[Adopted 10-1-2019]
The Town of Old Saybrook hereby enacts legislation, pursuant
to the provisions of Section 12-81c of the Connecticut General Statutes,
to exempt from personal property tax certain ambulance-type motor
vehicles which are used exclusively for the purpose of transporting
any medically incapacitated individual, except any vehicle used to
transport any such individual for profit This exemption does not apply
to vehicles that are used partly for transporting medically incapacitated
individuals and partly for other purposes.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Is one which has had automotive adaptive control devices
(AACDs) installed, has been substantially modified with assistive
devices, such as, but not limited to, wheelchair lifts and hand controls
to make the vehicle viable transport for a medically incapacitated
individual, the equipping with beds, stretchers or other special seating
accommodations and significant modifications to accommodate medical
or emergency equipment such as oxygen.
Is an individual whose licensed physician has attested, in
writing, that the individual requires a specially equipped and/or
modified vehicle as hereinbefore defined as a result of the individual's
medical incapacitation and/or disability.
Is an individual who owns a motor vehicle as hereinbefore
defined and has been a resident of the Town of Old Saybrook for at
least six months and one day immediately prior to the assessment date
for which the application is to be filed.
Any individual who is a resident of the Town of Old Saybrook
who owns a motor vehicle as described herein or is a resident of the
Town of Old Saybrook and the parent or guardian of a person with disabilities
and owns a motor vehicle as described herein shall be eligible for
exemption of the personal property taxes for one said motor vehicle.
A.
The owner of such a motor vehicle described herein may apply to the
Assessor of the Town of Old Saybrook on a form prepared by the Assessor
for personal property tax exemption for one motor vehicle.
B.
At the time the owner makes application to the Assessor, the owner
must provide proof in the form of documentation that the motor vehicle
has been equipped or adapted for use by a disabled individual as hereinbefore
defined, provide the make, model, year of manufacture, vehicle identification
number and current state license number, the length of time the modified
handicap-accessible motor vehicle has been in use, a location and
description of the place or places from which it is intended to operate
and such other information as the Town Assessor shall deem necessary
to comply with this section. Furthermore, the Assessor retains the
right to examine any vehicle claiming an exemption, at any time, in
order to either continue or remove the exempt status.
C.
At the time that the owner makes application to the Assessor, the
owner shall provide proof of disability of the individual as hereinbefore
defined by way of a licensed physician attesting, in writing, to the
individual's need for a specially equipped and/or modified motor vehicle
as hereinbefore defined. Proof of the individual's disability through
a physician's written attestation shall be valid for a period of three
years, after which a new physician's written attestation must be submitted.
If the medically incapacitated person has completed a course required
by the State of Connecticut, and the applicant's motor vehicle driver's
license has been modified to reflect the completion of the course,
a copy of the driver's license may be substituted for the physician's
letter requirement. Failure to file such a letter or copy of the motor
vehicle driver's license in said manner and form within the time limit
prescribed shall constitute a waiver of the right to such exemption
for the assessment year.
D.
Initial applications for such exemptions shall be made not later
than November 1 following the assessment date with respect to which
such exemption is claimed. For vehicles purchased after October 1
and before August 1 of the initial assessment year for which such
exemption is requested, said application shall be made later than
November 1 following the date of the purchase. Once approved, subsequent
applications need not be filed unless a new motor vehicle is purchased.
Failure to file such an application in said manner and form within
the time frame prescribed shall constitute a waiver of the right to
such exemption for the assessment year.
This Article VIII shall be applicable to the assessment year which commences October 1, 2019, and succeeding assessment years thereafter.
