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07/03/2019 07:51 AMAt the June 24 Deep River Board of Selectmen meeting, First Selectman Angus McDonald discussed the personal property horse tax with fellow selectmen.
He stated that he had done extensive research on the matter and found that of the 169 towns in Connecticut, only 30 exempt horses from personal property tax.
Essex exempted all horses from personal property tax with a town ordinance approved in 2014. In the same year, the neighboring town of Killingworth unanimously approved a town ordinance that exempt all horses with a market value of $20,000 or less from property tax.
McDonald said that he would like to draft an ordinance in Deep River that contains language that follows the example set by Killingworth. Selectmen Jim Olson and Duane Gates agreed.
“This is where I am at right now with this. I think this would be a good compromise,” said McDonald, who has been fielding questions and concerns about the tax for several weeks from the horse community in town following an issue four Deep River barns had with the new income and expense documentation that assessor Robin O’Loughlin requested early in the year.
“I am proposing that all horses under $20,000 no longer be subject to personal property tax and that all horses that are over that value will be taxed,” said McDonald.
Longtime Deep River resident and member of the Deep River Planning and Zoning Commission Jane Samuels, who was the only horse owner present at the meeting, questioned how the tax would work on horses if they suddenly lose their value due to a medical condition or injury.
“The value of a horse can change in the blink of an eye. How will that be dealt with by the town?” asked Samuels.
Olson, who said he thinks that not taxing horses worth under $20,000 would be a good thing for the town because it would exempt the people who truly have horses just as pets and backyard animals, answered Samuels’ question by saying that he suspected, based on paperwork from a veterinarian, that the value of the horse would be adjusted as needed.
Samuels also questioned how the town would properly assess a horse’s value. Would that be part of the assessor’s job?
McDonald explained that the burden of value will be placed on the owner of the horse and will be determined by a bill of sale, insurance documentation, and any other paperwork that places a value on the horse.
This subject will be re-visited once again at the next Board of Selectmen meeting that is set to take place on Tuesday, July 9 at 6:30 p.m.