(a) When any community, authorized to raise money by taxation, lays a tax, it shall appoint a collector thereof; and the selectmen of towns, and the committees of other communities, except as otherwise specially provided by law, shall make out and sign rate bills containing the proportion which each individual is to pay according to the assessment list; and any judge of the Superior Court or any justice of the peace, on their application or that of their successors in office, shall issue a warrant for the collection of any sums due on such rate bills. Each collector shall mail or hand to each individual from whom taxes are due a bill for the amount of taxes for which such individual is liable. In addition, the collector shall include with such bill, using one of the following methods (1) attachment, (2) enclosure, or (3) printed matter upon the face of the bill, a statement of:

(A) State aid to municipalities which shall be in the following form:

“The (fiscal year) budget for the (city or town) estimates that .... Dollars will be received from the state of Connecticut for various state financed programs. Without this assistance your (fiscal year) property tax would be (herein insert the amount computed in accordance with subsection (b) of this section) mills”; and

(B) State aid reduction to municipalities that overspend, which shall be in the following form:

“The state will reduce grants to your town if local spending increases by more than 2.5 per cent from the previous fiscal year.”

Failure to send out or receive any such bill or statement shall not invalidate the tax. For purposes of this subsection, “mail” includes to send by electronic mail, provided an individual from whom taxes are due consents in writing to receive a bill and statement electronically. Prior to sending any such bill or statement by electronic mail, a community shall provide the public with the appropriate electronic mail address of the community on the community's Internet web site and shall establish procedures to ensure that any individual who consents to receive a bill or statement electronically (i) receives such bill or statement, and (ii) is provided the proper return electronic mail address of the community sending the bill or statement.

(b) The mill rate to be inserted in the statement of state aid to municipalities required by subsection (a) of this section shall be computed on the total estimated revenues required to fund the estimated expenditures of the municipality exclusive of assistance received or anticipated from the state.

(1949 Rev., S. 1813; 1961, P.A. 517, S. 10; 1963, P.A. 471, S. 1; P.A. 74-183, S. 190, 291; P.A. 76-436, S. 166, 681; P.A. 77-452, S. 3, 72; P.A. 78-249, S. 2, 4; P.A. 85-467, S. 1, 2; P.A. 11-185, S. 1; P.A. 13-276, S. 11; P.A. 14-139, S. 4; P.A. 15-244, S. 209.)

History: 1961 act authorized circuit court judges rather than justices of the peace to issue warrants; 1963 act revested authority to issue warrants in justices of the peace; P.A. 74-183 substituted court of common pleas for circuit court; P.A. 76-436 substituted superior court for court of common pleas and deleted reference to justices of the peace, effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 77-452 reinstated reference to justices of the peace; P.A. 78-249 added requirement that tax bill include statement of state aid to municipalities and included form of statement and added Subsec. (b) re computation of mill rate which would exist without state aid; P.A. 85-467 amended the requirement in Subsec. (a), concerning the statement of state aid to be attached to each property tax bill, so that such statement may be attached to, enclosed with or printed upon the face of the bill; P.A. 11-185 amended Subsec. (a) by adding provisions re sending rate bills by electronic mail, effective October 1, 2011, and applicable to assessment years commencing on or after that date; P.A. 13-276 amended Subsec. (a) by eliminating requirement that collectors attach statement of the year and amount of back taxes to tax bill and adding provision re failure to receive tax bill does not invalidate tax; P.A. 14-139 amended Subsec. (b) by making a technical change, effective June 6, 2014; P.A. 15-244 amended Subsec. (a) by designating existing language re statement of state aid to municipalities as Subpara. (A), adding Subpara. (B) re statement of state aid reduction to municipalities that overspend and making technical changes, effective October 1, 2017, and applicable to assessment years commencing on or after October 1, 2017.

See Sec. 9-185 re election or appointment of tax collectors.

Selectmen liable for making out rate bill on illegal and void assessment and causing warrant to be issued thereon. 7 C. 550, see also 47 C. 485. When action for money had and received is appropriate remedy. 10 C. 127. Warrant unaccompanied by a duly signed rate bill a dead letter. Id., 147; 30 C. 395. Justice signing a warrant based on rate bill valid on its face not liable though tax illegally imposed. 11 C. 472. Rate bill and warrant need not specify list on which tax laid if appearing in the vote to which they refer. 15 C. 454. Tax legally laid and assessed but collected by invalid proceedings not recoverable of town. 30 C. 394. Land sold on void tax warrant based on valid assessment not decreed to be reconveyed without indemnifying purchaser. Id., 404. Owner of bank stock sold for illegal tax, who buys the same knowing the facts, cannot recover of the town. 32 C. 546.

Cited. 26 CA 545.