AN ACT CONCERNING THE POWERS OF MUNICIPALITIES AND REGIONAL COUNCILS OF GOVERNMENTS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 4-124s of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):

(a) For purposes of this section:

(1) "Regional council of governments" means any such council organized under the provisions of sections 4-124i to 4-124p, inclusive;

(2) "Municipality" means a town, city or consolidated town and borough;

(3) "Legislative body" means the board of selectmen, town council, city council, board of alderman, board of directors, board of representatives or board of the warden and burgesses of a municipality;

(4) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management or the designee of the secretary; and

(5) "Regional educational service center" has the same meaning as provided in section 10-282.

(b) There is established a regional performance incentive program that shall be administered by the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management. On or before December 31, 2011, and annually thereafter, any regional council of governments [, any two or more municipalities acting through a regional council of governments, any economic development district, any regional educational service center or any combination thereof] may submit a proposal to the secretary for: (1) The joint provision of any service that one or more participating municipalities of such council [, educational service center or agency] currently [provide] provides but which is not provided on a regional basis, (2) a planning study regarding the joint provision of any service on a regional basis, or (3) shared information technology services. A copy of said proposal shall be sent to the legislators representing said participating municipalities. [Any local or regional board of education or regional educational service center serving a population greater than one hundred thousand may submit a proposal to the secretary for a regional special education initiative.]

(c) (1) A regional council of governments [, an economic development district, a regional educational service center or a local or regional board of education] shall submit [each] its proposal in the form and manner the secretary prescribes and shall, at a minimum, provide the following information for each proposal: (A) Service or initiative description; (B) the explanation of the need for such service or initiative; (C) the method of delivering such service or initiative on a regional basis; (D) the organization that would be responsible for regional service or initiative delivery; (E) a description of the population that would be served; (F) the manner in which regional service or initiative delivery will achieve economies of scale; (G) the amount by which [participating municipalities] members of the regional council of governments will reduce their mill rates as a result of savings realized; (H) a cost benefit analysis for the provision of the service or initiative [by each participating municipality and by the entity or board of education submitting the proposal] for each member of the regional council of governments; (I) a plan of implementation for delivery of the service or initiative on a regional basis; (J) a resolution endorsing such proposal approved by the [legislative body of each participating municipality] representatives of the members of the regional council of governments; and (K) an explanation of the potential legal obstacles, if any, to the regional provision of the service or initiative.

(2) The secretary shall review each proposal and shall award grants for proposals the secretary determines best meet the requirements of this section. In awarding such grants, the secretary shall give priority to a proposal [submitted by (A) any entity specified in subsection (a) of this section] that includes participation of all of the [member municipalities of such entity] members of a regional council of governments, and which may increase the purchasing power of [participating municipalities] such members or provide a cost savings initiative resulting in a decrease in expenses of such [municipalities] members, allowing such [municipalities] members to lower property taxes. [, (B) any economic development district, and (C) any local or regional board of education.]

(d) On or before December 31, 2013, and annually thereafter until December 31, 2018, in addition to any proposal submitted pursuant to this section, any [municipality or] regional council of governments may apply to the secretary for a grant to fund: (1) Operating costs associated with connecting to the state-wide high speed, flexible network developed pursuant to section 4d-80, including the costs to connect at the same rate as other government entities served by such network; and (2) capital cost associated with connecting to such network, including expenses associated with building out the internal fiber network connections required to connect to such network, provided the secretary shall make any such grant available in accordance with the two-year schedule by which the Bureau of Enterprise Systems and Technology recommends connecting each [municipality and] regional council of governments to such network. Any [municipality or] regional council of governments shall submit each application in the form and manner the secretary prescribes.

(e) The secretary shall submit to the Governor and the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to finance, revenue and bonding a report on the grants provided pursuant to this section. Each such report shall include information on the amount of each grant, and the potential of each grant for leveraging other public and private investments. The secretary shall submit a report for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2011, not later than February 1, 2012, and shall submit a report for each subsequent fiscal year not later than the first day of March in such fiscal year. Such reports shall include the property tax reductions achieved by means of the program established pursuant to this section.

Sec. 2. Section 7-131v of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):

(a) Any municipality may, by vote of its legislative body or, in a municipality where the legislative body is a town meeting, by vote of the board of selectmen, establish a local agricultural council to: (1) Provide information to local farmers and to municipal boards and commissions about the benefits of a balance between agriculture and other land uses; (2) educate municipal officials about agricultural laws and safety issues; (3) identify grant sources for farmers and municipalities; (4) enable a common understanding of agriculture among all municipal departments; (5) provide information and guidance about zoning issues relating to agriculture; (6) support local, regional and state vocational agricultural programs concerning agricultural matters; (7) provide conflict resolution and advisory services; (8) identify innovative opportunities for agriculture; and (9) create a climate that supports the economic viability of agriculture in the municipality.

(b) Any two [or more] municipalities may form a [regional] local agricultural council for the purposes set forth in subsection (a) of this section by vote of the legislative body or, in a municipality where the legislative body is a town meeting, by vote of the board of selectmen, of each municipality.

(c) Any two regional councils of governments may form a regional agricultural council for the purposes set forth in subsection (a) of this section by a vote of each regional council of governments.

Sec. 3. Section 7-137 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):

Any two or more towns, cities or boroughs having economic development commissions may, by ordinance adopted by each of them, join in the formation of a regional economic development commission, provided at least one municipality joining such regional economic commission shall have a population of at least seventy-five thousand. The area of jurisdiction of the regional commission shall be coterminous with the area of the municipalities so joining. Any municipality which has joined in the formation of a regional commission may thereafter withdraw by the adoption of an ordinance to that effect. The economic development commissions of the municipalities comprising the regional commission shall jointly determine the membership of the regional commission. A regional commission shall have the same duties and authority, in respect to its area of jurisdiction, as a municipal commission has in respect to the municipality. Each municipality may annually appropriate to a regional commission a sum which, in addition to any amount appropriated to its municipal commission, will not exceed one-twentieth of one per cent of its last-completed grand list of taxable property.

Sec. 4. Section 7-148h of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):

(a) Any town, city, district, as defined in section 7-324, or borough may, by charter provision or ordinance, and any regional council of governments may, by vote of the representatives of its members, as defined in section 4-124i, establish a board, commission, council, committee or other agency to investigate allegations of unethical conduct, corrupting influence or illegal activities levied against any official, officer or employee of such town, city, district, [or] borough or member. The provisions of subsections (a) to (e), inclusive, of section 1-82a shall apply to allegations before any such agency of such conduct, influence or activities, to an investigation of such allegations conducted prior to a probable cause finding, and to a finding of probable cause or no probable cause. Any board, commission, council, committee or other agency established pursuant to this section may issue subpoenas or subpoenas duces tecum, enforceable upon application to the Superior Court, to compel the attendance of persons at hearings and the production of books, documents, records and papers.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of any special act, municipal charter or ordinance to the contrary, an elected official of any town, city, district, [or] borough or member of a regional council of governments that has established a board, commission, council, committee or other agency under subsection (a) of this section, has an interest that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of the official's duties or employment in the public interest and of the official's responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of this state, if the official has reason to believe or expect that the official, the official's spouse or dependent child, or a business with which he or she is associated, as defined in section 1-79, will derive a direct monetary gain or suffer a direct monetary loss, as the case may be, by reason of the official's official activity. Any such elected official does not have an interest that is in substantial conflict with the proper discharge of the official's duties in the public interest and of the official's responsibilities as prescribed by the laws of this state, if any benefit or detriment accrues to the official, the official's spouse or dependent child, or a business with which he or she, his or her spouse or such dependent child is associated as a member of a profession, occupation or group to no greater extent than to any other member of such profession, occupation or group. Any such elected official who has a substantial conflict may not take official action on the matter.

Sec. 5. Section 7-148s of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):

Any municipality or regional council of governments may, by ordinance or vote of the representatives of its members, impose a reasonable fee for the use of [its] such municipality's or regional council of governments' geographic information system.

Sec. 6. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2017) (a) Any regional council of governments may establish a revenue sharing agreement with one or more regional councils of governments.

(b) A majority of members of a regional council of governments may, by vote of the representatives of such members, establish a regional revenue enhancement agreement.

Statement of Purpose:

To limit the availability of regional performance incentive program grants to regional councils of governments, permit municipalities to form local agricultural councils, establish certain requirements for cooperative economic development commissions and grant certain powers to regional councils of governments.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]

H.B. 6920