The statutory authority for this article is
PA 99-272.
To encourage and increase volunteer participation
in the fire and emergency medical services, there is hereby established
a program to abate the real and/or personal property taxes due for
any fiscal year in an amount not to exceed $1,000 for a resident of
the Town of Wilton who volunteers his or her services as a firefighter,
emergency medical technician, paramedic or ambulance driver in the
Town. The amount of the abatement shall correlate to each volunteer's
level of participation in the calls, training and other activities
of the organization, exclusive of events and activities that are purely
or primarily social or recreational in nature.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
ORGANIZATIONS
The Town of Wilton Fire Department, the Wilton Volunteer
Ambulance Corps, and the Georgetown Fire District.
PARTICIPATION LEVEL PLAN ("PLAN")
A systematic, internally consistent method used by each organization
to numerically quantify the extent of each volunteer's participation
in the organization's nonsocial and nonrecreational activities.
PRESIDING OFFICER
The Chief of the Wilton Fire Department, the President of
the Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corps, or the President of the Georgetown
Volunteer Fire District.
VOLUNTEER
A resident of the Town of Wilton who, without compensation
or for de minimis compensation, serves as a firefighter, emergency
medical technician, paramedic or ambulance driver for the Town of
Wilton Fire Department, the Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corporation,
or the Georgetown Fire District. Volunteer shall not include a person
who provides and is compensated for said services in a manner or amount
that makes the person an employee of the Town of Wilton, the Wilton
Volunteer Ambulance Corps or the Georgetown Fire District under applicable
federal or state laws or regulations.
YEAR OF SERVICE
A full calendar year of availability to serve as a volunteer.
Inability to volunteer because of military service with the United
States or because of injury or illness sustained in the course of
providing volunteer service shall not constitute interruptions of
service.
To be eligible for the abatement, the volunteer
must have at least one year of service as of any December 31. In no
event shall participation in more than one organization entitle a
volunteer to an abatement of more than $1,000.
Any proposed changes to approved participation level plans, together with adequate documentation and explanations, must be submitted to the Board of Selectmen by December 31. If approved, the changes shall apply prospectively to fiscal years commencing after approval. No changes to an approved plan may be made subsequent to submission of the annual budget to the Board of Finance, as prescribed by §
C-31B(1) of the Charter.
The Tax Collector shall apply an abatement in
the following order of priority: real estate, motor vehicle, personal
property and shall be applied 50% to each installment of taxes as
applicable. No abatement shall exceed the taxes due for a fiscal year.
A credit balance resulting from the application of an abatement shall
be treated as an overpayment by the Tax Collector.
When a property has more than one owner, the
amount of the abatement applied cannot exceed the volunteer's proportionate
share of the taxes due.
Any unused abatement or portion thereof shall
expire at the end of the fiscal year for which it is granted.
This article shall be effective December 18,
2000.