Any person who owns real property in the Town or who is liable
for the payment of taxes thereon under C.G.S. § 12-48, and
occupies that property as his or her own principal residence, shall
be eligible for the real property tax relief set forth herein, provided
all of the conditions set forth below are met. For purposes of this
article, the term "spouse" shall include parties to a civil union
which is in compliance with Public Act No. 05-10.
A. Age.
(1) Such person shall be 65 years of age or over; or the spouse of such
person shall be 65 years of age or over; or such person shall be 60
years of age or over and the surviving spouse of a taxpayer who qualified
in Winchester under this article at the time of his or her death.
Said age 65 shall occur by the close of the preceding calendar year;
or
(2) Such person shall be under the age of 65 years and shall be eligible
in accordance with applicable federal regulations to receive permanent
total disability benefits under social security, or have not been
engaged in employment covered by social security and accordingly have
not qualified for benefits thereunder, but have become qualified for
permanent total disability benefits under any federal, state or local
government retirement or 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. Income.
(1) Such person shall have individually, if unmarried, or jointly, if
married (whether or not separate federal income taxes were paid by
him and/or his spouse), during the calendar year preceding the filing
of his or her claim, adjusted gross income as defined in the Internal
Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, plus tax-exempt interest as defined
in Section 103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, dividend
exclusions as set forth in Section 116 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1956, as amended, social security benefits, railroad retirement
benefits, income from other tax-exempt retirement and annuity sources
in an amount not more than $40,000.
(2) In any case where title to the real property is recorded in the name
of the taxpayer or his spouse and/or any other person or persons,
the tax relief granted herein shall be prorated to reflect the fractional
share of such taxpayer or spouse; and, furthermore, if such property
is occupied as a multiple-family dwelling, such relief shall be prorated
to reflect the fractional portion of such property occupied by the
taxpayer.
(3) Any person entitled to the tax relief pursuant to this article is
required to file biennially for the benefit; however, if the taxpayer's
income exceeds or changes under this section, said person shall be
required to reapply.
C. Such person has resided in a residence located in the Town for a
period of three years per C.G.S. § 12-129n and has paid
real estate taxes on a residence to the Town for a period of three
years per C.G.S. § 12-129n prior to his or her application
for tax relief.
D. The real property for which the exemption is claimed must be the
legal domicile of such person, and such person shall be in residence
therein for at least 183 days in each grand list year for which the
exemption is claimed. Such claim for exemption shall be for one residence
only.
E. Before any tax relief shall be given, such person must first have
applied for tax relief under any other state statute under which he
or she is eligible.
F. No property tax relief under this article, together with any property
tax relief received by such person under all applicable General Statutes
of Connecticut, shall exceed, in the aggregate, 25% of the tax which
would, except for the General Statutes and this article, have been
laid against the person applying for property tax relief hereunder.
G. The application for tax relief under this article shall have been
made by such person after he or she has become eligible to apply therefor.
H. If any person entitled to tax relief sells the property on which
the benefit was granted, the purchaser's tax bill for the current
year will be increased by a pro-rata portion of the tax benefit; unless
the purchaser is also receiving benefits in Winchester under this
program, in which case the current benefit will be transferred to
the new property and prorated accordingly. Such portion will be a
fraction with the numerator representing the number of days between
the closing and the next following June 30, and denominator of 365
days. The result of this provision is to advance the purchaser's repayment
liability by approximately nine months as compared with the repayment
prescribed for state-funded tax relief provided by C.G.S. § 12-81(a).
I. If any person entitled to the tax credit pursuant to this article is no longer eligible due to the fact that his/her income exceeds or changes under Subsection
B(2) as set forth under Subsection
B(1), all benefits shall be reimbursed to the Town upon the death of the recipient or conveyance of the real property subject to taxation in accordance with this article.
The tax relief for real property as provided herein shall apply
only to the residence itself, the lot on which the residence is located
and the improvements thereon. Only that portion of the lot equal to
the minimum zoning requirement where the lot is situated shall receive
tax credit.