01/15/2019

Senior tax-rebate program approved

The Town Council on Jan. 14, 2019 approved a tax-refund program that could save senior citizens up to $500 on property taxes.

Councilors voted 5-1 to adopt a new ordinance creating the program, modeled after a similar program in Scarborough.

Residents 65 and older, who have lived in their residence - owned or rented - for 10 years, have a federally adjusted annual household income of less than $60,000 and receive the state's homestead exemption can qualify.

The council's ordinance subcommittee drafted the ordinance along with Clint Swett, town assessor. "It is a good ordinance and I think it will help a lot of people," Swett said.

"One thing I want to stress is, tell your neighbors. Tell your friends," Swett said. Application forms are already available at the assessor's office at Town Hall and available for download. "If you can't get to Town Hall, call the office, we'll be more than happy to throw some in an envelope and mail them out to you. But definitely take advantage of the program, I think it will help a little bit."

Deadline for application is Feb. 15.

Councilors have for the last several years wrestled with easing the tax burden on residents who have supported the town for years, but are now on fixed incomes, said Council Chair Jamie Garvin. Tax relief for seniors is a Town Council goal for 2018.

Voting against the ordinance was Councilor Chris Straw, who said he supported the idea but not the requirement for 10-year residency. "Imagine if it instead was a program for food stamps, or a program for welfare benefits," Straw said.

Garvin, however, said he saw the ordinance as a first step. "I think that as we see what the interest is in this, and how it's embraced and the number of people that take it up, comments like what Councilor Straw is talking about can certainly be revisited," he said.

Councilor Valerie Randall, a member of the ordinance committee, said the residency requirement grew out of a desire to help seniors remain in the homes they've lived in for years.

The current town budget includes $75,000 to fund the pilot program.