§ 16a-17 — Definitions.

(a) As used in this section and sections 16a-18 to 16a-20, inclusive: (1) “Creating a fuel shortage” means the diminution by contrivance or artificial means of the supply of fuel to a point below that needed to meet consumer demands adequately; and (2) “Fuel” includes coal and coal products, electricity, natural gas, petroleum products, radioactive materials, wood fuels and any other resource yielding energy. (b) As used in sections 16a-21 , 16a-22a and 16a-22k : (1) “Associated equipment” means a gas line, gas regulator, sacrificial anode, interconnecting hardware and any other equipment that is necessary to install and operate a propane tank; (2) “Automatic delivery” means the delivery of heating fuel to a consumer by a dealer under a system determined by the dealer of calculating the consumer's heating fuel needs based on the consumer's heating fuel consumption; (3) “Cash” (A) means a certified or cashier's check, commercial money order, legal tender or equivalent of such check, money order or legal tender, and (B) includes a guaranteed payment on behalf of a consumer by a government or community action agency, provided no discount is taken for the charge as billed; (4) “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Consumer Protection; (5) “Consumer” means a direct purchaser of heating fuel from a heating fuel dealer for one or more dwelling units within a structure having not more than four dwelling units; (6) “Gallon” means an accepted unit of measure consisting of two hundred thirty-one cubic inches, for all liquid or gaseous heating fuel, subject to modifications allowed under regulations adopted pursuant to section 43-42 ; (7) “Heating fuel” means any petroleum-based fuel, including any petroleum product regulated pursuant to chapter 250, used as the primary source of residential heating or domestic hot water; (8) “Heating fuel dealer” or “dealer” means any individual or group of individuals who, or a cooperative, corporation, firm, limited liability company or partnership that, offers to sell, at retail, heating fuel to a consumer; (9) “Lessee” means a natural person who rents or leases personal property under a consumer rental or lease agreement; (10) “Lessor” means a heating fuel dealer who regularly provides the use of personal property through consumer rental or lease agreements and to whom rent is paid at a fixed interval for the use of such property; (11) “Notice of termination of automatic delivery” means a notice by a consumer to a dealer providing automatic delivery in which the consumer requests that the dealer terminate such automatic delivery; and (12) “Purchase price” or “commercially reasonable price” means a price that does not exceed the fair market value of a propane tank and associated equipment, as applicable.

Legislative History

(P.A. 74-208, S. 1, 5; P.A. 12-76, S. 1; P.A. 16-69, S. 2; P.A. 22-104, S. 38.) History: P.A. 12-76 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a) and added Subsec. (b) re definitions used in Secs. 16a-21, 16a-22a and 16a-22k, effective July 1, 2013; P.A. 16-69 amended Subsec. (b) by adding Subdiv. (12) re definition of “purchase price” or “commercially reasonable price”, effective July 1, 2016; P.A. 22-104 amended Subsec. (a) by redesignating former Subdiv. (2) as new Subdiv. (1) and former Subdiv. (1) as new Subdiv. (2), Subsec. (b)(3) by dividing existing provisions into Subparas. (A) and (B) and Subsec. (b)(5) by deleting provision re when fuel is primary source of heat for residential heating or domestic hot water, and made technical and conforming changes, effective May 24, 2022.