[Adopted 5-6-2002]
[Amended10-3-2016]
The purpose of this article is to provide property tax relief
for members of the Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company, Inc. ("the
Fire Company") and the Emergency Management Director ("E.M. Director")
as authorized by Connecticut General Statutes § 12-81w,
provided the standards of eligibility are met as set forth below.
For purposes of this article:
A.
A "tax
year" commences from October 1 through the following September 30;
B.
The property
taxes assessed for a tax year become due and payable during the next
"fiscal year" which runs from the July 1 succeeding the beginning
of the tax year through the following June 30; and
C.
The term
"member" refers to a member of the Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company,
Inc.
[Amended 8-5-2019]
A.
The property tax abatement is available to all active and special
members of the Fire Company who reside in Town.
B.
New members must complete a service period of one full year to become
eligible for the tax abatement. To qualify, a member must attend a
minimum of 25% of all emergency calls and have completed all required
training as defined by the State of Connecticut.
C.
The Administering Board, as per § 390-17, shall review a member's attendance in January for the prior year. A member must maintain 25% of all emergency calls for the prior year in order to receive an annual abatement. If a member does not meet the above requirement then he/she will not receive any benefits for that prior year. The certified list will then be presented to the Tax Assessor and Collector for implementation not later than May 1.
D.
Only those defined absences as listed in § 390-20 of the Code of the Town of Middlefield will be taken into consideration as a valid excuse in the calculations of the twenty-five-percent minimum emergency call requirement.
E.
All members must sign their own names to an attendance sheet when
they have been officially dismissed from the fire and emergency call.
If not done immediately after the call, then that member has 24 hours
to contact the Incident Commander and then sign in. All sheets are
to be controlled by the Incident Commander in charge at any particular
incident and are official once signed by said Incident Commander.
F.
Any member who retires from the Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company
after completing 25 years' active service and has qualified in the
abatement program for a minimum of 15 years since the inception of
the program shall receive the abatement in the amount allowed by current
state statute for as long as they have a tax obligation to the Town
of Middlefield. Both years of service and qualification in the abatement
program are cumulative and do not need to be in succession.
G.
Any member of the Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company who dies "in
the line of duty," as classified by the United States Fire Administration,
shall have 50% of the tax obligation to the Town of Middlefield abated
on the principal residence owned and occupied by the surviving spouse
for so long as they are a resident.
A.
Abatement is available to the current Emergency Management Director.
B.
To qualify, the E.M. Director must meet general statement of duties
set forth in the E.M. Director job description of the Town of Middlefield.
C.
The First Selectman shall review the performance of the E.M. Director
in January and report to the Administering Board if his requirements
were met.
A.
For each member and E.M. Director determined eligible for relief
under this article, the member's or director's property tax obligation
to the Town of Middlefield shall be abated up to a maximum abatement
allowed by Connecticut General Statutes § 12-81, as it may
be amended. Currently the statute allows a maximum abatement of $1,000
on the property taxes due in one fiscal year.
B.
The abatement allowed by this article shall apply to any real property
or motor vehicles owned by an eligible member, whether the member
owns such property individually, jointly or as a tenant in common
with one or more persons.
C.
If a property tax to which the abatement applies is payable in two
installments, the abatement shall be applied 50% to each installment.
D.
Any abatement allowable under this article must be used in the fiscal
year during which the property tax abated is due and payable and shall
not carry over to any succeeding years.
E.
This tax abatement shall commence with the taxes due on the Grand
List of October 1, 2002, and eligibility for a tax abatement shall
be performed by the calendar year of 2001. The eligibility for the
tax abatement shall be performed for each successive Grand List and
calendar year thereafter. For each Grand List, the abatement shall
be applied first to real estate taxes on the residence for the eligible
volunteer, then to other real estate owned by the eligible volunteer,
and then it will be applied to motor vehicle taxes. The abatement
shall be applied to the total amount of taxes due on the Grand List
prior to sending of rate bills and installments as set forth in Connecticut
General Statutes § 12-130 and Connecticut General Statutes
§ 12-142 in a manner to be decided by the Tax Collector,
including splitting any abatement between the payments due on taxes
due in installments in July and January, as set forth herein. Once
an abatement has been applied by the Tax Collector of Middlefield,
it cannot be transferred to other property owned by the eligible volunteer
firefighter. Any part of an abatement for a volunteer which cannot
be applied shall remain unused and cannot be carried over to a future
Grand List. No abatement shall entitle any person to a rebate from
the Town of Middlefield.
A.
The Administering Board shall consist of: one member from the Board
of Selectmen; one member from the Board of Finance; one current active
Fire Chief; two past officers of the Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company
who are currently active. This will be a total of five members.
B.
A meeting of the Board will be held annually in January to determine
the eligibility of members. A copy of the eligibility report will
be read and placed on file at a Middlefield Fire Company meeting after
the Administering Board has met and completed its report of eligibility,
and the report shall be placed on file with the Town Clerk's office.
A majority of the Administering Board must be present in order to
transact business.
D.
Members will be appointed to the Administering Board on an annual
basis from each group (Board of Selectmen, Board of Finance, and the
Fire Company) after the eligibility report of the current Administering
Board from the previous year is submitted to the Town. A new Administering
Board must be appointed no later than April 1.
E.
The Administering Board shall have the following powers and duties:
(1)
To certify to the Tax Collector the eligibility of members and the
E.M. Director for tax abatement under this article. This certification
shall be based upon a list of eligible members submitted by the Chairman
of the Tax Relief Committee.
(2)
The Administering Board will submit to the Tax Collector on or before
April 1 of any tax year a list of members and E.M. Director eligible
for tax relief under this article.
(3)
To review and resolve any disputes, after a hearing, that may arise.
Any member or the E.M. Director, who is terminated or resigns
and is no longer a member or the E.M. Director, will lose any eligibility
under this article for that calendar year. Neither will the former
member be eligible for tax abatement for any calendar year unless
he or she reestablishes eligibility before the beginning of that calendar
year.
The Board of Selectmen is authorized to negotiate interlocal
agreements with other municipalities to grant property tax relief
to persons who live in one municipality but volunteer in a fire company
of another municipality. Any such interlocal agreement shall be ratified
according the procedures set forth in the Connecticut State Statutes.
The Administering Board shall serve as the participating public agency
for Middlefield once any such interlocal agreement is ratified.
The following excuses may be considered valid by the Administering
Board, provided the excuses are in writing to the Chief of the Middlefield
Volunteer Fire Department and the Chairperson of the Administering
Board within a reasonable length.
