Pursuant to Section 12-81b of the Connecticut General Statutes,
a municipality may, by ordinance, provide that the property tax exemption
applicable to certain tax-exempt corporations shall be effective as
of the date of acquisition of such property to which the exemption
applies.
Any real property acquired by a corporation, organized and existing
for the purpose of acquiring land and holding the same in perpetuity
for the purposes of conservation or environmental protection and protecting
said land from development, which corporation is exempt from taxation
under Section 12-81(7) of the Connecticut General Statute, shall be
exempt from taxation as of the date of acquisition of such property;
provided, however, that any reimbursement to be provided to the qualifying
corporation is limited as set forth herein.
A qualifying corporation may submit an application for reimbursement
for up to $5,000 in taxes either paid by the qualifying corporation
for a period subsequent to the date of acquisition or paid by the
prior owner for a period subsequent to the date of acquisition for
which such qualifying corporation reimbursed such owner upon the transfer
of title to the property. In no event shall reimbursement be made
for any taxes in arrears. In no event shall the request for reimbursement
exceed $5,000 in total. Said application for reimbursement must be
made to the Assessor of the Town of Barkhamsted on a form prescribed
by him/her no later than the first day of October next following the
date of acquisition by the exempt corporation. If the application
requests reimbursement for taxes paid by the prior owner for a period
subsequent to the date of acquisition for which such qualifying corporation
reimbursed such owner on transfer of title to the property, the applicant
shall append to the application all documentation supporting said
claim of reimbursement, including copies of checks and/or statements
evidencing the amount that the qualifying corporation reimbursed the
prior owner on transfer of title. The Assessor shall notify the Board
of Selectmen, who will notify the Tax Collector that all ensuing tax
obligations are rescinded.
If any amount shall have been paid on account of taxes upon
real property which is exempt from taxation hereunder, then upon application
timely made as set forth above, the Treasurer of the Town is authorized
and directed to refund to the exempt corporation, without interest,
such portion of said amount as represents taxes for the period subsequent
to the acquisition date; provided, however, that the total reimbursement
shall not exceed $5,000 for each acquisition.
For purposes of this article, the acquisition date shall be
the date of the deed transferring title to the real property to the
tax-exempt corporation referenced above.