Bill Text: CT HB05154 | 2012 | General Assembly | Comm Sub
Bill Title: An Act Concerning Planning Regions.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-05-04 - File Number 632 [HB05154 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2012-HB05154-Comm_Sub.html
General Assembly |
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February Session, 2012 |
*_____HB05154PD____032612____* |
AN ACT CONCERNING PLANNING REGIONS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 16a-4c of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):
(a) On or before January 1, [2012] 2014, and at least every twenty years thereafter, the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management, within available appropriations, and in consultation with the chairpersons and ranking members of the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to planning and development, the Connecticut Association of Regional Planning Organizations, the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities and the Connecticut Council of Small Towns, shall conduct an analysis of the boundaries of logical planning regions designated or redesignated under section 16a-4a. As part of such analysis, the secretary shall examine the boundaries of existing planning regions and develop criteria to evaluate [the impact of] opportunities for coordinated planning and the regional delivery of services among urban centers [on] and neighboring towns with a goal of reducing the number of planning regions to not more than eight. Such criteria shall include, but not be limited to, criteria to (1) evaluate trends in economic development and the environment, including trends in housing patterns, demographics, employment levels, commuting patterns for the most common job classifications in the state, traffic patterns on major [roadways] transportation assets, and local perceptions of social and historic ties; and (2) establish a minimum size for logical planning areas that takes into consideration the number of municipalities, total population, [and the] total square mileage, and any applicable federal requirements.
(b) Any two or more contiguous planning regions that contain a total of fourteen or more municipalities and voluntarily consolidate to form a single regional council of governments or regional council of elected officials shall be exempt from redesignation pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, provided the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management formally redesignates such planning regions prior to January 1, 2014. The secretary may, in his or her discretion, waive the requirement that such redesignated planning region contain a total of fourteen or more municipalities.
[(b)] (c) (1) The secretary shall, not later than January 1, [2012] 2014, notify the chief executive officer of each municipality located in a planning region in which the boundaries are proposed for redesignation. If the legislative body of the municipality objects to such proposed redesignation, the chief executive officer of the municipality may, not later than thirty days after the date of receipt of the notice of redesignation, petition the secretary to attend a meeting of such legislative body. The petition shall specify the location, date and time of the meeting. The meeting shall be held not later than [forty-five] sixty days after the date of the petition. The secretary shall make a reasonable attempt to appear at the meeting, or at a meeting on another date within the [forty-five-day] sixty-day period. If the secretary is unable to attend a meeting within the [forty-five-day] sixty-day period, the secretary and the chief executive officer of the municipality shall jointly schedule a date and time for the meeting, provided such meeting shall be held not later than [one hundred twenty] two hundred ten days after the date of the notice to the chief executive officer. At such meeting, the legislative body of the municipality shall inform the secretary of the objections to the proposed redesignation of the planning area boundaries. The secretary shall consider fully the oral and written objections of the legislative body and may redesignate the boundaries. Not later than [forty-five] sixty days after the date of the meeting, the secretary shall notify the chief executive officer of the determination concerning the proposed redesignation. The notice of determination shall include the reasons for such determination. As used in this subsection, "municipality" means a town, city or consolidated town and borough; "legislative body" means the board of selectmen, town council, city council, board of alderman, board of directors, board of representatives or board of the [major] warden and burgesses of a municipality; and "secretary" means the [secretary] Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management or the designee of the secretary.
(2) Any revision to the boundaries of a planning area, based on the analysis completed pursuant to subsection (a) of this section or due to a modification by the secretary in accordance with this subsection, shall be effective on [the first day of July following the date of completion such analysis or modification] January 1, 2015.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
from passage |
16a-4c |
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
Subsection (b) was rephrased for clarity and accuracy and, in subsection (c)(1), "major" was bracketed and "warden" was inserted in lieu thereof for accuracy.
PD |
Joint Favorable Subst. |