2019 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 8 - Zoning, Planning, Housing and Economic and Community Development
Chapter 126 - Municipal Planning Commissions
Section 8-19 - Creation of planning commissions. Exemption re certain affordable housing.

(a) Any municipality may create by ordinance a planning commission, which shall consist of five members, who shall be electors of such municipality and whose terms of office and method of election or appointment shall be fixed in the ordinance. The ordinance may provide that members may be municipal employees if the municipality has adopted an ordinance authorizing such membership pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph (C) of subdivision (2) of subsection (e) of section 7-421. The chief executive officer of the municipality and the engineer thereof or commissioner of public works, if any, shall also be members of the commission, without voting privileges. The terms of office shall be so arranged that the terms of not more than three members shall expire in any one year. Unless otherwise provided by charter, vacancies shall be filled by the commission for the unexpired portion of the term. Upon the adoption of this section by ordinance as herein provided, and the appointment or election of a commission thereunder, any planning commission in the municipality established under any previous act of the General Assembly shall cease to exist, and its books and records shall be turned over to the commission established under this section, provided all regulations promulgated by such planning commission prior to that time shall continue in full force and effect until modified, repealed or superseded in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The area of jurisdiction of a planning commission created by a town includes any city or borough therein without a legally constituted planning commission for all planning purposes except those specified in sections 8-24 and 8-29. Powers granted under said sections may be delegated by the legislative body of such city or borough to the planning commission of the town in which such city or borough is situated. Any city or borough in which a planning commission has been previously established may, by ordinance, designate the commission established under this section in the town in which such city or borough is situated to be the planning commission of such city or borough, and such commission shall supersede the planning commission previously established in such city or borough. The commission shall elect a chairman and a secretary from its members, shall adopt rules for the transaction of business and shall keep a public record of its activities. The planning commission of each municipality shall file an annual report with the legislative body thereof.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter, any municipality, by ordinance adopted by its legislative body, may exempt from the subdivision regulations in such municipality adopted pursuant to this chapter the first subdivision of land by a landowner, provided the lot created is for affordable housing to be developed by the municipality or a nonprofit organization. The ordinance shall also provide that (1) any further subdivision of such lot shall not be exempt from the subdivision regulations, and (2) any exemption under this section shall be in addition to any other exemption authorized under section 8-26 and shall not be construed as exercising any right under any other exemption.

(1949 Rev., S. 854; 1953, S. 385d; 1957, P.A. 142; 1959, P.A. 679, S. 2; 1971, P.A. 763, S. 7; P.A. 75-21, S. 2, 3; P.A. 02-83, S. 10; P.A. 03-184, S. 7; P.A. 06-97, S. 1; P.A. 07-217, S. 30.)

History: 1959 act deleted provision chief executive officer and engineer or public works commissioner of municipality be ex-officio members of commission and stipulated they be members without voting privileges and added provisions re jurisdiction of town commission where city or borough is within town; 1971 act added requirement that annual report be filed; P.A. 75-21 changed maximum number of terms allowed to expire in one year to three; P.A. 02-83 deleted prohibition on salaried municipal officeholders serving on planning commission and added provisions re ordinance creating the planning commission may provide that members may be municipal employees if municipality has adopted ordinance authorizing such membership; P.A. 03-184 specified that vacancies are to be filled by the planning commission “unless otherwise provided by charter”; P.A. 06-97 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and added Subsec. (b) re exemption of certain affordable housing from subdivision regulations; P.A. 07-217 made a technical change in Subsec. (b), effective July 12, 2007.

See Sec. 8-1b re prohibition against planning commission members serving as alternate members of zoning commission or combined planning and zoning commission.

See Sec. 9-1 for applicable definitions.

See Sec. 9-209 re certification of terms of office and number of members of planning and zoning boards or commissions.

See Sec. 22a-354n re delineation of aquifer protection areas on maps.

Cited. 144 C. 117; 148 C. 517; 152 C. 304; 162 C. 238; 166 C. 207. Election or appointment of one member of a commission, board or authority as chairman does not by itself make that member the head of the relevant department. 184 C. 1. Vote of a salaried municipal officer although invalid under this section and Sec. 8-4a did not invalidate commission's entire action in approving a zone reclassification when total valid votes were sufficient. 196 C. 192.

Statute providing for town plan commission not unconstitutional. 13 CS 62.