(a) There shall be allowed a credit against any tax due under this chapter with respect to the estate of any decedent who produced a work of art, as defined in this section, which the beneficiaries and the fiduciary of such decedent's estate agree to transfer to the state of Connecticut if the state accepts such work, for use as an object of visual, artistic and educational display, in exchange for a credit against the succession tax applicable to the net taxable estate of such decedent. Such tax credit shall be in an amount equivalent to the fair market value of such work of art, as determined in accordance with subsection (c) of this section, provided (1) the advisory panel established under subsection (b) of this section, for purposes of certain determinations related to any such tax credit, certifies that, in the opinion of a majority of its members, such work of art should be appraised in accordance with subsection (c) of this section and subsequently certifies that, in the opinion of a majority of its members, such work of art should be accepted by the state in exchange for such tax credit as provided in this section, and (2) the maximum total amount of all such tax credits which may be allowed in any single fiscal year, commencing July 1, 1987, and thereafter, whether there is one such credit in such year or more than one, shall be two hundred thousand dollars. If the fair market value of any such work of art so accepted by the state is less than the total amount of tax due with respect to the estate, tax credit shall be allowed in reduction of the amount of the total tax due. If such fair market value is in excess of the total tax due, and the fiduciary and beneficiaries of the estate approve the transfer of such work of art to the state for purposes of such tax credit, such fair market value shall be applied in payment of the entire amount of tax due and the excess of such fair market value over the amount of tax due shall, in effect, be a gift to the state. For purposes of this section a “work of art” means any work of visual art, including but not limited to, a drawing, painting, sculpture, mosaic, photograph, work of calligraphy or work of graphic art, and as the term “work of art” is used in this section it may include a single work of any such art or more than one item of such work.

(b) There shall be appointed, as part of the Department of Economic and Community Development, an advisory panel to consider the proposed acceptance of any such work of art. The advisory panel shall prepare a written statement as to acceptance or rejection of any such work of art for the purposes of this section. In each instance, said panel shall consist of eleven members, including the chairperson of the Culture and Tourism Advisory Committee and two generally acknowledged experts as to the particular type of visual art work under consideration, as determined by said chairperson, with such appointments to be made by said chairperson and approved by the Culture and Tourism Advisory Committee. In addition, said advisory panel shall include eight members of the General Assembly, with two of such members appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate, one of such members appointed by the majority leader of the Senate, one of such members appointed by the minority leader of the Senate, two of such members appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, one of such members appointed by the majority leader of the House of Representatives and one of such members appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives.

(c) The advisory panel appointed as provided in subsection (b) of this section shall contract with two professional appraisers possessing experience related to the type of appraisal necessary for purposes of the work of art proposed for acceptance. Each appraiser so employed shall conduct an independent appraisal of such work of art and submit findings as to the fair market value thereof to the advisory panel. Members of the advisory panel shall receive no compensation for their service as such but shall be reimbursed for their necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties.

(d) If the advisory panel approves the acceptance of a work of art for purposes of such tax credit, the Commissioner of Economic and Community Development shall submit notification in writing of such approval to the Commissioner of Revenue Services, including all relevant documentation concerning such approval and the amount of tax credit to be allowed. The Department of Economic and Community Development is authorized by this section to accept such work of art on behalf of the state and make whatever arrangements may be necessary with other agencies of the state for the care and display of such work of art.

(P.A. 87-491, S. 1, 2; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 210(e); P.A. 04-20, S. 3; 04-205, S. 5; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 04-2, S. 30; P.A. 11-48, S. 163.)

History: P.A. 87-491 effective July 1, 1987, and applicable to the estate of any artist in Connecticut whose death occurs on or after January 1, 1987; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 and P.A. 04-20 replaced State Commission on the Arts with Connecticut Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film, effective August 20, 2003; P.A. 04-205, effective June 3, 2004, and May Sp. Sess. P.A. 04-2, effective May 12, 2004, both replaced Connecticut Commission on Arts, Tourism, Culture, History and Film with Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; P.A. 11-48 replaced “Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism” with “Department of Economic and Community Development” in Subsecs. (b) and (d), replaced “executive director of the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism” with “chairperson of the Culture and Tourism Advisory Committee”, replaced “executive director” with “chairperson” and replaced “Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism” with “Culture and Tourism Advisory Committee” in Subsec. (b), and replaced “executive director of the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism” with “Commissioner of Economic and Community Development” in Subsec. (d), effective July 1, 2011.