For What It May Be Worth

As the result of a recent change to the law, Connecticut’s municipal revaluation schedule will be undergoing some significant changes beginning with the October 1, 2024 grand list.  With the passage of Section 7 of Public Act No. 22-74, each of Connecticut’s 169 municipalities will be placed in one of five revaluation zones based on its membership in one of the nine existing regional councils of government (COGs).  A map posted on the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM) website shows that the five new revaluation zones will be as follows:

• Zone 1 – combination of Western and Northwest Hills COGs.  Roughly western Fairfield County and Litchfield County.
• Zone 2 – combination of Metropolitan and South Central COGs.  Roughly eastern Fairfield County and lower New Haven County.
• Zone 3 – non-contiguous Naugatuck Valley and Northeastern COGs.  Roughly upper New Haven County and Windham County.
• Zone 4 – combination of Lower CT River Valley and Southeastern COGs.  Roughly Middlesex and New London Counties.
• Zone 5 – coterminous with the Capital Region COG.  Roughly Hartford and Tolland Counties.

According to information provided by an OPM official, it is currently contemplated that about 20% of the municipalities in each zone will be required to conduct a revaluation in each of the five years beginning on October 1, 2024.  While the new law does not change the basic requirement that municipalities revalue every five years, it is contemplated that some may have revaluation cycles that are a year shorter or longer than five years as the transition is made to the new schedule.  The revaluation schedule being developed pursuant to the new law is currently expected to be posted on the OPM website by the end of July, 2022 (portal.ct.gov/OPM).

The goal of this new requirement is to iron out the peaks and valleys in the current state-wide revaluation schedule so that ultimately about 20% of Connecticut municipalities are revaluing every year.  This will create a steadier stream of work for the companies that assist municipalities with revaluations, helping them to maintain staff from year to year.  It also helps facilitate municipalities within a revaluation zone pursuing multi-town revaluations with the attendant efficiencies and cost savings.  One of the proponents of the new law also suggested that multi-town revaluations will be more accurate due to improved accessibility to a broader amount of market data.