the nonpayment of any property tax or any water or sanitation charges 70
when due, demand having been made therefor as prescribed by law for 71
the collection of such tax or such water or sanitation charges, an alias tax 72
warrant may be issued by the tax collector, which may be in the 73
following form: 74
"To a state marshal of the County of ...., or any constable of the Town 75
of .... Greeting: By authority of the state of Connecticut you are hereby 76
commanded to collect forthwith from .... of .... the sum of .... dollars, the 77
same being the amount of a tax or water or sanitation charges, with 78
interest or penalty and charges which have accumulated thereon, which 79
tax was levied or which water or sanitation charges were imposed by 80
(insert name of town, city or municipality laying the tax or imposing the 81
water or sanitation charges) upon (insert the real estate, personal 82
property, or both, as the case may be,) of said .... as of the .... day of ..... 83
(In like manner insert the amount of any other property tax or other 84
water or sanitation charges which may have been levied or imposed in 85
any other year, including interest or penalty and charges which have 86
accumulated thereon). In default of payment of said amount you are 87
hereby commanded to levy for said tax or taxes or such water or 88
sanitation charges, including interest, penalty and charges, hereinafter 89
referred to as the amount due on such execution, upon any goods and 90
chattels of such person and dispose of the same as the law directs, 91
notwithstanding the provisions of [subsection (j)] subdivision (10) of 92
section 52-352b, and, after having satisfied the amount due on such 93
execution, return the surplus, if any, to him; or, except as otherwise 94
provided in section 12-162, you are to levy upon the real estate of such 95
person and sell such real property pursuant to section 12-157, to pay the 96
amount due on such execution; or you shall, in accordance with the 97
provisions of section 12-162, make demand upon the main office of any 98
financial institution indebted to such person, subject to the provisions of 99
section 52-367a or 52-367b, as if judgment for the amount due on such 100
execution had been entered, for that portion of any type of deposit to 101
the credit of or property held for such person, not exceeding in total 102
value the amount due on such execution; or you are to garnishee the 103 Raised Bill No. 6466
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wages due such person from any employer, in the same manner as if a 104
wage execution therefor had been entered, in accordance with section 105
52-361a. 106
Dated at .... this .... day of .... A.D. 20.., Tax Collector." 107
Sec. 3. Subsection (b) of section 52-321a of the general statutes is 108
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 109
1, 2021): 110
(b) Nothing in this section shall impair the rights of an alternate payee 111
under a qualified domestic relations order, as defined in Section 414(p) 112
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding 113
internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time 114
amended. Nothing in this section or in [subsection (m)] subdivision (13) 115
of section 52-352b, as amended by this act, shall impair the rights of the 116
state to proceed under section 52-361a to recover the costs of 117
incarceration under section 18-85a and regulations adopted in 118
accordance with section 18-85a from any federal, state or municipal 119
pension, annuity or insurance contract or similar arrangement described 120
in subdivision (5) of subsection (a) of this section, provided the rights of 121
an alternate payee under a qualified domestic relations order, as defined 122
in Section 414(p) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any 123
subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, 124
as from time to time amended, shall take precedence over any such 125
recovery. Nothing in this section or in [subsection (m)] subdivision (13) 126
of section 52-352b, as amended by this act, shall impair the rights of a 127
victim of crime to proceed under section 52-361a to recover damages 128
awarded by a court of competent jurisdiction from any federal, state or 129
municipal pension, annuity or insurance contract or similar 130
arrangement described in subdivision (5) of subsection (a) of this section 131
when such damages are the result of a crime committed by a participant 132
or beneficiary of such pension, annuity or insurance contract or similar 133
arrangement, provided the rights of an alternate payee under a qualified 134
domestic relations order, as defined in Section 414(p) of the Internal 135
Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal 136 Raised Bill No. 6466
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revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, shall 137
take precedence over any such recovery. 138
Sec. 4. Section 52-352a of the general statutes is repealed and the 139
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2021): 140
[For the purposes of this section and sections 52-352b and 52-353, the 141
following terms shall have the following meanings] As used in this 142
section and sections 52-352b, as amended by this act, and 52-353: 143
[(a)] (1) "Value" means fair market value of the exemptioner's equity 144
or unencumbered interest in the property; 145
[(b)] (2) "Necessary" means reasonably required to meet the needs of 146
the exemptioner and his or her dependents including any special needs 147
by reason of health or physical infirmity; 148
[(c)] (3) "Exempt" means, unless otherwise specified, not subject to 149
any form of process or court order for the purpose of debt collection; 150
[(d)] (4) "Exemptioner" means the natural person entitled to an 151
exemption under this section or section 52-352b, as amended by this act; 152
[(e)] (5) "Homestead" means owner-occupied real property, co-op or 153
mobile manufactured home, as defined in subdivision (1) of section 21-154
64, used as a primary residence. 155
Sec. 5. Subsection (r) of section 52-367b of the general statutes is 156
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 157
1, 2021): 158
(r) For the purposes of this subsection, "exempt" has the same 159
meaning as provided in [subsection (c)] subdivision (3) of section 52-160
352a, as amended by this act. Funds deposited in an account that has 161
been established for the express purpose of receiving electronic direct 162
deposits of public assistance or of Title IV-D child support payments 163
from the Department of Social Services shall be exempt. 164 Raised Bill No. 6466
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This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2021 52-352b
Sec. 2 October 1, 2021 12-162(b)(1)
Sec. 3 October 1, 2021 52-321a(b)
Sec. 4 October 1, 2021 52-352a
Sec. 5 October 1, 2021 52-367b(r)
Statement of Purpose:
To increase the value of certain personal and real property that shall be
exempt from a judgment creditor and to provide that the cash surrender
value of life insurance policies shall also be exempt from a judgment
creditor.
[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.]