Sec. 7-131g. Grant: Amount, purposes, valuation of land. Issuance of bonds.
Sec. 7-131d. Protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program: Purposes; criteria; conditions. Charter Oak open space grant program: Criteria; conditions. (a) There is established the protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program. The program shall provide grants to municipalities and nonprofit land conservation organizations to acquire land or permanent interests in land for open space and watershed protection and to water companies, as defined in section 25-32a, to acquire and protect land which is eligible to be classified as class I or class II land, as defined in section 25-37c, after acquisition. All lands or interests in land acquired under this program shall be preserved in perpetuity predominantly in their natural scenic and open condition for the protection of natural resources while allowing for recreation consistent with such protection and, for lands acquired by water companies, allowing for the improvements necessary for the protection or provision of potable water.
(b) Grants may be made under the protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program established under subsection (a) of this section or under the Charter Oak open space grant program established under section 7-131t to match funds for the purchase of land or permanent interests in land which purchase meets one of the following criteria: (1) Protects land identified as being especially valuable for recreation, forestry, fishing, conservation of wildlife or natural resources; (2) protects land which includes or contributes to a prime natural feature of the state's landscape, including, but not limited to, a shoreline, a river, its tributaries and watershed, an aquifer, mountainous territory, ridgelines, an inland or coastal wetland, a significant littoral or estuarine or aquatic site or other important geological feature; (3) protects habitat for native plant or animal species listed as threatened or endangered or of special concern, as defined in section 26-304; (4) protects a relatively undisturbed outstanding example of a native ecological community which is now uncommon; (5) enhances and conserves water quality of the state's lakes, rivers and coastal water; (6) preserves local agricultural heritage; or (7) in the case of grants to water companies, protects land which is eligible to be classified as class I land or class II land after acquisition. The commissioner may make a grant under the protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program to a distressed municipality or a targeted investment community, as defined in section 32-9p, for restoration or protection of natural features or habitats on open space already owned by the municipality, including, but not limited to, wetland or wildlife or plant habitat restoration or restoration of other sites to a more natural condition, or replacement of vegetation, provided the total amount of grants to such municipalities for such purposes may not exceed twenty per cent of the total amount of grants made in any fiscal year.
(c) No grant may be made under the protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program established under subsection (a) of this section or under the Charter Oak open space grant program established under section 7-131t for: (1) Land to be used for commercial purposes or for recreational purposes requiring intensive development, including, but not limited to, golf courses, driving ranges, tennis courts, ballfields, swimming pools and uses by motorized vehicles other than vehicles needed by water companies to carry out their purposes, provided trails or pathways for pedestrians, motorized wheelchairs or nonmotorized vehicles shall not be considered intensive development; (2) land with environmental contamination over a significant portion of the property provided grants for land requiring remediation of environmental contamination may be made if remediation will be completed before acquisition of the land or any interest in the land and an environmental assessment approved by the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection has been completed and no environmental use restriction applies to the land; (3) land which has already been committed for public use, except as provided in subsection (c) of section 7-131g; (4) development costs, including, but not limited to, construction of ballfields, tennis courts, parking lots or roadways; (5) land to be acquired by eminent domain; or (6) reimbursement of in-kind services or incidental expenses associated with the acquisition of land. This subsection shall not prohibit the continuation of agricultural activity, the activities of a water company for public water supply purposes or the selling of timber incidental to management of the land which management is in accordance with approved forest management practices provided any proceeds of such timber sales shall be used for management of the land. In the case of land acquired under this section which is designated as a state park, any fees charged by the state for use of such land shall be used by the state in accordance with the provisions of title 23.
(d) Any municipality or group of contiguous municipalities may apply to the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection for a grant-in-aid of a program established to preserve or restrict to conservation or recreation purposes the use of open space land. Such grant shall be used for the acquisition of land, or easements, interests or rights therein, or for the development of such land, or easements, interests or rights therein, for purposes set forth in this section, or both, in accordance with a plan of development adopted by the municipal planning commission of the municipality within which the land is located. Any application for a grant-in-aid relating to land located beyond the territorial limits of the applying municipality shall be subject to approval of the legislative body of the municipality within whose territorial limits the land is located. A municipality applying for aid under this section, may designate its conservation commission as its agent to make such application.
(e) At closing, a permanent conservation easement, as defined in section 47-42, shall be executed for any property purchased with grant funds, which conservation easement shall provide that the property shall remain forever predominantly in its natural and open condition for the specific conservation, open space or water supply purposes for which it was acquired provided any improvements or changes to the property shall be supportive of such condition or purposes. The permanent conservation easement shall be in favor of the state acting through the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection, or his designee, which may be a municipality or a land conservation organization. In the case of land acquired for water supply protection, a water company may hold an easement in conjunction with the state or a nonprofit entity to protect the water supply. Such permanent conservation easement shall also include a requirement that the property be made available to the general public for appropriate recreational purposes, the maintenance of which recreational access shall be the responsibility of the grantee provided such access shall not be required for land which will be classified as class I or class II land by a water company if such access is inconsistent with the provision of pure drinking water to the public. An exception to the provision of public recreational access may be made at the discretion of the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection when provision for public access would be unreasonably detrimental to the wildlife or plant habitat or other natural features of the property or, for land where development rights have been purchased, would be disruptive of agricultural activity occurring on the land. Any instrument conveying an interest in land less than fee which interest is purchased under this section shall provide for the permanent preservation of the land and public access consistent with the land's use or protection and with any restrictions prescribed by the Department of Public Health in order to protect a public drinking water source.
(1963, P.A. 649, S. 2; February, 1965, P.A. 367, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 842, S. 2; 872, S. 404; P.A. 78-359, S. 1, 8; P.A. 98-157, S. 3, 15; P.A. 00-203, S. 3, 11; P.A. 01-195, S. 106, 181; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3, S. 468; P.A. 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 23-196, S. 11.)
History: 1965 act added requirement that grant-in-aid application concerning land beyond municipality's territory be approved by municipality where land lies and specified plan of development be in accordance with plan adopted by planning commission of municipality within which land is located, deleting restriction that municipalities may apply only for grant involving the use of land in their own towns; 1971 acts included improvement of land, easements, etc. for purposes of Sec. 7-131c in uses of grants and substituted commissioner of environmental protection for council on agriculture and natural resources; P.A. 78-359 substituted use of grants for “development” rather than “improvement” of land, easements, etc; P.A. 98-157 added new provisions as Subsecs. (a) to (c), inclusive, and (e) re the protected open space and watershed land acquisition grant program and designated existing provisions as Subsec. (d), effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 00-203 amended Subsec. (b) by applying certain provisions to charter oak open space grant program and amended Subsec. (c) by applying provisions to charter oak open space grant program and adding exception in Subdiv. (1) for vehicles used by water companies and for motorized wheelchairs, effective July 1, 2000; P.A. 01-195 deleted “account” following “the charter oak open space grant program” in Subsecs. (b) and (c), effective July 11, 2001; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3 amended Subsec. (c) by deleting reference to Sec. 22a-27h; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Commissioner of Environmental Protection” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection”, effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 23-196 amended Subsec. (c) to add exception as provided in Subsec. (c) of Sec. 7-131g, effective June 29, 2023.
| (Return to Chapter Table of Contents) |
(Return to List of Chapters) |
(Return to List of Titles) |
Sec. 7-131g. Grant: Amount, purposes, valuation of land. Issuance of bonds. (a) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection may make grants under the open space and watershed land acquisition program to: (1) Municipalities for acquisition of land for open space under subdivisions (1) to (6), inclusive, of subsection (b) of section 7-131d in an amount not to exceed sixty-five per cent of the fair market value of a parcel of land or interest in land proposed to be acquired; (2) municipalities for acquisition of land for class I and class II water supply protection under subdivision (5) of subsection (b) of said section 7-131d, in an amount not to exceed sixty-five per cent of such value; (3) nonprofit land conservation organizations for acquisition of land for open space or watershed protection under subdivisions (1) to (6), inclusive, of subsection (b) of said section 7-131d, in an amount not to exceed sixty-five per cent of such value; (4) water companies for acquisition of land under subdivision (7) of subsection (b) of said section 7-131d, in an amount not to exceed sixty-five per cent of such value provided if such a company proposes in a grant application that it intends to allow access to such land for recreational uses, such company shall seek approval of the Commissioner of Public Health for such access; and (5) distressed municipalities or targeted investment communities, as defined in section 32-9p, or, with the approval of the chief elected official or governing legislative body of such a municipality or community, to a nonprofit land conservation organization or water company, for acquisition of land within that municipality or community, for open space under subdivisions (1) to (6), inclusive, of subsection (b) of said section 7-131d, in an amount not to exceed seventy-five per cent of such value or for performance of work in the restoration, enhancement or protection of resources in an amount not to exceed fifty per cent of the cost of such work. Applicants for grants under the program shall provide a copy of the application to the chairperson of the review board established under section 7-131e. The board shall provide comments to the commissioner on pending applications as it deems necessary.
(b) For purposes of this subsection, the fair market value of land or interest in land shall be determined by one or more appraisals satisfactory to the commissioner and shall not include incidental costs, including, but not limited to, surveying, development or closing costs. The commissioner may consider a portion of the fair market value of a donation of land by an entity receiving a grant as a portion of the matching funds required under this subsection. A grantee may use funds made available by the state, pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, and the federal government to fund not more than ninety per cent of the fair market value of any project funded under the program, except the commissioner may authorize a grantee to use such state funds provided pursuant to subsection (a) of this section and any funds made available by the federal government to fund one hundred per cent of the fair market value of any project funded under said program if the commissioner determines that any of the following conditions exist: (1) The grantee committed or expended significant resources, including, but not limited to, payment of such incidental costs, toward the acquisition and preservation in perpetuity of such land; (2) that the grantee committed or expended significant resources for the care, maintenance or preservation of such land that was consistent with the intent of the open space and watershed land acquisition program, as described in section 7-131d; (3) that such project will provide a significant recreational opportunity or natural resource protection for the state and is consistent with: (A) The criteria of subsections (b) and (c) of section 7-131d; (B) the additional considerations set forth in subsection (a) of section 7-131e; and (C) any written guidelines developed by the commissioner pursuant to said subsection; or (4) that such project is located in an area of the state with a limited amount of land available for such recreational opportunity or natural resource protection and is consistent with: (A) The criteria of subsections (b) and (c) of section 7-131d; (B) the additional considerations set forth in subsection (a) of section 7-131e, except equitable geographic distribution of such grants; and (C) any written guidelines developed by the commissioner pursuant to said subsection.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (3) of subsection (c) of section 7-131d, any land that is the subject of the execution or recording of a conservation easement or restriction that resulted from a federally funded land conservation program, municipal conservation grant program or a private conservation grant program, prior to the recording of a permanent conservation easement described in subsection (e) of section 7-131d, shall not be construed to constitute land that has already been committed for public use, provided:
(1) Such prior conservation easement or restriction is executed after the execution of the grant agreement for a grant to preserve such land under the provisions of this section, (2) at the time of the recording of the permanent conservation easement required pursuant to subsection (e) of section 7-131d, any nonfederal holder of any such prior easement subordinates such holder's interests in the land to the interests of the state, (3) such other federal funds, municipal grant funds or private grant funds are used as matching funds for a grant issued under this section, and (4) the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection determines, based on all pertinent circumstances, that the conveyance of such other conservation easement or restriction, in combination with the acquisition of the state's interest under this section, constitutes one concurrent acquisition of property or interests therein.
(d) To the extent there is a balance of bonds authorized but not allocated by the State Bond Commission on or after July 1, 1998, pursuant to any bond act for the purposes of (1) the recreation and natural heritage trust program established under sections 23-73 to 23-79, inclusive, and (2) the municipal open space grant program established under sections 7-131c to 7-131g, inclusive, the State Bond Commission shall authorize the issuance of such balance only for the purposes described in section 23-74 and sections 23-75 and 7-131d and in two substantially equal installments one in each half of the fiscal year commencing with the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999.
(1963, P.A. 649, S. 3; 1967, P.A. 739, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 190, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 63, S. 1; 872, S. 407; 1972, P.A. 21, S. 1; P.A. 78-359, S. 2, 8; P.A. 79-607, S. 8; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-33, S. 14, 17; P.A. 92-206, S. 2; P.A. 98-157, S. 5, 15; P.A. 01-204, S. 9, 29; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9, S. 73, 131; P.A. 07-131, S. 2; P.A. 08-124, S. 1, 38; P.A. 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 15-23, S. 1; P.A. 23-196, S. 10.)
History: 1967 act amended Subsec. (a) to differentiate between cases where federal grants made and where not made and required that land cost be determined by state-obtained appraisals in Subsec. (b); 1969 act added Subsec. (c) re applications prior to January 1, 1968; 1971 acts amended Subsec. (b) to allow state to make appraisals and substituted commissioner of environmental protection for council on agriculture and natural resources; 1972 act amended Subsec. (b) by specifying “one or more” appraisals; P.A. 78-359 changed “shall” to “may” in Subsec. (a), included grants for development costs, added provision re information required for determining development cost grant in Subsec. (b) and in Subsec. (c) changed applicable date to January 1, 1968, and replaced reference to council with commissioner of environmental protection; P.A. 79-607 added provision concerning grants under Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act in Subsec. (a); June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-33 amended Subsec. (b) to include language regarding determination of the treatment of gifts to municipalities; P.A. 92-206 amended Subsec. (a) to change the specification re the amount of certain grants authorized under this section; P.A. 98-157 replaced former Subsecs. (b) and (c) with new Subsecs. (b) to (d), inclusive, re amount of grants, valuation of land and issuance of bonds, effective July 1, 1998 (Revisor's note: In 1999 a reference to Sec. 7-131c was changed editorially by the Revisors to Sec. 7-131d, since Sec. 7-131c was repealed by P.A. 98-157); P.A. 01-204 amended Subsec. (b) to allow the commissioner to make grants under the program to a nonprofit land conservation organization for the acquisition of land within a distressed municipality or targeted investment community with the approval of the chief elected official or governing legislative body of such municipality or community, effective July 11, 2001; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9 revised effective date of P.A. 01-204 but without affecting this section; P.A. 07-131 amended Subsec. (b) to increase the percentages of the fair market value permitted to be paid in grants and added “water company” to the list of entities permitted to receive a grant in Subdiv. (5), effective July 1, 2007; P.A. 08-124 made a technical change in Subsec. (a) and amended Subsec. (c) to delete prohibition against using matching funds and to add provision permitting grantee to use state and federal funds for not more than 70% of total cost of project, effective June 2, 2008; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Commissioner of Environmental Protection” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection” in Subsecs. (a) and (b), effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 15-23 deleted former Subsec. (a) re federal grants, redesignated existing Subsecs. (b) to (d) as Subsecs. (a) to (c) and amended redesignated Subsec. (b) by deleting reference to a potential grantee, adding reference to Subsec. (a), changing the maximum grant percentage from 70 per cent of the total cost to 90 per cent of the fair market value of the project and adding exception to such 90 per cent cap to provide a grant for 100 per cent of the fair market value of the project if certain conditions exist, effective June 4, 2015; P.A. 23-196 added Subsec. (c) re land that is subject of the execution or recording of a conservation easement or restriction that resulted from a federally funded land conservation program, municipal conservation grant program or private conservation grant program prior to the recording of a permanent conservation easement described in Subsec. (e) of Sec. 7-131d, and redesignated existing Subsec. (c) as Subsec. (d), effective June 29, 2023.
| (Return to Chapter Table of Contents) |
(Return to List of Chapters) |
(Return to List of Titles) |