By Adam Swift
At last week’s city council meeting, the council approved an ordinance amending the city’s senior citizen property tax work-off abatement program.
The amended ordinance was introduced by Councillor-at-Large Michelle Kelley. The amendments increase the amount each senior can earn from $750 to $1,000, as well as minimum wage income language in the ordinance, increasing the number of residents eligible through the lottery process, and increasing the city’s funding for the abatement program.
The changes in the ordinance increase the property tax abatement for seniors who qualify for the program from $750 per year to $1,000 per year, according to Kelley.
Under Massachusetts General Law, the seniors can volunteer for the city work at the rate of the state minimum wage of $15 per hour, meaning the seniors would need to volunteer for 66.6 hours to earn the full abatement amount.
During the debate on the amendment at last week’s meeting, the council eventually voted to increase the number of participants from 50 to 70, as well as increasing the financing of the program from $25,000 per year to $70,000 in order to cover the costs for everyone that could take part at $1,000 each.
Ward 2 Councillor Ira Novoselsky did raise some concerns about the city’s ability to pay for the increase in the program, noting that it would be up to the mayor’s office to determine where the money would come from.
Both Kelley and Councillor-at-Large Anthony Zambuto said it was a small amount of money in the overall budget to help take care of the city’s senior citizens.
“This is a nominal amount, if we can’t do this, something is wrong,” said Kelley.
Arcadia Street resident Anthony Parziale said he did not like the fact that senior citizens would have to work in the first place to get some kind of discount on their property taxes.
“I’d like to see this go away, and I’d like to see the seniors get the discount so that they can enjoy their retirement,” said Parziale.
Kelley noted that the city was following state law by allowing income eligible senior citizens to take part in the abatement program.
“If we were doing anything other than what’s prescribed under that Massachusetts statute, we would have to take it up as special legislation and ask our state legislation … to help us get this done,” said Kelley. “I would happily work with them to try to get something done. I understand that that would take longer and it wouldn’t be something for fiscal 2024.”
After several proposed amendments to the ordinance were put on the floor, the measure was on the verge of going back into subcommittee before the council did take a vote to approve the changes to the ordinance.
“We are trying to increase some money for the seniors, at least for fiscal year 2024,” said Kelley. “If we don’t move on this now, I don’t think anything can get done for the seniors for the next cycle.”
