Sec. 12-53. Addition of omitted property. Audits. Penalty.
Sec. 12-53. Addition of omitted property. Audits. Penalty. (a) For purposes of
this section: (1) "Omitted property" means property for which complete information is
not included in the declaration required to be filed by law with respect to either the total
number and type of all items subject to taxation or the true original cost and year acquired
of all such items, (2) "books", "papers", "documents" and "other records" includes, but
is not limited to, federal tax forms relating to the acquisition and cost of fixed assets,
general ledgers, balance sheets, disbursement ledgers, fixed asset and depreciation
schedules, financial statements, invoices, operating expense reports, capital and operating leases, conditional sales agreements and building or leasehold ledgers, and (3)
"designee of an assessor" means a Connecticut municipal assessor certified in accordance with subsection (b) of section 12-40a, a certified public accountant, a revaluation
company certified in accordance with section 12-2c for the valuation of personal property, or an individual certified as a revaluation company employee in accordance with
section 12-2b for the valuation of personal property.
(b) During the period prescribed by law for the completion of their duties the assessor or board of assessors of each town shall add to the declaration of each taxpayer any
taxable property which they have reason to believe is owned by such taxpayer and has
been omitted from such declaration. The property so added shall be assessed at the
percentage of the actual valuation thereof, as determined by the assessor or board of
assessors in accordance with the provisions of sections 12-63 and 12-71, from the best
information the assessor or board of assessors can obtain, and twenty-five per cent of
the assessment of such omitted property shall be added thereto. The assessor or board
of assessors shall notify such person, in accordance with section 12-55, of any such
increase in the assessed valuation.
(c) (1) The assessor or board of assessors may perform an audit or require a designee
of the assessor to perform an audit of any personal property required to be declared
pursuant to section 12-40 or section 12-43. The assessor shall give notice in writing to
the owner, custodian or other person having knowledge of any such property or the
valuation thereof, of the time and place of such audit with respect to such property. Such
notice shall be placed in the hands of such person or left at such person's usual place
of residence or business or shall be sent to such person by registered or certified mail
at the last-known place of residence or business not later than three years following the
assessment date for which such declaration was required to be filed. Such notice shall
direct the person named therein to appear before the assessor or board of assessors, or
before a designee of said assessor, with books of account, papers, documents and other
records for examination under oath relative to any such property or the valuation thereof.
The methodologies used to determine the value of such property during such audit shall
remain consistent with the methodologies requested by the assessor to determine the
value of such property for the grand list year to which such audit or audits relate.
(2) All taxable property, discovered during such audit and not declared by the owner
as required by law, shall be added to the owner's declaration by such assessor or board
of assessors at the percentage of its actual valuation, as determined by the assessor or
board of assessors in accordance with the provisions of sections 12-63 and 12-71, and
twenty-five per cent of such assessment shall be added thereto. If personal property is
discovered during such audit to have been omitted, as defined in subsection (a) of this
section, by the taxpayer, the difference between the value originally determined by the
assessor and that determined as a result of the audit, shall be added to the taxpayer's
declaration by the assessor at the percentage of its actual valuation pursuant to sections
12-63 and 12-71, plus twenty-five per cent of the assessment of such omitted property.
(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 12-57 and 12-129, if any property
is discovered during such audit to be listed in error by the owner, it shall be removed
from such owner's declaration by the assessor or board of assessors.
(4) No person shall be excused from giving testimony or producing books of account, papers, documents and other records on the ground that such testimony and such
production of documents will tend to incriminate such person, but such testimony and
such production of documentary evidence shall not be used in any criminal proceeding
against such person. Any person who fails to appear at the time and place of such audit
as designated in such notice, or, having appeared, refuses to answer any pertinent question or who fails to produce the books, papers or other documents mentioned in such
notice, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than
thirty days or both. All property which the assessor or board of assessors believes should
have been declared for taxation and was not declared and concerning which sufficient
information cannot be obtained by them at such hearing, or any adjournment thereof,
shall be added to the list at such percentage of the actual valuation thereof from the best
information obtainable by the assessor or board of assessors and twenty-five per cent
shall be added to such assessment.
(d) If the assessor or board of assessors of any town adds property to the declaration
of any person or makes out a declaration for any person not filing a declaration or
increases or decreases the valuation of any taxable property under the provisions of
subsection (c) of this section, they shall, within thirty days of the completion of an audit
under said subsection (c), give such person notice in writing by mailing the same, postage
prepaid, to such person's last-known address and the same shall be held to be sufficient.
Such notice shall include, but not be limited to, an accounting of the additions or deletions
segregated by the categories of personal property on the declaration used by personal
property owners in said town, a revised copy of the declaration reflecting the changes
determined at such audit and information describing the manner in which an appeal may
be filed with the board of assessment appeals.
(e) Any person claiming to be aggrieved by the action of the assessor or board of
assessors under this section may appeal the doings of the assessor or board of assessors
to the board of assessment appeals and the Superior Court as otherwise provided in this
chapter, provided such appeal shall be extended in time to the next succeeding board
of assessment appeals if the statutory period for the meeting of such board has passed.
Any person intending to so appeal to the board of assessment appeals may indicate that
taxes paid by such person for any additional assessment added in accordance with this
section, during the pendency of such appeal, are paid "under protest" and thereupon
such person shall not be liable for any interest on the taxes based upon such additional
assessment, provided (1) such person shall have paid not less than seventy-five per cent
of the amount of the taxes resulting from such additional assessment within the time
specified and (2) the board of assessment appeals reduces the valuation of property or
removes items of property from the list of such person so that there is no tax liability
related to such additional assessment.
(f) Upon receipt of notice from the assessor or board of assessors of the addition of
property to the declaration of any owner, or an increase in the assessment of any property
included in such owner's declaration, the tax collector of the town shall, if such notice
is received after the normal billing date, not later than thirty days thereafter mail or hand
a bill to such owner based upon the addition of property to said owner's declaration or
the increase in the assessment of any property that had been included in such owner's
declaration added by the assessor or board of assessors. Such tax shall be due and payable
and collectible as other municipal taxes and subject to the same liens and processes of
collection, except that (1) such tax for the current fiscal year shall be due and payable
in an initial or single installment due and payable not sooner than thirty days after the date
such bill is mailed or handed to such owner and in any remaining, regular installments as
the same are due and payable, and the several installments of the tax so due and payable,
shall be equal, and (2) such tax for any prior fiscal year shall be payable not sooner than
thirty days after the date such bill is mailed or delivered to such owner and shall include
interest from the date or dates such tax for the corresponding grand list would have
been due.
(1949 Rev., S. 1730; June, 1955, S. 1043d; 1957, P.A. 673, S. 4, 5; 1963, P.A. 490, S. 8; P.A. 84-477, S. 1, 2; P.A. 86-84, S. 1, 2; P.A. 87-245, S. 4, 10; 87-589, S. 3, 87; P.A. 95-283, S. 33, 68; P.A. 99-189, S. 5, 20; P.A. 00-230, S. 1.)
History: 1963 act added reference to Sec. 12-63 in Subsec. (a); P.A. 84-477 changed notice requirement from date
prescribed by law for completion of assessors' duties to at least ten days prior to the end of the assessment year, included
a provision for the removal of property listed in error and added Subsecs. (d) and (e) re appeal and payment of taxes on
property added to list after normal billing date, effective June 8, 1984, and applicable in any town for the assessment year
commencing October 1, 1984, and each assessment year thereafter; P.A. 86-84 amended Subsec. (a) to require notification
in the event of an increase in assessed valuation, Subsec. (b) by adding time within which assessor must give notice of any
addition to the property tax list of any person and Subsec. (c) requiring notice of the hearing concerning changes by the
assessor in the list of any person, added Subsec. (d)(2) requiring that property added to the list of any person be removed
by the board of tax review if such person is to avoid liability for interest on additions to the list and amended Subsec. (e)
concerning interest applicable to the tax on property added to the list of any person as provided under said Subsec. (e),
effective May 6, 1986, and applicable to the assessment year commencing October 1, 1986, and each assessment year
thereafter; P.A. 87-245 amended Subsecs. (a) and (b) to increase 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. 87-589 made technical
change in Subsec. (b); P.A. 95-283 amended Subsec. (d) to replace board of tax review with board of assessment appeals,
effective July 6, 1995; P.A. 99-189 added definitions of "omitted property", "books, papers, documents and other records"
and "designee of an assessor", replaced authority to conduct hearings with authority for audits, listed who can perform
audits, required auditors to use same methodologies as the assessor used for the property being audited, clarified application
of penalty after audit, required notification of the taxpayer of audit results detailing all pre and post audit changes and
advising the taxpayer of right to appeal and made technical changes, effective June 23, 1999, and applicable to assessment
years of municipalities commencing on or after October 1, 1999; P.A. 00-230 made technical changes in Subsec. (f).
Particularity requisite in describing property added. 43 C. 309. Placing personal property on list by nonresident does
not authorize assessors to add other personal property. 47 C. 477. Failure of notice waived by appeal to board of relief. 73
C. 299; 85 C. 7. List made out "same as last year" and completed by assessors considered. 76 C. 171. Applies only to
property added by assessors to list; does not apply where valuation of property listed is increased. 103 C. 154. Upon failure
of taxpayer to file list of taxable property, assessors are only required to act upon best information available and taxpayer
cannot complain of "good faith" error in their judgment. 146 C. 165. Cited. 147 C. 308. Cited. 212 C. 639. Cited. 240 C.
192; Id., 422; Id., 469; Id., 475. Cited. 242 C. 727.
Reduction of value of software loaded on computer not an omission from tax declaration on which a penalty may be
imposed. 51 CA 508.
Subsec. (b):
Assessor has authority under this section to revalue previously assessed personal property. 240 C. 469.