Sec. 48-50. Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights established. Duties. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 48-50. Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights established. Duties. (a) There is established an Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights which shall be within the Office of Policy and Management for administrative purposes only. The Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights shall be under the direction of an Ombudsman for Property Rights who shall be appointed in accordance with section 48-51.

      (b) The Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights shall:

      (1) Develop and maintain expertise in, and understanding of, the (A) provisions of the federal and state constitutions governing the taking of private property and provisions of state law authorizing a public agency to take private property, and (B) case law interpreting such provisions;

      (2) At the request of a public agency, assist the public agency in applying constitutional and statutory provisions concerning eminent domain;

      (3) At the request of a public agency, provide assistance in analyzing actions that have potential eminent domain implications;

      (4) At the request of a private property owner, provide assistance concerning eminent domain procedures;

      (5) Identify state or local governmental actions that have potential eminent domain implications and, if appropriate, advise the appropriate public agency about such implications;

      (6) Provide information to private citizens, civic groups and other interested parties about eminent domain law and their rights with respect to eminent domain;

      (7) Mediate disputes between private property owners and public agencies concerning the use of eminent domain or related relocation assistance as provided in section 48-52, and the Office of Ombudsman for Property Rights may, within available appropriations, hire an independent real estate appraiser to assist in such mediation; and

      (8) Recommend to the General Assembly changes that, in the opinion of the Ombudsman for Property Rights, should be made to the general statutes related to eminent domain powers and procedures.

      (c) For the purposes of this section and sections 48-51 to 48-57, inclusive, "public agency" means a public agency, as defined in section 1-200, with the power to acquire property through eminent domain and includes an entity authorized to acquire property through eminent domain on behalf of the public agency.

      (P.A. 06-187, S. 3.)

      History: P.A. 06-187 effective July 1, 2006.

      See Sec. 4-38f for definition of "administrative purposes only".