House Bill No. 5941
               House Bill No. 5941

               PUBLIC ACT NO. 97-83


AN ACT CONCERNING THE MUNICIPAL SUSPENSE TAX BOOK.


    Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and House of
Representatives in General Assembly convened:
    Section  12-165  of  the  general  statutes is
repealed and the following is substituted in  lieu
thereof:
    Each  municipality  shall  have a suspense tax
book. At least once in each year each collector of
taxes  in  each  municipality shall deliver to the
board  of  finance  or  other  similar  board   by
whatever  name called or, if no such board exists,
to  the  board  of  selectmen  if   a   town   not
consolidated with a city or borough, to the common
council or board of aldermen if  a  city,  to  the
warden  and  burgesses  if  a  borough  and to the
governing  board  if  any  other  municipality,  a
statement  giving  by rate bill: (1) The amount of
each old age assistance tax unpaid on the old  age
assistance  tax rate books of each municipality as
of July 1, 1953, which amount shall be transferred
to  the  old  age  assistance  suspense  tax book,
except that it shall not be  necessary  to  comply
with  the  foregoing  provisions  of  this chapter
relating to such transfers and the  provisions  of
subdivisions (2), (3) and (5) of this section; the
amount of each uncollectible personal property tax
and  the  amount  of uncollectible balance of each
real estate tax which remains after crediting such
tax  with the proceeds obtained from a tax sale OR
LIEN SALE of the real estate represented  by  such
tax  and  which balance cannot be collected by any
other means; (2)  the  name  and  address  of  the
person  against whom each such tax was levied, and
(3) the reason why such  collector  believes  each
such  tax  is  uncollectible.  At  the end of such
statement, the tax collector shall  certify  that,
to  the best of his knowledge and belief, each tax
contained in such statement has not been paid  and
is  uncollectible. A detailed examination shall be
made by the authority to which such statement  has
been  given  of  each tax shown thereon and, after
such examination, it shall  designate  in  writing
each   tax   which   is   believed  by  it  to  be
uncollectible. Thereupon, each tax  so  designated
as  uncollectible  shall  be  transferred  by such
collector to the suspense tax book.  (4)  Opposite
each  tax  in  the  appropriate rate bill shall be
placed the following  words:  "Suspense  Tax  Book
the tax collector who transferred such tax to  the
suspense  tax  book. Each tax so transferred shall
not thereafter be included as  an  asset  of  such
municipality.  (5)  The  amount  of  each  tax  so
transferred during the last fiscal  year  and  the
name  of the person against whom each such tax was
levied shall  be  published  in  the  next  annual
report  of  such municipality or filed in the town
clerk's office within sixty days of the end of the
fiscal year. (6) Nothing herein contained shall be
construed  as  an  abatement   of   any   tax   so
transferred,  but  any  such  tax,  as it has been
increased  by  interest  or  penalty,   fees   and
charges, may be collected by the collector then or
subsequently in office. The provisions of  section
12-147  shall  be  applicable  to  all  moneys  so
collected.

Approved May 29, 1997