The Town of Marlborough hereby enacts a tax credit for elderly
and disabled homeowners pursuant to § 12-129n of the Connecticut
General Statutes for eligible residents of the Town of Marlborough
on the terms and conditions provided herein. The program is enacted
for the purpose of assisting such homeowners with a portion of the
costs of property taxation. This program shall be known as the "Marlborough
Optional Elderly or Disabled Tax Relief."
Application for benefits under this program shall:
A. Be made on forms provided by the Town Assessor of the Town of Marlborough
and shall be accompanied by a copy of the applicant's most recent
federal tax returns or other documentation of all income and residency
status satisfactory to the Assessor.
B. Be filed the first year with the Assessor of the Town of Marlborough
at any time between January 1 and April 15 of each year to obtain
a tax credit for the next fiscal year. All approved applicants will
be required to refile biennially with the Town Assessor to maintain
their eligibility. There is no exception to this filing period.
C. Applications and other documentation presented in support of the
application for tax relief shall not be open for public inspection
except as may otherwise be required by law.
D. The penalty for filing an application containing a false statement
of any kind shall include the refund by the taxpayer of all tax relief
granted hereunder together with interest at the rate of 18% per annum.
The total abatement of property tax revenue which may be granted
by the Town of Marlborough pursuant to the provisions of this program
shall not exceed an amount equal to 10% of the total real property
tax assessed in the Town of Marlborough in the preceding tax year.
If the number of qualified applications in any year exceeds this amount,
the tax relief will be prorated equally among all qualifying applicants.
The Assessor shall review applications and information provided
by applicants seeking tax credits under this program. The Assessor
shall determine eligibility of applicants no later than May 15 of
each year and notify the Tax Collector of the amount of tax credit.
Any applicant aggrieved by any act or determination of the Assessor
may appeal to the Board of Selectmen in accordance with the following
procedure:
A. The applicant shall, in writing on a form prescribed by the Assessor
and within five business days of the act or final determination of
the Assessor of which the applicant claims to be aggrieved, submit
his or her appeal to the Board of Selectmen.
B. The Board of Selectmen shall date stamp the appeal and, within seven
calendar days thereof, not including the date of receipt, schedule
a hearing thereon, such hearing to be not later than 14 calendar days
thereafter and shall then notify the applicant, in writing by first-class
mail, postage prepaid, of the date, time and place of the Board of
Selectmen's hearing of the applicant's appeal.
C. At the hearing, at which the applicant may be represented by legal
counsel or otherwise, the applicant shall present evidence in support
of the claimed basis of appeal. The hearing shall be informal, and
the Board of Selectmen may request such additional information from
the aggrieved applicant and/or the Assessor as the Board of Selectmen
deems necessary and appropriate to render a full and fair decision
upon the applicant's appeal.
D. The hearing pursuant to this section may be adjourned for the purpose
of obtaining evidence not immediately available, but in any case,
the Board of Selectmen shall render a written decision, which decision
shall be final and not subject to further appeal, by no later than
the 14th calendar day following the Board of Selectmen's receipt of
the applicant's appeal.
This tax relief program shall be reviewed by the Board of Selectmen
and by the Board of Finance in the second year after implementation
and then every two years thereafter, or as deemed necessary. The Board
of Finance will make recommendations for continuation, modification
or termination of this program to the Board of Selectmen.
This tax relief program will be effective with the Grand List
of October 1, 2011, and thereafter.