Connecticut General Statutes
Chapter 203 - Property Tax Assessment
Section 12-55. - Publication of grand list. Changes in valuation. Notice of assessment increase.

(a) On or before the thirty-first day of January of each year, except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the assessors or board of assessors shall publish the grand list for their respective towns. Each such grand list shall contain the assessed values of all property in the town, reflecting the statutory exemption or exemptions to which each property or property owner is entitled, and including, where applicable, any assessment penalty added in accordance with section 12-41 or 12-57a for the assessment year commencing on the October first immediately preceding. The assessor or board of assessors shall lodge the grand list for public inspection, in the office of the assessor on or before said thirty-first day of January, or on or before the day otherwise specifically provided by law for the completion of such grand list. The town's assessor or board of assessors shall take and subscribe to the oath, pursuant to section 1-25, which shall be certified by the officer administering the same and endorsed upon or attached to such grand list. For the grand list of October 1, 2000, and each grand list thereafter, each assessor or member of a board of assessors who signs the grand list shall be certified in accordance with the provisions of section 12-40a.

(b) Prior to taking and subscribing to the oath upon the grand list, the assessor or board of assessors shall equalize the assessments of property in the town, if necessary, and make any assessment omitted by mistake or required by law. The assessor or board of assessors may increase or decrease the valuation of any property as reflected in the last-preceding grand list, or the valuation as stated in any personal property declaration or report received pursuant to this chapter. In each case of any increase in valuation of a property above the valuation of such property in the last-preceding grand list, or the valuation, if any, stated by the person filing such declaration or report, the assessor or board of assessors shall mail a written notice of assessment increase to the last-known address of the owner of the property the valuation of which has increased. All such notices shall be subject to the provisions of subsection (c) of this section. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a notice of increase shall not be required in any year with respect to a registered motor vehicle the valuation of which has increased. In the year of a revaluation, the notice of increase sent in accordance with subsection (f) of section 12-62 shall be in lieu of the notice required by this section.
(c) Each notice of assessment increase sent pursuant to this section shall include: (1) The gross valuation, net valuation and any exempt amounts prior to and after such increase; and (2) information describing the manner in which an appeal may be filed with the board of assessment appeals. If a notice of assessment increase affects the value of personal property and the assessor or board of assessors used a methodology to determine such value that differs from the methodology previously used, such notice shall include a statement concerning such change in methodology, which shall indicate the current methodology and the one that the assessor or assessors used for the valuation prior to such increase. Each such notice shall be mailed not earlier than the assessment date and not later than the tenth calendar day immediately following the date on which the assessor or board of assessors signs and attests to the grand list. If any such assessment increase notice is sent later than the time period prescribed in this subsection, such increase shall become effective on the next succeeding grand list.
(1949 Rev., S. 1734; 1957, P.A. 324; P.A. 79-149, S. 1, 2; P.A. 87-95, S. 1, 2; 87-245, S. 5, 10; P.A. 95-283, S. 2, 68; P.A. 96-171, S. 4, 16; P.A. 97-68, S. 1, 3; 97-254, S. 5, 6; P.A. 99-189, S. 7, 20; P.A. 03-269, S. 1; P.A. 22-74, S. 9.)
History: P.A. 79-149 made notice of increased assessment mandatory at all times, rather than dependent upon request of person in cases where valuation higher than that stated by person filing, and detailed the contents of the notice, effective May 16, 1979, and applicable to the assessment list in any town for 1979 and any assessment list thereafter; P.A. 87-95 added Subsec. (b) providing that written notice of assessment increases as required in Subsec. (a) shall be mailed to property owners on or before the tenth day following the date on which the grand list abstract is signed and attested to by the assessor and that if such notice of increase is mailed later than required, such increase shall not become effective until the next succeeding grand list, effective May 6, 1987, and applicable to the assessment year commencing October 1, 1987, and each assessment year thereafter; P.A. 87-245 increased penalty from 10% to 25%, effective June 1, 1987, and applicable to assessment years of municipalities commencing on or after October 1, 1987; P.A. 95-283 amended Subsec. (a) to require assessors who sign grand list of October 1, 2000, and thereafter, to be certified and Subsec. (b) to replace on or before the tenth day with no earlier than the assessment date and no later than the tenth calendar day, effective July 6, 1995; P.A. 96-171 amended Subsec. (a) to add provision requiring the notice to include information describing the manner in which an appeal may be filed with the board of assessment appeals, effective May 31, 1996; P.A. 97-68 amended Subsec. (a) to eliminate the notice under Sec. 12-55 in any year that a notice is sent under Sec. 12-62(f), effective May 27, 1997, and applicable to assessment years commencing on and after October 1, 1997; P.A. 97-254 amended Subsec. (a) to add provision re notice sent in accordance with Sec. 12-62(f) in year of revaluation and deleted “or any improvement thereon” with respect to increase, effective June 27, 1997; P.A. 99-189 amended Subsec. (a) to provide that grand lists be kept in the assessor's office instead of town clerks office and that assessor required to notify taxpayer when methodology changes, effective June 23, 1999, and applicable to assessment years of municipalities commencing on or after October 1, 1999; P.A. 03-269 substantially revised section, deleting former Subsecs. (a) and (b) and adding new Subsecs. (a) to (c), inclusive, re publication of grand lists, changes in property valuation and notices of assessment increases, effective July 1, 2003; P.A. 22-74 amended Subsec. (c)(1) by substituting “gross valuation, net valuation and any exempt amounts prior to” for “valuation prior to”.
See Sec. 12-117 re extension of time for assessors and boards of tax review to complete their duties.
The law must be strictly complied with. 7 C. 550; 67 C. 528. Every article on an assessment list must appear to be legally taxable. 10 C. 127; 14 C. 72; 30 C. 394; 39 C. 176; 43 C. 309; 44 C. 477. Omissions and mistakes can be taken advantage of only by those in whose lists they occur. 15 C. 447; 65 C. 456. Agency of a majority of board of assessors necessary to a valid assessment. 18 C. 189. Assessors liable for altering assessment list after lodgment with town clerk. 28 C. 201. Assessment list is not a record. 30 C. 395. Assessors may consult special committee as to valuations, provided they themselves actually determine value. 83 C. 499. Power of assessors to alter lists under section ceases when they are lodged with town clerk. 102 C. 210. List is not best evidence of existence of assessment, but if admitted without objection it may be given such weight as trial court reasonably thinks it deserves. 107 C. 134. Power of assessors exists to alter assessment during lawful period for performance of duties. 108 C. 258. Requirement that assessors be sworn is mandatory; but exact form of oath is merely directory; a substantial compliance is sufficient. 104 C. 583. Legislature may constitutionally validate abstract where assessors were not sworn. Id., 585. Cited. 117 C. 393. Failure to give notices of increase to individual taxpayers does not invalidate the grand list as a whole. 122 C. 228. Cited. Id., 403; 128 C. 649; 136 C. 32. If portion of parcel of land is sold, such portion becomes separate parcel and subsequent valuation of it is an original valuation; therefore no duty to give written notice to owner. 147 C. 262. Since tax assessments are a matter of public record, they are subject to best evidence rule. 171 C. 372. Cited. 179 C. 111; Id., 712; 201 C. 1; 203 C. 425; 210 C. 233; 232 C. 335; 240 C. 422; 241 C. 382. Section cannot be used by taxpayer to compel an interim revaluation of property. 249 C. 63. Sec. 1-217 applies to motor vehicle grand lists promulgated pursuant to section, and grand lists and their component data are subject to redaction in accordance with Sec. 1-217. 301 C. 323. Under 2007 revision, section permits, but does not require, an interim assessment to equalize the grand list, while Sec. 12-53a, revised to 2007, mandates assessment of “completed” new construction within 90 days. 309 C. 85.
Cited. 3 CA 393. Statute authorizes but does not compel municipal tax assessor to conduct interim revaluations of property to achieve a fair and equal assessment for all taxpayers; thus, assessor may increase real property assessment between decennial revaluations when a sale of property in question demonstrates that the property has greatly increased in value in relation to other properties in the municipality. 70 CA 442. Subsec. (b): The imposition of the late filing penalties constitutes an assessment required by law under Subsec. and, as such, it was required to be made by the assessor prior to taking and subscribing the oath upon the grand list; tax assessor improperly added late filing penalties pursuant to Sec. 12-63(b) against property owners 3 months after taking and subscribing to the oath on the grand list. 191 CA 712; judgment affirmed, see 339 C. 157.
Does not limit public inspection to completed grand lists. 32 CS 583. Imposes only an affirmative duty to make completed grand lists available for public inspection and is not inconsistent with Secs. 1-19 and 1-20. Id., 590.
Subsec. (b):
Penalty under Sec. 12-63c(d) is an “assessment… required by law” within the meaning of Subsec., and as Sec. 12-63c(d) contains no express extension of assessor's statutory authority, the deadline for imposing penalties under Sec. 12-63c(d) must be the deadline articulated in Subsec., i.e. imposed before assessor signs grand list for applicable assessment year. 339 C. 157.

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