The state legislature is expected to vote Monday on an extension of the state's real estate transfer tax that generates as much as $25 million per year for cities and towns.
Without an extension, the municipal portion of the conveyance tax would expire as of July 1. The issue has prompted a long-running battle between real estate agents and the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which represents most cities and towns.
The Realtors, however, have decreased their lobbying efforts at the Capitol after multiple legislators said they did not believe that the increased tax - which amounts to an additional $420 on a $300,000 home - had hurt real estate sales. Lawmakers are also working to eliminate the tax on the sale of foreclosed homes.
The main question now is whether the tax would be extended for two years, as requested by the mayors and first selectmen, or one year, as sought by some legislators.
"It's likely to be one year,'' said Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, a New Haven Democrat. "Municipalities are counting on that revenue for their budgets on July 1.''
Gian-Carl Casa, a lobbyist for the cities and towns, said the municipalities are "fighting an uphill battle'' in trying to reach a two-year extension.
"It's easiest to get agreement on one year,'' he said.
The issue will be debated in a special session because the state Senate failed to vote on the matter during the final, hectic minutes of the regular legislative session that ended in early May. The state House of Representatives had already passed the bill, and many lawmakers assumed there would be enough time for a vote in the Senate. Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell has pledged to sign the extension.