[Amended 3-9-2004; 9-11-2007]
The Town of Farmington hereby enacts a tax credit
for elderly homeowners pursuant to § 12-129n of the Connecticut
General Statutes, as it may be amended from time to time, for eligible
residents of the Town of Farmington, on the terms and conditions provided
herein. This program is enacted for the purpose of assisting elderly
homeowners with a portion of the costs of real property taxation.
A.
An applicant shall meet the following criteria to
be eligible for this program:
(1)
Such person is 65 years or over at the close of the
preceding calendar year, or whose spouse, residing with said person,
is 65 years of age or over at the close of the preceding calendar
year or 60 years of age or over and the surviving spouse of a taxpayer
qualified in Farmington under this program at the time of his or her
death, or any person, regardless of age who is permanently and totally
disabled as determined in accordance with § 12-129n of the
Connecticut General Statutes; and
(2)
Such person owns real property as of the assessment
date in the Town of Farmington or is liable for the payment of taxes
thereon under § 12-48 of the Connecticut General Statutes,
and occupies that property as his or her principal residence for more
than 182 days per year.
[Amended 2-10-2009]
(3)
Such person is not delinquent in the payment of property
taxes to the Town as of June 30th, the end of the most recent fiscal
year.
[Amended 2-10-2009]
B.
The above shall be eligible for real property tax relief as set forth in § 176-10B(3) below, provided all of the following conditions are met:
(1)
Such person has been a taxpayer of the Town of Farmington for a period of three years immediately preceding taxpayer's receipt of tax benefits under this section, and meets the maximum allowable income requirements as stated in § 176-10B(3) below during the calendar year preceding the year in which application is made for the tax relief provided by this section.
(2)
Such person has applied for and is eligible for the elderly tax relief program available from the State of Connecticut pursuant to Connecticut General Statutes § 12-170aa, as it may be amended from time to time. Also provided that one who is eligible for the state program in all respects except that his or her income exceeds the income limits of the state program may qualify in accordance with Subsection B(3) below.
[Amended 2-10-2009]
(3)
For the purposes of this program, the income limits shall be on a
sliding scale to match the State of Connecticut tax relief benefits
program. Effective with the October 1, 2021, Grand List, the benefit
scale shall be:
[Amended 2-9-2016; 6-8-2021]
|
Income
|
Married Benefit
|
Unmarried Benefit
|
|---|---|---|
|
$0.00 to $18,900
|
$1,500
|
$1,250
|
|
$18,901 to $25,300
|
$1,250
|
$1,000
|
|
$25,301 to $31,500
|
$1,000
|
$750
|
|
$31,501 to $37,600
|
$750
|
$500
|
|
$37,601 to $45,800
|
$500
|
$500
|
|
$45,801 to $51,800
|
$500
|
$250
|
|
$51,801 to $57,800
|
$250
|
$250
|
|
*Effective with the October 1, 2021, Grand List, the income
limits shall be adjusted to be the same as for the state program,
except that the maximum Town income limit shall be $12,000 higher
than the maximum state income limit.
|
Applications for benefits under this program
shall:
A.
Be made on forms provided by the Town Assessor or
the Town of Farmington and shall be accompanied by a copy of the applicant's
most recent federal tax returns or other documentation of all income.
B.
Be filed with the Assessor of the Town of Farmington
at any time between February 1 and May 15 of each year to obtain a
tax credit for the next fiscal year. All approved applicants will
be required to reapply biennially with the Town Assessor.
A.
Determination.
(1)
The
Assessor of the Town of Farmington shall determine whether each applying
taxpayer is entitled to a tax credit under this program and shall
compute the amount of tax credit to which each qualified taxpayer
is entitled and advise the Tax Collector in what amount to reduce
the amount of the tax levied against the taxpayer.
(2)
If title to real property is recorded in the name of the person or the spouse making a claim and qualifying under § 176-10 and any other person or persons, the claimant hereunder shall be entitled to pay the claimant's fractional share of the tax on such property calculated in accordance with the provisions of this section, and such other person or persons shall pay the person's or persons' fractional share of the tax without regard for the provisions of this section.
[Added 6-8-2021]
B.
The total of all elderly tax credits granted on any
one property shall not exceed 75% of the annual property taxes levied
on said property in any fiscal year.
C.
If, during a tax year, a qualifying taxpayer dies,
leaving a spouse who would also qualify under this program, the surviving
spouse shall be entitled to receive the remaining benefits for that
tax year. Otherwise, the benefit shall be removed from the property
at the time of death.
[Amended 2-10-2009]
D.
If any person entitled to the tax credit pursuant to this program
conveys his or her interest in the property on which the tax credit
is granted, to any person other than his or her spouse who is domiciled
with the grantor or to a trust which meets the eligibility requirements
of CGS § 12-170aa, as amended, no additional tax credit
shall be allowed for his or her interest in the property for any fiscal
years commencing after the date of such conveyance of the property,
and provided further that the grantee shall pay the Town of Farmington
a prorated share of the tax credit on an October 1 Grand List basis.
The grantee's additional tax, computed under this section, shall be
the amount of the grantor's benefit times the per cent of the grantor's
interest conveyed multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which
shall be the number of months or partial months, including the month
of the conveyance of the property, to the next October 1, and the
denominator of which shall be twelve; and the grantor's benefit shall
be reduced by a like amount. If the conveyance occurs in October,
the benefit shall be removed.
[1]
Note: This amendment to the Town Property Tax Relief for Elderly
Homeowners (Local Option) shall be effective for the Grand List of
2015 and thereafter.
A.
The Town Assessor is hereby authorized to implement
this program, and to adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary
for the proper administration of this program, with the consent and
approval of the Town Manager. He or she may designate agents to act
in his or her name in collecting applications for this program.
B.
The Town of Farmington hereby waives any lien rights
given to it by § 12-129n of the Connecticut General Statutes.
C.
Persons aggrieved by any act or determination of the
Town Assessor under this program may appeal as may be otherwise provided
by law.
[Amended 6-8-2021]
D.
The Town Assessor, with the approval of the Town Manager,
is hereby authorized to adopt regulations modifying this program so
as to conform with changes in state law as it affects this program,
without returning to the Town legislative body, providing the Town
Assessor may not reduce or eliminate benefits as herein provided,
and shall publish changes in the same manner as prescribed by law
for the publication of programs, and those changes shall become effective
30 days after such publication.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 176-14,
Additional tax credit reduction, was repealed 2-10-2009.
