(a) Secretary to establish state-wide program assisting development of mass appraisal systems. The Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management shall establish a state-wide program of financial assistance to municipalities to improve municipal assessment and tax collection practices. Such financial assistance, within the limits of funds made available for such purpose, shall be in the form of a grant-in-aid to each municipality to develop or modify a state certified computer-assisted mass appraisal system for the purpose of revaluation, as required in section 12-62, the training of municipal personnel in the proper use of such system, the acquisition of software packages, hardware, programming, data conversion or data entry. Whenever used in this section, “municipality” means any town, consolidated town and city or consolidated town and borough.

(b) Standards to be developed for certification of computer-assisted mass appraisal system. The secretary shall develop minimum standards for the certification of a computer-assisted mass appraisal system and adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, setting minimum computer-assisted mass appraisal revaluation standards and computerized administrative standards. A municipality, which intends to develop or modify a computer-assisted mass appraisal system as provided in subsection (a) of this section, may apply to the secretary for a grant-in-aid in such form and manner as said secretary shall prescribe. The secretary shall review each such application, and shall approve the municipality's proposed use of the grant-in-aid, provided it has been shown to the secretary's satisfaction that the intended development or modification of a computer-assisted mass appraisal system will (1) meet the minimum computer-assisted mass appraisal revaluation standards and computerized administrative standard requirements as established by the secretary, (2) ensure a more accurate revaluation, and (3) serve to improve both assessment and tax collection practices in the municipality.

(c) Grants-in-aid to municipalities. Determination of amount. Deadline for application. (1) Each municipality whose application for state financial assistance has been approved by the secretary shall receive a grant-in-aid on the basis of its population, as determined by the most recent estimates of the Department of Public Health. The amount of such grant-in-aid to any municipality with revaluation, as required in section 12-62, becoming effective in any of the years 1987 to 1996, inclusive, shall be as follows: (A) Twenty-five thousand dollars to each municipality with a population of less than twenty thousand; (B) thirty-five thousand dollars to each municipality with a population of at least twenty thousand but less than fifty thousand; (C) fifty thousand dollars to each municipality with a population of at least fifty thousand but less than one hundred thousand; and (D) sixty thousand dollars to each municipality with a population of one hundred thousand or more. Each municipality that completed a revaluation which became effective in the years from 1987 to 1996, inclusive, and qualified for the grants-in-aid provided for in this section, shall be eligible for an additional grant-in-aid equal to an amount not to exceed ten per cent of the grant-in-aid limit of the grant for which they originally qualified provided the additional grant-in-aid shall be used for training and for installations and modifications which are acquired and certified to be in compliance with the minimum computer-assisted mass appraisal revaluation standards and computerized administrative standards developed in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.

(2) A municipality that conducted a revaluation as required in section 12-62 without postponement or extension, but not between January 1, 1987, and December 31, 1996, shall be eligible to apply for and receive a grant and an additional grant-in-aid under subdivision (1) of this subsection.

(3) No municipality shall be eligible to receive a grant and an additional grant-in-aid pursuant to this section more than once.

(4) The secretary shall not accept or approve any application for a grant-in-aid pursuant to this section after June 30, 2012.

(d) Application for assistance. Upon approval of an application for state financial assistance, the secretary shall certify to the Comptroller the amount due to the municipality. Not later than five business days after such certification, the Comptroller shall draw his or her order on the Treasurer, who shall pay the grant to the municipality.

(e) State assistance to be monitored. The secretary shall periodically monitor a municipality's use of such grant-in-aid, to ensure full compliance with the provisions of this section. Each municipality receiving a grant-in-aid under this section shall for a period of two years following receipt of such grant-in-aid maintain all invoices, purchase orders and other evidence of expenditures related to the grant-in-aid.

(P.A. 88-348, S. 1–3; 88-364, S. 96, 123; P.A. 90-127, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; 95-283, S. 4, 68; P.A. 97-128, S. 1, 2; P.A. 01-187, S. 23, 25; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-7, S. 20, 28; P.A. 07-213, S. 12; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1, S. 106; P.A. 13-299, S. 9.)

History: P.A. 88-364 made technical changes in Subsec. (f); P.A. 90-127 amended Subsec. (c) by providing that such grants-in-aid shall be available to certain municipalities with the required revaluation becoming effective in any of the years 1987 to 1992, inclusive, in lieu of 1987 or 1988, as provided prior to this amendment; P.A. 93-381 replaced department of health services with department of public health and addiction services, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 95-283 amended Subsec. (a) to add the acquisition of software packages and hardware upgrading, Subsec. (b) to require regulations before December 1, 1995, re minimum computer-assisted mass appraisal revaluation standards and administrative standards and to require applicants to meet the standards, Subsec. (c) to change 1992 to 1996 and to provide that any municipality qualifying for a grant-in-aid is eligible for an additional 10% and Subsec. (e) to require municipalities receiving grants-in-aid to maintain invoices, purchase orders and other evidence of expenditures for a two-year period, effective July 6, 1995; P.A. 97-128 amended Subsec. (a) to include programming, data conversion and data entry, effective June 6, 1997; P.A. 01-187, effective July 11, 2001, and June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-7, effective July 1, 2001, both identically amended Subsec. (c) to designate existing provisions as Subdiv. (1) and add new Subdivs. (2) and (3) re additional grants to certain towns; P.A. 07-213 amended Subsec. (d) to change “fifteen days” to “five business days” and make conforming and technical changes, effective July 10, 2007; June 12 Sp. Sess. P.A. 12-1 amended Subsec. (c) by adding Subdiv. (4) re deadline for acceptance or approval of grant applications, effective July 1, 2012; P.A. 13-299 amended Subsec. (b) to delete obsolete dates, delete references to board created in Subsec. (f) and make technical changes and deleted former Subsec. (f) re creation and membership of computer-assisted mass appraisal systems advisory board, effective July 1, 2013.

See Sec. 7-148r re municipal fee for access to computer-assisted mass appraisal system database.