Sec. 12-129b. Real property tax relief for certain persons sixty-five years of age or over. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 12-129b. Real property tax relief for certain persons sixty-five years of age or over. (a) An owner of real property or any tenant for life or for a term of years liable for property taxes under section 12-48 who meets the qualifications stated in this subsection shall be entitled to pay the tax levied on said property, calculated in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) for the first year his claim for said tax relief is filed and approved in accordance with the provisions of section 12-129c, and he shall be entitled to continue to pay the amount of said tax or such lesser amount as may be levied in any year, without regard to the provisions of this section and section 12-129c, during each subsequent year that he shall meet said qualifications, and the surviving spouse of such owner or tenant, qualified in accordance with the requirements pertaining to a surviving spouse in this subsection, or any owner or tenant possessing a joint interest in said property with such owner at the time of such owner's death and qualified at such time in accordance with the requirements in this subsection, shall be entitled to continue to pay the amount of said tax or such lesser amount as may be levied in any year, without regard to the provisions of this section and section 12-129c, as it becomes due each year following the death of such owner for as long as such surviving spouse or joint owner or joint tenant is qualified in accordance with the requirements in this subsection. After the first year a claim for said tax relief is filed and approved, application for said tax relief shall be filed biennially on a form prepared for such purpose by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management. No such owner or tenant may qualify for said tax relief if such claim is filed after May 15, 1980. Any such owner or tenant who is qualified in accordance with this section and who files such claim on or before May 15, 1980, and any such surviving spouse or joint owner or joint tenant surviving upon the death of such owner or tenant, shall be entitled to pay said tax in the amount as provided in this section for so long as such owner or tenant or such surviving spouse or joint owner or joint tenant continues to be so qualified. To qualify for the tax relief provided in this section a taxpayer shall meet all the following requirements: (1) Be sixty-five years of age or over, or his spouse, who is domiciled with him, shall be sixty-five years or over, or be fifty years of age or over and the surviving spouse of a taxpayer who at the time of his death had qualified and was entitled to tax relief under this section and section 12-129c, provided such spouse was domiciled with such taxpayer at the time of his death, and (2) occupy said real property as his home, and (3) either he or his spouse shall have resided within this state for at least one year before filing his claim under this section and section 12-129c, and (4) have had adjusted gross income as determined under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, during the calendar year preceding the filing of his claim in an amount of not more than three thousand dollars if he shall be unmarried, or have adjusted gross income as determined under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, during the calendar year preceding the filing of the claim in an amount of not more than five thousand dollars if he shall be married and domiciled with his spouse or, on or after April 9, 1974, individually, if unmarried, or jointly if married, adjusted gross income and tax-exempt interest as determined under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as from time to time amended, which is qualifying income, during the calendar year preceding the filing of the claim in an amount of not more than six thousand dollars. Notwithstanding provisions of the Internal Revenue Code under which certain portions of railroad retirement annuities are considered taxable income, for purposes of this subdivision the adjusted gross income of any such taxpayer for any income year commencing on or after January 1, 1984, shall not include any portion of such taxpayer's income from railroad retirement annuities received under the Railroad Retirement Act, exclusive of any such income payable in accordance with the supplemental annuity provisions of said act. Notwithstanding any provision of the Internal Revenue Code under which any portion of income received as a pension from the United States Postal System is considered taxable income, for purposes of this subdivision the adjusted gross income of any such person for any income year commencing on or after January 1, 1996, shall not include any portion of said pension. A person who received pension income in the 1996 calendar year from the United States Postal System and who filed an application under subsection (e) of section 12-170aa prior to May 15, 1997, in lieu of filing an application under section 12-129c, shall be allowed to file an application under said section 12-129c with respect to income received during the 1996 calendar year, provided such application is filed prior to August 1, 1998. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section and subsection (c) of section 12-129b, the assessor of the town in which such person resides shall, upon approving such application, reinstate such person's tax relief benefits under this section, as of the 1996 grand list, and shall notify the tax collector to remove any property tax credit under section 12-170aa that is reflected on such person's rate bill for that assessment year.

      (b) The tax on the real property for which the benefits under this section are claimed shall be calculated by multiplying the assessed value, less one thousand dollars, of said property for the year 1966 or for any subsequent year in which the taxpayer first files and has approved a claim under this section and section 12-129c, by the applicable mill rate of that year for the general property tax, exclusive of any special tax levy, except that, if such property is located in more than one town, the tax payable to the town of the taxpayer's voting residence shall be so calculated and the tax payable to the other town or towns in which such property is located shall be calculated by multiplying the assessed value of said property for the year 1968 or for any subsequent year in which a taxpayer first files and has approved a claim under this section and section 12-129c by the applicable mill rate of such general property tax of that year. If title to real property is recorded in the name of the person or the spouse making a claim and qualifying under said sections and any other person or persons, the claimant hereunder shall be entitled to pay the claimant's fractional share of the tax on such property calculated in accordance with the provisions of this section, and such other person or persons shall pay the person's or persons' fractional share of the tax without regard for the provisions of said sections. For the purposes of this section, a "mobile manufactured home", as defined in section 12-63a, shall be deemed to be real property.

      (c) If an owner of real property has qualified and received tax relief under this section and section 12-129c and subsequently has adjusted gross income in excess of the maximum as described in this section, he shall notify the municipal tax assessor on or before the next assessment date and shall be denied tax relief under this section for such assessment year and thereafter. Any person who fails to notify the municipal tax assessor of such disqualification shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars.

      (d) If any person with respect to whom a claim for tax relief in accordance with this section and section 12-129c has been approved for any assessment year transfers, assigns, grants or otherwise conveys subsequent to the first day of October, but prior to the first day of August in such assessment year the interest in real property to which such claim for tax relief is related, regardless of whether such transfer, assignment, grant or conveyance is voluntary or involuntary, the amount of such tax relief benefit, determined as the amount by which the tax payable without benefit of this section exceeds the tax payable under the provisions of this section, shall be a pro rata portion of the amount otherwise applicable in such assessment year to be determined by a fraction the numerator of which shall be the number of full months from the first day of October in such assessment year to the date of such conveyance and the denominator of which shall be twelve. If such conveyance occurs in the month of October the grantor shall be disqualified for such tax relief in such assessment year. The grantee shall be required within a period not exceeding ten days immediately following the date of such conveyance to notify the assessor thereof, or in the absence of such notice, upon determination by the assessor that such transfer, assignment, grant or conveyance has occurred, the assessor shall (1) determine the amount of tax relief benefit to which the grantor is entitled for such assessment year with respect to the interest in real property conveyed and notify the tax collector of the reduced amount of such benefit and (2) notify the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management on or before the October first next following the end of the assessment year in which such conveyance occurs of the reduction in such benefit for purposes of a corresponding adjustment in the amount of state payment to the municipality next following as reimbursement for the revenue loss related to such tax relief. On or after December 1, 1989, any municipality which neglects to transmit to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management the adjustment as required by this section shall forfeit two hundred fifty dollars to the state, provided said secretary may waive such forfeiture in accordance with procedures and standards adopted by regulation in accordance with chapter 54. Upon receipt of such notice from the assessor, the tax collector shall, if such notice is received after the tax due date in the municipality, within ten days thereafter mail or hand a bill to the grantee stating the additional amount of tax due as determined by the assessor or assessors. Such tax shall be due and payable and collectible as other property taxes and subject to the same liens and processes of collection, provided such tax shall be due and payable in an initial or single installment not sooner than thirty days after the date such bill is mailed or handed to the grantee and in equal amounts in any remaining, regular installments as the same are due and payable.

      (1967, P.A. 755, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 338, S. 1; 673, S. 1; 814, S. 2; 1971, P.A. 632, S. 2; 749; 1972, P.A. 253, S. 1; P.A. 74-55, S. 3, 4, 14; P.A. 76-383, S. 1, 2; P.A. 79-498, S. 1, 4; 79-514, S. 1, 4; 79-630; P.A. 80-139, S. 1, 2; 80-391, S. 1, 6; 80-463, S. 4, 6; P.A. 81-60, S. 1; 81-244, S. 1, 2; P.A. 83-409, S. 1; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-3, S. 1; P.A. 84-515, S. 6, 7; P.A. 87-586, S. 6, 12; P.A. 89-211, S. 21; P.A. 90-73, S. 2, 5; P.A. 96-180, S. 20, 166; P.A. 98-262, S. 19, 22; P.A. 99-89, S. 4, 10.)

      History: 1969 acts added exception in Subsec. (b) re property located in more than one town, amended Subsec. (b) to allow multiplication by subsequent reduced rate, and to classify mobile homes as real property and substituted "adjusted gross income as determined under the Internal Revenue Code of 1954" for gross income from all sources; 1971 acts amended Subsec. (b) to specify that applicable mill rate is rate for general property tax exclusive of special tax levy, included tenants for life or for term of years liable for property taxes under Sec. 12-48 under provisions of section and substituted "taxpayer" for "owner" to reflect tenants' inclusion; 1972 act amended Subsec. (a)(3) to clarify language and added Subsecs. (c) and (d) re tax relief for surviving spouse and re procedure in cases where recipient becomes ineligible because income limit exceeded; P.A. 74-55 amended Subsec. (a) to raise income limit to $6,000 as of April 9, 1974, and amended Subsec. (b) to add provision for calculation of benefits during year in which municipality adopts uniform fiscal year; P.A. 76-383 made payment at reduced rate applicable only to claims filed for the first time and approved before June 1, 1976; P.A. 79-498 amended Subsec. (a) to require surviving spouse to be at least 50 years old for benefits to continue and to have been domiciled with deceased recipient at time of death, deleted Subsec. (c) which had required only that surviving spouse be at least sixty and relettered Subsec. (d) accordingly, effective July 1, 1979, and applicable to assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 1978; P.A. 79-514 changed residency requirement in Subsec. (a) from 5 years to 1 year; P.A. 79-630 added provisions that as of October 1, 1979, reduction in rate is not to include any reduction in rate during years in which revaluation becomes effective; P.A. 80-139 repealed provisions enacted in P.A. 79-630 and extended allowance for reduction in rates to all rather than limiting it to those whose claims were first filed and approved before June 1, 1976, effective May 6, 1980, and applicable to taxes levied in any town on assessment list for 1979 and each assessment list thereafter; P.A. 80-391 deleted reference to Sec. 12-63a and required biennial filing for continued relief, effective May 29, 1980, and applicable in any town to assessment year commencing October 1, 1980, and each assessment year thereafter; P.A. 80-463 placed May 15, 1980 as cut off for viable applications for tax relief, effective June 6, 1980, and applicable to homeowners for assessment year in any town commencing October 1, 1980, and each assessment year thereafter; P.A. 81-60 added Subsec. (d) concerning a reduction in benefit for the assessment year in which a homeowner's residence is sold; P.A. 81-244 provided statutory authority for continuation of a deceased homeowner's tax freeze benefit for a qualified surviving spouse or a qualified surviving joint owner and deleted provisions whereby once-eligible owner becoming ineligible because income exceeds maximum allowed could apply for and receive relief subsequently; P.A. 83-409 amended Subsec. (d) to specify that conveyance need not be voluntary and to set a date for notification of the conveyance to the secretary of the office of policy and management; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-3 changed term "mobile home" in Subsec. (b) to "mobile manufactured home"; P.A. 84-515 amended Subsec. (a) by providing that qualifying income for purposes of eligibility under said Subsec. (a) shall be determined without the inclusion in the taxpayer's adjusted gross income of any portion of such taxpayer's income from railroad retirement annuities received under the Railroad Retirement Act, exclusive of any income under the supplemental annuity provisions of said act; P.A. 87-586 amended Subsec. (d) to provide for a forfeiture to the state by any municipality neglecting to transmit the information required for purposes of the adjustment in the amount of state reimbursement to the municipality as a result of a conveyance of the dwelling with respect to which property tax has been reduced as provided in this section; P.A. 89-211 clarified reference to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; P.A. 90-73 amended Subsec. (d) by providing that proration of benefit for the assessment year shall not be applicable in the event of conveyance of the real property to which such benefit is related in August or September of the year and adding provision for waiver of forfeiture related to municipal failure to submit benefit adjustment information as required; P.A. 96-180 made technical changes to conform section's division into subsecs. with customary statutory usage, effective June 3, 1996; P.A. 98-262 amended Subsec. (a) to exclude income received from a United States Postal System pension from adjusted gross income for purposes of Subdiv. (4) and extend filing date, effective June 8, 1998; P.A. 99-89 amended Subsec. (b) by deleting obsolete provision re taxpayers in a municipality changing to a uniform fiscal year and making technical changes, effective June 3, 1999.

      See Sec. 12-129p re maximum benefits for any homeowner receiving tax relief under Sec. 12-129b.