Date: Fri 30-Apr-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

elderly-tax-relief

Full Text:

Panel Studies Tax Breaks For Seniors

(with photo)

BY STEVE BIGHAM

The Elderly Tax Relief Advisory Committee held its first meeting earlier this

month and plans to meet regularly for the next three or four months. The goal:

to come up with some sort of senior citizen tax break that all Newtown

residents can agree to.

At its first meeting, the ad hoc board elected Jim MacNaughton to serve as

chairman. Mr MacNaughton of Poverty Hollow Road got the ball rolling for the

tax break proposal earlier this year and several others soon joined in the

effort. The plan was unanimously endorsed last month by the Board of

Selectmen, which promptly formed the panel to take a closer look at how best

to implement the tax break scheme.

The committee chairman believes a more significant tax break needs to be put

into place to alleviate Newtown's growing tax burden. The town currently

offers a $250 tax break for 136 elderly taxpayers who qualify under certain

income qualifications. The committee is expected to propose a new plan that

provides more savings and encompasses a larger portion of the elderly

population.

The tax rate in Newtown continues to climb as new homes are built and more

young families move in. As Mr MacNaughton points out, many seniors have paid

off their mortgages, but are having trouble keeping their homes due to high

taxes.

Any changes to the town's current tax relief ordinance would need to be

approved by the Legislative Council. The council's ordinance committee

chairman, Will Rodgers, is a member of the board. Most of the other members of

the panel are senior citizens.

The key is to come up with a viable plan that everyone can agree upon, Mr

MacNaughton said.

"I hope we can get something to the Board of Selectman before the end of the

year, maybe even later this summer," the board chairman said.

The committee was scheduled to hold its second meeting Thursday, at 4:30 pm,

at the Cyrenius Booth Library.

According to Tax Collector Carol Mahoney, the existing tax relief plan costs

the town $32,000 in revenue each year. There are about 2,500 senior citizens

currently living in Newtown.