WETHERSFIELD - A proposed Connecticut Senate Bill that would set a uniform mill rate for car taxes and collect the funds for redistribution to municipalities from the state level has raised eyebrows and, in the case of Wethersfield, opposition.

       Republican Town Councilors drafted a resolution against the tentative legislation and it was introduced at the Council’s April 6 meeting.

       Not only might Wethersfield lose car tax revenue, but there is no guarantee that the town would see all of its money come back from the state level, said Republican Councilor Mike Rell after the April 21 Council meeting.

       â€�"You never know what’s going to happen in 2016, or 2017,” Rell said. â€�"If we’re in a deficit, what’s to stop them from taking that property tax revenue and using it to pay for their deficit?”

       He pointed to the past use of â€�"locked box” transportation funds for other areas outside of their intended purpose.

       Democratic Mayor Paul Montinieri also said he opposes the bill, but does not think that it has a high likelihood of passing.

       â€�"I’ve had several discussions with our delegation,” Montinieri said. â€�"The bill as it sits is extremely unattractive for municipalities.”

       He echoed some of Rell’s concerns.

       â€�"I have doubts that if it [local car tax revenue] gets pooled, that it makes it back to municipalities,” he said.

       State Representative Russ Morin had similar projections regarding the bill--a proposal drafted by Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney, a Democrat from New Haven.

       â€�"It’s like any of the hundreds of bills that get put forth in a legislative session,” Morin said. â€�"Some die, some make it through and most others are changed.”

       He implied that changes would have to occur, dramatically, if the legislation is to have any chance of passing. Opposition to the bill is based around concerns pertaining to projected tax revenue losses at the local level.

       â€�"I could see why towns would have issues with that,” Morin said of the proposal. â€�"I understand where people are coming from--I was a mayor. People don’t want to lose local control.”

       But he said that he also understands the push to reform the car tax system, which is currently made up of varying municipal rates.

       â€�"There’s a vast difference on how automobiles are valued,” Morin said. â€�"My car is worth the same, no matter where you go, but if I go to Hartford, I pay more than double the amount I pay in Wethersfield.”

       A few years ago the legislature considered going as far as eliminating the car tax altogether. The proposal, authored by Governor Dan Malloy, sought an exemption for owners with automobiles valued at less than $28,000.

       That proposed bill--designed to ease the tax burden on those residents--was also met with bipartisan opposition. Wethersfield projected a tax revenue loss of more than $5 million at the time.

       The existing automobile tax is determined by local mill rates, as is the case for houses and buildings, but proponents of a uniform car property tax argue that those entities have values determined by the municipality they are in. The same cannot be said about automobiles.

       The system needs to change, but how the state should go about accomplishing that is another question, Morin said.

       â€�"I get their concept of wanting to help, but I think [the Senate bill] is going to be hard for us to pass,” he said.

       Senator Looney did not return a request for comment, but Adam Joseph, his press aide, told The Hartford Courant that the bill is designed to address the inconsistencies in Connecticut’s car tax system.