(a) If any personal property tax, other than a tax on a motor vehicle, due any municipality is not paid within the time limited by any local charter or ordinance, or in the event that the municipality, following the assessment date for such tax, has reason to believe that such tax will not be paid when due, the municipality shall have a lien, upon perfection as hereinafter provided, upon the goods situated in this state and owned by the taxpayer upon the date of perfection, or upon the goods thereafter acquired by the taxpayer. Such lien shall attach and become perfected at the time when notice of such lien is filed pursuant to the filing provisions of part 5 of article 9 of title 42a, except that the signature of the taxpayer against whose property the lien is claimed shall not be required on said notice of lien and, in each case, the notice of lien shall be filed as if the debtor were located in this state. Except as hereinafter provided, upon perfection, such lien shall have priority over all subsequently perfected liens and security interests. Such lien shall not attach to or be applicable to proceeds.

(b) On and after July 1, 1999, and except as otherwise provided by law, a notice of lien upon personal property for taxes payable to a municipality shall, once perfected under part 5 of article 9 of title 42a, have priority over all previously perfected liens and security interests and other encumbrances of record under the Connecticut Uniform Commercial Code. If more than one municipality perfects such a notice of lien on the same day, the priority of such liens shall be determined by the time of day such liens were perfected, and if perfected at the same time, the lien for the highest tax amount shall take precedence. As used in this section, “municipality” means any town, consolidated town and city, consolidated town and borough, borough, district, as defined in section 7-324, and any city not consolidated with a town.

(c) The provisions of this section shall not be construed to create any implication related to the priority of a lien perfected on or before June 30, 1999.

(1971, P.A. 722, S. 2; P.A. 99-283, S. 7, 10; P.A. 01-132, S. 159.)

History: P.A. 99-283 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and added new Subsecs. (b) and (c) giving perfected personal property tax liens priority over all previously perfected liens, security interests and other recorded encumbrances, effective July 1, 1999; P.A. 01-132 amended Subsec. (a) to add provision that “in each case, the notice of lien shall be filed as if the debtor were located in this state” and replaced references to “part 4” with “part 5” of article 9 of title 42a in Subsecs. (a) and (b).