House approves emergency bill on hospital transfers, motor vehicle assessments, veterans' property-tax exemptions and special-education funding

The Connecticut House on Feb. 24 passed emergency-certified House Bill 7067, a four-part measure that creates a 60-day emergency certificate-of-need (eCON) process for hospital ownership transfers that arise from bankruptcy; allows municipalities to opt into a modified motor-vehicle assessment schedule; clarifies property-tax exemption procedures for veterans who are permanently and totally disabled; and includes an appropriation to increase the special-education excess-cost grant for the current fiscal year. Representative McCarthy (lead proponent) moved passage; the House approved the bill 140–5 with 5 not voting.

Emergency CON for hospital ownership transfers: the bill instructs the Office of Health Strategy (OHS) to accept and adjudicate a narrowly tailored emergency CON application when a hospital has filed for bankruptcy and a court-authorized sale or transfer is pending. The statute sets a 60-day deadline for OHS to issue a final decision after an application is deemed complete, allows the unit to require a limited cost-and-market-impact review, and permits OHS to impose conditions aimed at protecting access, quality and Medicaid recipients. OHS may hold a public hearing but the bill makes that discretionary (the unit “may” hold a hearing; opponents and several members sought clarification on why the hearing provision is permissive rather than mandatory). Debate repeatedly said the provision was crafted in response to active bankruptcy proceedings affecting multiple community hospitals.

Who pays for reviews: the bill allows OHS to require the applicant to cover third‑party consultant costs for the cost-and-market review — up to $200,000 — a sum identified in debate as a cap mirroring the regular CON process. Members discussed whether that outside review could delay an urgent transfer; proponents said the 60-day ceiling and limits on scope balance speed with the required market assessment.

Motor-vehicle assessment option: sections 2–3 let municipalities, by vote of their local legislative authority (or board of selectmen where a town meeting form of government exists), adopt a modified depreciation schedule (moving a local option toward 90% of MSRP at purchase declining thereafter, up from prior statutory schedules). Committee members asked whether the change could be reversed; proponents said a locality may adopt the option in a given year and could later revert to prior schedules under local vote procedures. Several representatives warned the change could create winners and losers across towns because taxable values would shift, and some small towns reported significant revenue impacts in informal estimates.

Veterans' property-tax exemption clarification: the bill codifies guidance to ensure veterans who are 100% permanently and totally disabled receive the residential property-tax exemption on their primary residence. Committee and floor discussion noted confusion after last year’s enactment about which disability classifications qualified (service‑connected permanent and total disability vs. unemployability/TDIU ratings). Proponents and veterans committee leaders said tax assessors, veterans’ advocates and municipalities had asked for statutory clarity; members committed to additional technical fixes and to follow-up legislation to address municipal reimbursement and related implementation questions.

Special-education excess-cost funding: the bill includes a supplemental appropriation of $40 million (debated as nonvolatile revenue applied in FY25) to the Excess Cost Grant program; proponents said the funds would be distributed to more than 140 districts. Some representatives urged a larger payment to fully close a projected statewide shortfall estimated in debate at roughly $108 million. An offered amendment (LCO 5433) to increase the appropriation to fully fund the $108 million shortfall was defeated on the floor.

Votes and amendments: on the floor, House Amendment Schedule A (LCO 5433) — which would have raised the appropriation to fully cover the estimate shortfall for excess-cost special-education grants — failed on roll call (48–96, 6 not voting). The underlying bill then passed by 140–5 (5 not voting).

What proponents said: supporters described the emergency CON as a narrowly tailored tool to preserve hospital access and protect Medicaid and community services during bankruptcy-driven transfers; they argued the $40 million special-education appropriation provides immediate relief for districts and that the veterans language corrects implementation confusion.

What critics said: opponents questioned discretionary public‑hearing language in the eCON process, warned that OHS bandwidth and third-party reviews could slow transfers, and expressed that the special-education appropriation did not fully meet district needs. Municipal leaders also urged clarity on fiscal impacts for towns in the motor-vehicle assessment option.

Next steps: with House passage, the bill will proceed to the Senate. OHS and the Judicial Department were repeatedly cited as implementing authorities for application intake, contracting and any conditions attached to a transfer approval.