The purpose and intent of this article is to establish a tax
relief program in accordance with C.G.S. § 12-129n, as amended,
to assist elderly or disabled residents of the Town of Woodbury with
their real property taxes. Eligible participants will receive a tax
abatement applied against their principal residence, in addition to
the abatement provided under C.G.S. § 12-129b, pro rata
to the participant's percentage of ownership of the subject property.
[Amended 5-21-2018]
Any person who owns real property in the Town of Woodbury or
who is liable for the payment of taxes thereon under C.G.S. § 12-48
and who occupies that property as his or her principal residence,
or held in trust for and occupied by such resident as his or her principal
residence, shall be eligible for real property tax relief pursuant
to C.G.S. § 12-129n in the form of a tax credit, provided
that all of the following conditions are met:
A. Such person is:
(1) Sixty-five years of age or over at the close of the calendar year
preceding the period in which a claim for relief is filed; or whose
spouse living with him or her is 65 years of age or over at the close
of the calendar year preceding the period in which a claim for relief
is filed; or such person is 60 years of age or over and the surviving
spouse of a taxpayer qualified in Woodbury under this article at the
time of his or her death or with respect to real property on which
such applicant or his or her spouse is liable for taxes under C.G.S.
§ 12-48; or
(2) Under 65 years of age and eligible in accordance with applicable
federal regulations to receive permanent total disability benefits
under social security, or has not been engaged in employment covered
by social security and accordingly has not qualified for benefits
thereunder, but has become qualified for permanent total disability
benefits under any federal, state, or local government retirement
disability plan, including the Railroad Retirement Act and any government-related
teacher's retirement plan, in which requirements with respect to qualifications
for such permanent total disability benefits are comparable to such
requirements under social security.
B. The applicant and/or his/her spouse under Subsection
A(1) or
(2) above must have been a real property taxpayer of the Town of Woodbury for one year immediately preceding their receipt of tax benefits under this article and meet the requirements with respect to maximum income allowance during the calendar year preceding the year in which the application is made for the tax credit provided in this article.
C. The applicants must own and occupy the real property in the Town
of Woodbury for which this tax credit is claimed as their principal
residence, or the property must be held in trust for and occupied
by such resident as his or her principal residence. "Principal residence"
shall be defined as residency of at least 183 days per year in each
of the three years prior to the application and in each abated tax
year thereafter. A surviving spouse is not required to have had an
ownership interest in the property prior to the applicant's death,
but must be the record owner of the property within 12 months thereafter
and meet the other requirements as set forth in this article.
D. An applicant(s) shall individually, if unmarried, or jointly, if
married, demonstrate an adjusted gross income of $36,900 or less,
in accordance with the guidelines set forth below, during the calendar
year preceding the filing of his/her application. Applicants shall
demonstrate such "qualifying income," as defined in Form M-35H of
the State Circuit Breaker application, Section 7, from social security
benefits and all other income, by producing his/her Internal Revenue
Service Form 1040.
E. In addition to meeting the "qualifying income" standards as set forth
in this tax relief program, the applicant must first apply for "Circuit
Breaker" tax relief provided by the State of Connecticut. If the applicant
is denied eligibility for tax relief granted under one or more of
the State Circuit Breaker programs, the Assessor shall deny the applicant
the local share of tax relief, remove the applicant from the abatement
records, and bill him/her for the full real estate tax due; provided,
however, that an unmarried applicant with an income between $26,100
and $36,900 and a married applicant with an income between $31,900
and $36,900 shall not be required to apply for or be granted state
Circuit Breaker benefits.
F. All taxes due and payable to the Town of Woodbury must be paid and
not be in arrears to maintain eligibility under this tax relief program.
This program shall commence with and be applicable to the Grand
List of October 1, 2004, and all subsequent Grand Lists thereafter
until modified or repealed by vote of the Board of Selectmen.
Any person aggrieved by the decision of the Assessor relative
to this article may appeal to the Board of Selectmen.