CTx SPRING SEMINARLegislative Update

March 13, 2014

Prepared and Presented by Guinan Associates

SESSION 2014

• Is a SHORT Session

•Began February 5. Ends May 7.

• Is Second Year of Two Year Budget

• Is an Election Year

EVERYONE is up for Re-election

•151 House Members

•36 Senators

•6 Constitutional Officers, including

•The GOVERNOR

Change is Coming…

•NOT SEEKING RE-ELECTION: 3 of 4 at the Top

• Sen. President Don Williams

• Sen. Minority Leader John McKinney

•Widely rumored – House Minority Leader Larry Cafero

• Senators LeBeau and Welch; Several other Reps and Senators

Some Changes Already…

• F. Senator Toni Harp now Mayor.

• F. Rep. Holder-Winfield now Senator

• Sen. Beth Bye to Approps, Sen. Cassano to Higher Ed and

• Sen. Cathy Osten new P& D Co-Chair

• 19th Dist. 10 towns. First Selectman Sprague

• Two Special elections – one on a Thursday! NH and Rep. Elaine O’Brian

DOMINANT ISSUES

• THE ELECTION !!

• EDUCATION – Common Core Delay. Teacher Eval Delay.

• Family Court Issues – Guardian Ad Litem

• Support for MANUFACTURING

• FRACKING

• Budget SURPLUS

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THE ELECTION !!

SENATOR MCKINNEY RUNNING VS. GOV. MALLOY

SEN. BOUCHER, TOO ?POLLS FORECAST A TIGHT RACE

Everything is [even more] POLITICAL

How Would You Spend $500 Million?

•GOVERNOR PROPOSALS:

•Rainy Day Fund - $250 million

• Pension - $100 million: 20 yrs, 8%, $430 m

• ‘Modest’ Tax Reductions

OR…

•RETIRE STATE DEBT

• PUT MORE IN THE RAINY DAY FUND

• TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

•MORE ECS or other AID TO TOWNS

•Repay FED UNEMPLOYMENT

•OR…. YOU NAME IT.

SHORT SESSION SPRINT!!

•First 3 Committee Deadlines TODAY

•Planning & Development – March 26

•Appropriations – April 3

•Finance – April 4

72 bills will receive a public hearing in 9 different

committeesTODAY AND TOMORROW

69 BILLS WILL BE VOTED UPON IN 8 DIFFERENT

COMMITTEESTODAY !

Not Quite the Quiet Year We’d Planned

•CTX HAS TESTIFIED OR SUBMITTED TESTIMONY ON 4 BILLS. Wary of a 5th.

• Interest Rate on Delinquent Taxes

• Free Access to DMV

• Legal Notices

•A Change to CTx 2013 Statute

•Collecting a Marijuana Tax

HB 5055: AA ELIMINATING MUNICIPAL MANDATES

•GOVERNOR’S BILL

•CTx SUPPORTS

•VOTE UNANIMOUS in P & D 3/12 WITH CTx AMENDMENT (JFS)

• Includes 2 year Reval Delay Also

HB 5055: AA ELIMINATING MUNICIPAL MANDATES

• ELIMINATES Annual Payments to DMV

• Adopted language proposed by Wm Donlin: Notify by “the first day of each month BUT NOT LATER THAN THE FIFTEENTH DAY.”

• If town fails to notify, DMV not required to deny registration

•Win. Win. Happier Taxpayers. Savings to Towns.

• Recommend Tax Collectors contact their legislators on this one.

SB 38: AAC THE INTEREST RATE ON DELINQUENT TAXES

• YES… AGAIN. AND AGAIN.

• Local Option – A town can set an interest rate between 15 – 18 %

• Gisela Harma submitted testimony against. Wm Donlin testified against.

• Stressed Uniformity as key. Oppose variable rates.

• CCM leads opposition.

• Currently still in P & D

HB 5438: AAC PAYMENT OF DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES

• Clarifies that a taxpayer may designate which properties they want their payment applied to. BUT… the difference one word makes.

• “(1) [first,] for any outstanding unsecured taxes, first to expenses concerning such unsecured taxes, including attorney's fees, collection expenses, recording fees, collector's fees and other expenses and charges related to all delinquencies owed by the party liable therefor before the interest accrued, then to the principal of such outstanding unsecured taxes, paying the oldest such tax first, except that upon request …”

HB 5348, cont.

• Adam Cohen submitted testimony.

• “…change could be interpreted as undoing Section 20 of Public Act 13-276 adopted last year which requires tax collectors to apply partial payments to unsecured tax debts before liened tax debts unless the taxpayer specifies otherwise.”

• “…when the taxpayer does not give that direction, the tax collector should be required to apply the payment to any unsecured tax debt first. House Bill 5348 should not delete the word “first” …”

• A meeting is requested.

SB 40: AAC THE PUBLICATION OF MUNICIPAL LEGAL NOTICES IN NEWSPAPERS

•Would allow abridged notices in Newspapers that direct taxpayers to full notice online.

• Strong support Speaker, Committee Co-Chairs. Wm Donlin testified for.

• Strong Opposition Newspaper Association

• This could be the year….

• Recommend contact legislators to ensure Tax Collectors’ notices are included and that bill passes.

SB 39: AA AUTHORIZING MUNICIPALITIES TO COLLECT THE MARIJUANA AND CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES TAX

• VOTED UNANIMOUSLY OUT OF P & D COMMITTEE ON 3/12.

• Applies to municipalities < 75,000 pop.

• Applies to drugs seized during arrests or searches. Hearing process

• Revenues collected remain in municipality

• Dealers required to keep books.

SB 39: AA AUTHORIZING MUNICIPALITIES TO COLLECT THE MARIJUANA AND CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES TAX

• “If, after an examination of the invoices, books and records of a dealer, or if, from any other information obtained by [him] the commissioner or his or her authorized agents or the tax collector for any municipality collecting a tax pursuant to section 12-651, as amended by this act, the commissioner or tax collector determines that the dealer has not purchased sufficient stamps to cover his or her receipts and sales or other disposition of any marijuana or controlled substances, [he] the commissioner or tax collector shall thereupon assess the deficiency in tax.”

• Penalties and interest apply. Liens against property permitted.

M.O.R.E.

• NO STATEWIDE MIL RATE – THIS YEAR, ANYWAY

• MUNICIPAL REVENUE SHARING ACCOUNT

• Restore Revenue Streams – Sales, Hotel, RE Conveyance Taxes

• Pay 4th Qtr Equivalent to towns this year - $ 12.7 million

• Rental Vehicle Tax in Airport Development Zones

• Antique Cars – 20 -> 30 yrs. < 1500 miles. Grandfathered

•Wm. Donlin, G. Harma, S. Ferguson our standard bearers

NEXT….

• SUPPORT HB 5055, DMV BILL

• FIX 5348 – Our statute – the ‘first’ issue

• SUPPORT SB 40 – Legal notices. It may be losing steam….

•Oppose SB 38 – Interest Rates on Delinquent

• Figure out what the heck! SB 39 – the Pot Tax

YOUR PARTICIPATION IS VITAL

•BUILD ON CREDIBILITY AND RELATIONSHIPS WHICH EXPANDED LAST YEAR.

• JOIN THE CTx LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE.

•CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATORS.

• You are in EVERY town and you know EVERYONE- YOU HAVE REAL INFLUENCE

THANK YOU.QUESTIONS?