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SB00449 • 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING DIVISION WITHIN THE OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT.

AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING DIVISION WITHIN THE OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT.

Agriculture Children Education Land Taxes
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Planning and Development Committee
Last action
2026-06-04
Official status
Signed by the Governor
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official text mentions revisions to other programs (local capital improvement fund and small town economic assistance) in the summary but does not provide specific details on those changes in the provided excerpts, so they were excluded from the detailed list.

Changes to School Funding Notices, State Land Classification, Child Care Zoning, and Regional Programs

This law changes when school funding amounts are posted online, requires state agencies to identify certain types of land for tax classification purposes, bans zoning rules that treat licensed child care homes differently from regular houses, creates a new regional performance incentive program, and removes an old equipment purchase program.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires the Office of Policy and Management to notify public school operators and post funding amounts online on April 1 instead of March 1 each year.
  • Directs state agencies working with the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management to identify land they own or hold in trust that is used as farm, forest, open space, or maritime heritage land so local assessors can classify it correctly for taxes.
  • Prohibits towns from writing zoning rules that treat licensed family or group child care homes located in residences differently than single-family or multi-family houses.
  • Creates a new regional performance incentive program allowing groups of towns to share services, redistribute grants based on priorities, or share revenue through proposals submitted by them.
  • Removes the law for the intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Public school operators who receive funding allocations
  • State agencies that own or hold land in trust
  • Municipal assessors and zoning officials
  • Regional councils of governments, regional educational service centers, and participating municipalities

Terms To Know

Maritime heritage land
Land defined in state statutes that is preserved for its connection to the history or culture of waterways.
Regional performance incentive program
A new system where groups of towns can propose ways to share services, money, or grants based on regional needs.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law does not specify how much total funding will be available for the new regional performance incentive program.
  • It is unclear which specific state-owned properties will qualify as farm, forest, open space, or maritime heritage land until agencies identify them.

Bill History

  1. 2026-06-04 Connecticut General Assembly

    Signed by the Governor

  2. 2026-05-28 Connecticut General Assembly

    Transmitted to the Secretary of State

  3. 2026-05-28 Connecticut General Assembly

    Transmitted by Secretary of the State to Governor

  4. 2026-05-20 LCO

    Public Act 26-137

  5. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    Transmitted Pursuant To Joint Rule 17

  6. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, House

  7. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    House Calendar Number 578

  8. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    Rules Suspended

  9. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    House Adopted Senate Amendment Schedule A

  10. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    House Passed as Amended by Senate Amendment Schedule A

  11. 2026-05-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    In Concurrence

  12. 2026-05-05 Connecticut General Assembly

    Senate Adopted Senate Amendment Schedule A 4213

  13. 2026-05-05 Connecticut General Assembly

    Senate Passed as Amended by Senate Amendment Schedule A

  14. 2026-03-31 LCO

    Reported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office

  15. 2026-03-31 Connecticut General Assembly

    Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate

  16. 2026-03-31 Connecticut General Assembly

    Senate Calendar Number 195

  17. 2026-03-31 LCO

    File Number 284

  18. 2026-03-24 LCO

    Referred to Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis 03/30/26 5:00 PM

  19. 2026-03-16 LCO

    Filed with Legislative Commissioners' Office

  20. 2026-03-13 PD

    Joint Favorable Substitute

  21. 2026-03-06 Connecticut General Assembly

    Public Hearing 03/11

  22. 2026-03-05 Connecticut General Assembly

    Referred to Joint Committee on Planning and Development

Official Summary Text

To (1) make revisions to statutes relating to the (A) local capital improvement fund, (B) small town economic assistance program, and (C) public school district repair and improvement project program, (2) classify certain property owned or held in trust by the state as farm land, forest land, open space land or maritime heritage land, and (3) repeal statutes (A) relating to the intertown capital equipment purchase incentive program, and (B) prohibiting zoning regulations from treating family child care homes and group child care homes located in a residence in a manner different from single or multifamily dwellings.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
Substitute Senate Bill No. 449

Public Act No. 26-137

AN ACT CONCERNING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE
INTERGOVERNMENTAL POLICY AND PLANNING DIVISION
WITHIN THE OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (d) of section 10-265u of the 2026 supplement to
the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
(d) On [March] April first of each year, the Secretary of the Office of
Policy and Management shall notify each public school operator of the
amount allocated to such public school operator pursuant to subsections
(b) and (c) of this section and shall post on said office's Internet web site
such allocation amounts and the calculations for all public school
operators.
Sec. 2. (NEW) ( Effective from passage and applicable to assessment years
commencing on or after October 1, 2026 ) (a) Notwithstanding the
provisions of sections 12-107a to 12-107e, inclusive, 12-107g, 12-504e and
12-504f of the general statutes, any special act, municipal charter or
ordinance, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management shall
collaborate wi th each state agency having custody or control of real
property belonging to or held in trust for the state, to identify all such
Substitute Senate Bill No. 449

Public Act No. 26-137 2 of 4

real property that is farm land, forest land, open space land or maritime
heritage land, as those terms are defined in section 12 -107b of the
general statutes. Upon making any such identification, the secretary
shall notify the assessor of the municipality in which such land is
located, in whole or in part, that such land has been identified as farm
land, forest land, open space land or maritime heritage land, as
applicable. The secretary shall make such notification not earlier than
thirty days before or l ater than thirty days after the assessment date in
any year, except that in a year in which a revaluation is required
pursuant to section 12-62 of the general statutes, such notification may
be made not later than ninety days after such assessment date. Up on
receipt of such notification, the assessor shall (1) classify such property
accordingly, (2) value such property in accordance with the schedules
of unit prices developed pursuant to section 12 -2b of the general
statutes, and (3) add such property to the grand list of the municipality
in the manner described in section 12-109 of the general statutes.
(b) Any classification of property as farm land, forest land, open
space land or maritime heritage land pursuant to this section shall be
deemed personal to the state and shall not run with the land. Any such
property that has been so classified shall rema in so classified without
additional notification to the municipal assessor until (1) the use of such
property is changed to a use other than that identified by the secretary
pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, or (2) such property is sold or
transferred.
Sec. 3. Section 8 -3j of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
[(a)] No zoning regulation shall treat any family child care home or
group child care home, located in a residence and licensed by the Office
of Early Childhood pursuant to chapter 368a, in a manner different from
single or multifamily dwellings.
Substitute Senate Bill No. 449

Public Act No. 26-137 3 of 4

[(b) Not later than December 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, each
municipality shall submit to the Office of Policy and Management a
sworn statement from the chief executive officer of the municipality
stating (1) that the municipality's zoning ordinances are in compliance
with (A) subsection (a) of this section, and (B) the provisions of
subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of section 8 -2, or (2) the specific time
frame within which the municipality will bring its zoning ordinances
into compliance with subsection (a) of this section and subsection (d) of
section 8-2.]
Sec. 4. Subsection (b) of section 4 -124s of the 2026 supplement to the
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu
thereof (Effective October 1, 2026):
(b) There is established a regional performance incentive program
that shall be administered by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and
Management. Any regional council of governments, regional
educational service center or a combination thereof may submit a
proposal to the secretary for: (1) The provision of any service that two
or more participating municipalities of such council or local or regional
board of education of such regional educational service center may
provide on a regional and ongoing basis, (2) the redistribution of grants
awarded pursuant to sections 4 -66g, 4 -66h [, 4 -66m] and 7 -536,
according to regional priorities, or (3) regional revenue sharing among
such participating municipalities pursuant to section 7-148bb. A copy of
said proposal shall be sent to the legislators representing said
participating municipalities or loc al or regional boards of education.
Any regional educational service center serving a population greater
than one hundred thousand may submit a proposal to the secreta ry for
a regional special education initiative.
Sec. 5. Section 4 -66m of the general statutes is repealed. ( Effective
October 1, 2026)
Substitute Senate Bill No. 449

Public Act No. 26-137 4 of 4