Researcher: JSB Page 1 4/21/21
OLR Bill Analysis
sSB 870
AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE
OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
§ 1 — 100% DISABLED VETERANS’ TAX EXEMPTION
Expands eligibility, by changing how income is calculated, for a local option property tax
exemption for 100% disabled veterans
§ 2 — VETERANS’ EXEMPTION PORTABILITY
Makes portable certain property tax exemptions for veterans if an eligible veteran moves
within the state during the tax year
§§ 3 & 19 — RENTERS’ REBATE PROGRAM
Makes November 15 the deadline for requesting an application extension; makes OPM,
not DOH, responsible for adjusting eligible income levels annually
§ 4 — ADVISORY OPINIONS REGARDING STATE POCD
Limits the circumstances under which OPM is required to provide an advisory opinion on
state agencies’ proposed actions’ compliance with the state POCD
§ 5 — SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICTS
Changes the conditions under which special taxing districts must report to the host
municipality’s town clerk and requires districts to report annually to OPM
§ 6 — NEGLECTED CEMETERIES
Expands municipal authority to maintain neglected cemeteries and burial grounds,
thereby expanding the purposes for which municipalities can use Neglected Cemetery
Account Grant Program funds
§ 7 — REGIONAL REVALUATIONS AND DATA SUBMISSION
REQUIREMENT
Requires municipalities to conduct revaluations pursuant to an OPM-designated regional
revaluation schedule and submit parcel data to OPM
§§ 8, 15, 16 & 18 — OTHER MINOR PROPERTY TAX CHANGES
Makes several minor changes to the property tax statutes
§ 9 — NOTICE OF ASSESSMENT INCREASE
Changes the information that must be included in an assessment increase notice
§ 10 — ASSESSORS’ DENIAL OF EXEMPTIONS
Requires assessors to notify taxpayers when they deny certain property tax exemptions
§§ 11 & 12 — EXPERT WITNESS COMPE NSATION IN TAX APPEALS 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 2 4/21/21
Prohibits expert witnesses compensated on a contingency fee basis from testifying about
the value of an appellant's property in a Superior Court appeal
§§ 13, 14 & 17 — ADD-ON TAX BILLS FOLLOWING PROPERTY
TRANSFER
Increases the amount of time tax collectors have to send out add-on bills
§ 20 — MUNICIPAL SPENDING CAP CERTIFICATION
Eliminates municipal reporting to OPM about the municipal spending cap in certain
situations
§ 21 — REPEALERS
Eliminates (1) an obsolete pilot program authorization and (2) requirements related to
identifying fiscally distressed municipalities
BACKGROUND
Information on a related bill and background information on assessment appeals and
veterans’ property tax exemptions
§ 1 — 100% DISABLED VETERA NS’ TAX EXEMPTION
Expands eligibility, by changing how income is calculated, for a local option property tax
exemption for 100% disabled veterans
Beginning in FY 23, the bill requires municipalities that opt to
provide low-income 100% disabled veterans with three times the base
state-mandated exemption (see BACKGROUND) to calculate income
eligibility using only the veteran’s federal adjusted gross income
(AGI), excluding veterans’ disability payments. Under current law,
any other income not included in the veteran’s federal AGI, other than
veterans’ disability payments, must be added to it for purposes of
determining income eligibility. By not including other income, the bill
generally expands eligibility for the exemption.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2021, and applicable to assessment
years beginning on or after that date.
§ 2 — VETERANS’ EXEMPTION PORTABILITY
Makes portable certain property tax exemptions for veterans if an eligible veteran moves
within the state during the tax year
By law, most property tax exemptions for veterans are portable
between municipalities. This means veterans who have established
their entitlement to an exemption remain eligible for it if during the tax
year they move to another municipality. (A mid-tax-year move might 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 3 4/21/21
cause a veteran to miss the application deadline in the municipality he
or she moves to.) The bill adds to the list of portable tax exemptions
the income-based and a local option veterans’ property tax exemption
(i.e., exemptions granted under CGS § 12-81g, see BACKGROUND).
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2021, and applicable to assessment
years beginning on or after that date.
§§ 3 & 19 — RENTERS’ REBATE PROG RAM
Makes November 15 the deadline for requesting an application extension; makes OPM,
not DOH, responsible for adjusting eligible income levels annually
By law, older adult or totally disabled individuals seeking a rebate
under the Renters’ Rebate Program apply annually to local assessors or
their agents between April 1 and October 1 for reimbursement for
payments made in the preceding calendar year. The bill requires
renters with extenuating health circumstances or other good cause as
the Office of Policy and Management (OPM) secretary determines, to
apply to OPM by November 15, rather than December 15, for an
extension of the application deadline.
Additionally, the bill requires the OPM secretary, rather than the
housing commissioner, to prepare annual Renters’ Rebate income
eligibility adjustments for distribution to municipal tax assessors,
conforming to current practice.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 4 — ADVISORY OPINIONS RE GARDING STATE POCD
Limits the circumstances under which OPM is required to provide an advisory opinion on
state agencies’ proposed actions’ compliance with the state POCD
By law, every five years, OPM must update the state plan of
conservation and development (POCD), which provides guidance to
state agencies on the state’s conservation and development priorities.
Under current law, agencies must seek an advisory opinion from OPM
to determine whether their proposed action complies with the plan, if
they will use state or federal funds to:
1. acquire, develop, or improve real property at a cost of more 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 4 4/21/21
than $200,000;
2. acquire public transportation equipment or facilities at a cost of
more than $200,000; or
3. authorize a state grant for an amount over $200,000 for the (a)
acquisition, development, or improvement of real property or
(b) acquisition of public transportation equipment or facilities.
The bill eliminates the requirement that agencies seek such advisory
opinions, unless the action is subject to the Connecticut Environmental
Policy Act’s early public scoping process. The early public scoping
process is triggered if an action could significantly affect the
environment, and this process takes place before an environmental
impact evaluation is done. During the scoping process, an agency
solicits comments from other agencies and the public about a proposed
action’s environmental effects.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 5 — SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICTS
Changes the conditions under which special taxing districts must report to the host
municipality’s town clerk and requires districts to report annually to OPM
The bill eliminates the requirement that the clerk of each special
taxing district, whether established under the statutes or by a special
act of the General Assembly, annually report to the town clerk of the
host municipality. Instead, the bill requires district clerks to notify the
town clerk whenever the district’s home rule charter or special act
charter is amended. Currently, any revised charter must be included in
the district’s annual report.
Beginning July 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, the bill requires
each district’s tax collector to submit to OPM a statement of the
district’s mill rate and tax levy for the preceding year. The OPM
secretary must prescribe the form, which must require districts to
provide “complete information.” (It is not clear what constitutes
“complete information,” but presumably it includes the information
OPM requires on the form.) Tax collectors who do not file true and 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 5 4/21/21
correct statements as required by the bill must forfeit $100 to the state.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 6 — NEGLECTED CEMETERIES
Expands municipal authority to maintain neglected cemeteries and burial grounds,
thereby expanding the purposes for which municipalities can use Neglected Cemetery
Account Grant Program funds
Under current law, municipalities can undertak e certain
maintenance of cemeteries and burial grounds that (1) have more than
six places of interment; (2) are not under the control or management of
a functioning cemetery association; and (3) show certain signs of
neglect, including weeds or damage to fences. The bill allows
municipalities to perform maintenance on neglected cemeteries
regardless of whether they are overseen by a functioning cemetery
association. It also expands the type of work that can be done on
memorial stones to include repairing and restoring the stones
(currently, municipalities may only straighten the stones).
By expanding municipal authority to maintain neglected cemeteries
and burial grounds, the bill also expands the purposes for which
municipalities can use Neglected Cemetery Account Grant Program
funds. By law, municipalities may use these OPM-distributed grants
only to pay for maintenance that the neglected cemetery and burial
ground law allows them to undertake (CGS § 19a-308b).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 7 — REGIONAL REVALUATIONS AND DATA SUBMISSION
REQUIREMENT
Requires municipalities to conduct revaluations pursuant to an OPM-designated regional
revaluation schedule and submit parcel data to OPM
Regional Revaluation Schedule
Under the bill, the OPM secretary must use the state’s nine planning
region boundaries (i.e., councils of governments’ boundaries) to
designate five revaluation zones. Municipalities in each zone will
conduct their revaluations in the same year as other municipalities in
the zone. Beginning with the October 1, 2022, assessment year, 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 6 4/21/21
municipalities must conduct their revaluations pursuant to this OPM-
designated revaluation schedule. The bill requires certain
municipalities that delayed implementing a revaluation during the
2003, 2004, or 2005 assessment year to implement future revaluations
pursuant to OPM’s regional revaluation schedule.
As is the case under existing law, revaluations must be conducted
every five years. The bill retains provisions in existing law governing
revaluation methods, processes, and other requirements.
Existing law, unchanged by the bill, allows municipalities to enter
into agreements to establish regional revaluation schedules, subject to
OPM’s approval (CGS § 12-62q).
Submission of Parcel Data to OPM
The bill requires assessors to file with the OPM secretary parcel data
from each implemented revaluation. The data must be filed on forms
she creates, and she must provide the forms to assessors at least 30
days before they are due.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021, and applicable to assessment years
beginning on or after October 1, 2022.
§§ 8, 15, 16 & 18 — OTHER MINOR PROPERTY TAX CHANGES
Makes several minor changes to the property tax statutes
The bill also makes minor changes concerning the property tax,
including:
1. clarifying how calculations are rounded when property tax
exemptions for veterans increase after a municipality
implements a revaluation (§ 8);
2. explicitly authorizing tax collectors to refund motor vehicle tax
payments when a vehicle was taxed in a municipality in which
it was not taxable (§ 15);
3. explicitly allowing a real, personal, or motor vehicle tax
overpayment to be applied to other delinquent taxes the 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 7 4/21/21
taxpayer owes in the same municipality (§ 16); and
4. (a) making assessors, rather than tax collectors, responsible for
veterans’ tax benefit determinations in cases where a veteran
was erroneously denied specified tax benefits and applies for a
certificate of correction, and (b) specifying the modified process
for seeking a refund from a municipality when a certificate of
correction is issued (§ 18).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021, except the veterans’ exemption
calculation change is effective October 1, 2021.
§ 9 — NOTICE OF ASSESSMENT INCREASE
Changes the information that must be included in an assessment increase notice
By law, when in a non-revaluation year a municipality increases an
assessment (valuation) on property other than a motor vehicle, it must
provide an assessment increase notice. Currently, it must only notify
the property owner of the old and new valuation. The bill instead
requires municipalities to provide information on the new and old
gross valuation, exemptions, and net valuation. Presumably,
municipalities are only responsible for providing information on
exemptions for which a property owner has applied and has been
deemed entitled to.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2021
§ 10 — ASSESSORS’ DENIAL OF EXEMPTIONS
Requires assessors to notify taxpayers when they deny certain property tax exemptions
Existing law requires boards of assessors (i.e., assessors) to
determine what portion of the property held by scientific, educational,
literary, historical, charitable, agricultural, and cemetery organizations
is exempt and assess any property they determine to be taxable. They
must do so by inspecting the statements or applications the
organizations must file to claim their property tax exemptions.
The bill requires assessors, upon denying a tax exemption
application, to mail a written notice of the decision to the applicant’s
last known address and include with it: 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 8 4/21/21
1. the gross assessed value of the property;
2. the amount of any exemption granted;
3. the net taxable property value; and
4. a statement that the assessor’s decision is appealable.
The notice must be mailed after the October 1 assessment date but
no more than 10 calendar days after the grand list is signed.
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2021, and applicable to assessment
years beginning on or after that date.
§§ 11 & 12 — EXPERT WITNESS COMPE NSATION IN TAX
APPEALS
Prohibits expert witnesses compensated on a contingency fee basis from testifying about
the value of an appellant's property in a Superior Court appeal
The bill prohibits expert witnesses compensated on a contingency
fee basis from testifying about the value of an appellant’s property in
assessment appeals brought to the Superior Court.
The bill’s provisions apply to appeals made by a taxpayer:
1. aggrieved by a decision of the board of tax review or assessment
appeals;
2. following a board’s decision not to hear an appeal concerning
commercial, industrial, utility, or apartment property assessed
at over $1 million; or
3. alleging an illegal property tax (see BACKGROUND).
The bill takes effect July 1, 2021, but it is unclear whether it applies
to appeals commenced, or contingency agreements entered into, before
that date.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§§ 13, 14 & 17 — ADD-ON TAX BILLS FOLLOWI NG PROPERTY
TRANSFER 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 9 4/21/21
Increases the amount of time tax collectors have to send out add-on bills
The bill gives tax collectors 30, instead of 10, days to send out add-
on tax bills in situations where a change in property ownership affects
a tax exemption or abatement. The bill applies the new 30-day
timeframe to tax bills sent out following the transfer of property that is
the subject of relief under:
1. the Freeze Tax Relief Program (§ 13),
2. the Circuit Breaker Program (§ 14), or
3. any other provision that made it tax-exempt or eligible for an
abatement prior to the transfer (§ 17).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 20 — MUNICIPAL SPENDING C AP CERTIFICATION
Eliminates municipal reporting to OPM about the municipal spending cap in certain
situations
Under current law, municipalities must annually certify to the OPM
secretary whether they comply with the municipal spending cap
law.The bill waives this requirement for any fiscal year in which the
OPM secretary “publishes a list of payments made to municipalities by
state agencies.” Since OPM routinely publishes lists of payments that
state agencies make to municipalities, the certification requirement
appears to be removed.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
§ 21 — REPEALERS
Eliminates (1) an obsolete pilot program authorization and (2) requirements related to
identifying fiscally distressed municipalities
The bill eliminates an obsolete pilot program enacted in 2014 under
which assessors would have been able to value commercial property
based on net profit, rather than income and expenses. The pilot
program never commenced (CGS §§ 12-63i & 12-63j).
The bill also eliminates certain requirements related to fiscally
distressed municipalities, to reflect other structures for identifying and 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 10 4/21/21
overseeing these municipalities (e.g., the Municipal Accountability
Review Board, created in 2017). Specifically, the bill eliminates a
requirement that the OPM secretary annually submit to the governor
information on municipal fiscal disparities, including a list of
municipalities with comparatively high mill rates and low per capita
grand list values; information on low-income municipalities; and
municipalities with a decreasing population. It also eliminates the
required responses to the report (a gubernatorially convened meeting
of municipal leaders and a report to the legislature) (CGS § 7-148dd).
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2021
BACKGROUND
Information on a related bill and background information on assessment appeals and
veterans’ property tax exemptions
Related Bill
HB 5592 (File 255), favorably reported by the Veterans’ Affairs
Committee, expands the general definition of “veteran” under state
law to include those released with an other than honorable discharge
based on specified qualifying conditions (e.g., military sexual trauma
experience, a qualifying mental health condition, sexual orientation, or
gender identity or expression), as determined under the bill. In doing
so, it expands eligibility for any statutory programs or benefits that
reference this definition.
Appealing Assessments
By law, property owners can appeal their assessments to a
municipality’s board of tax review or assessment appeals. The appeals
board must hold a hearing on each appeal, except for those for
commercial, industrial, utility, or apartment properties assessed at
over $1 million. A taxpayer aggrieved by an appeals board’s decision
can appeal to Superior Court (CGS § 12-117a).
The law provides the following two circumstances under which a
taxpayer can appeal directly to Superior Court:
1. when the appeals board declines to hear an appeal on
commercial, industrial, utility, or apartment properties 2021SB-00870-R000556-BA.DOCX
Researcher: JSB Page 11 4/21/21
assessed at over $1 million (CGS § 12-111) and
2. when the taxpayer alleges that the tax was illegal (i.e., assessed
on property not taxable in the municipality or “computed on
an assessment which, under all circumstances, was manifestly
excessive and could not have been arrived at except by
disregarding the provisions of the statutes for determining the
valuation of such property”) (CGS § 12-119).
Veterans’ Property Tax Exemptions
By law, municipalities must exempt from taxation a base amount of
$1,000 to $3,500 (adjusted each revaluation to reflect increases in a
town’s taxable grand list) of the property owned by a veteran or his or
her surviving spouse (CGS § 12-81(19) & (20)). (This is often called the
basic exemption.) Veterans who receive this basic exemption are also
eligible for the additional income-based exemption.
For a veteran whose income falls below a certain limit, the
additional exemption is equal to 200% of the basic exemption (CGS §
12-81g(a)). For a veteran whose income exceeds the limit, the
additional exemption is 50% of the basic exemption (CGS § 12-81g(d)).
(This is often called the income-based exemption.)
Instead of the income-based exemption, municipalities may opt to
provide 100% disabled veterans who meet specified income
requirements with three times the amount provided under the basic
exemption (CGS § 12-81g(b)). (This is a municipal option exemption.)
COMMITTEE ACTION
Planning and Development Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 17 Nay 9 (03/31/2021)