“There is concern about whether people are registering their cars in West Haven the way they’re supposed to and paying taxes the way they’re supposed to,” Tiernan said.

By state law, when a vehicle is regularly parked in town four nights a week, it is deemed to be registered in the state of Connecticut at its address in West Haven. If that doesn’t happen, the city loses the tax revenue it expects to collect for residents who park and drive their cars within city limits.

Tiernan said the first step would be to compare a list of land sales to a list of places where vehicles are registered. He said the city expects to find the majority of mismatched residences and car registrations by doing this.

Under state law, new residents of West Haven have 60 days to change their vehicle registration.

City Councilor Barry Lee Cohen, R-10, said he was concerned the rule would override advice to new residents and that they would be appalled to receive an unexpected fine.

Tiernan said the city would seek to comply with the law through education before turning to enforcement against the scofflaws.

Board member Colleen O’Connor, R-At Large, wondered how intern Riley Meachem, a law student at the University of Connecticut, would do the research.

“It’s mostly transactional. I’m going to look at the record that we have and the state record and discrepancies will emerge right away, ”Meachem said.

O’Connor said her question came from a maternal instinct as she didn’t want the young law student arguing with residents about their vehicle registration at their doorstep.

“Just send a letter,” she said.

City Councilor Robbin Watt Hamilton, D-5, asked if students who reside in the city on a temporary or seasonal basis might have problems. Tiernan said he thought the lawsuits against the students would be too difficult to prove – many would likely have cars held in a relative’s name and they might not stay in town all week, he said. for exemple.

“We don’t come in a punitive way. We are fair, ”Tiernan said.

Council Chairman Ron Quagliani, D-At Large, said he believed neighbors would be a good resource to ensure enforcement.

“They know who is coming and going,” he says.

However, City Councilor Elizabeth Johnston, D-3, said she has New Haven University students as neighbors she “adores” but knows that all of the full-time residents of the city does not want to live next to the students, which could lead to complaints.

Tiernan said that while he expects Meachem to do a good job 19 hours of work each week, he doesn’t expect the intern to investigate parked cars in the city four days a week. or more.

“You do what you can,” Tiernan said, but realistically only the clearest cases of permanent residents and homeowners who are “locked in” to park in their homes will reach the top.

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