A Glimmer of Light in Sudbury

xxxxx Out of the financial gloom and doom we’re all experiencing it’s nice to see something positive coming out of government. The Feds have their trillion dollar deficit, our Governor is slicing by the billion, and every town has a snowfall budget issue. But here in Sudbury, Town Meeting has done something positive; we’ve taken a step to address the “Senior Citizen Property Tax Problem”
xxxxx Last week we adopted Article 2, “Means Tested Senior Citizen Property Tax Exemption”, almost unanimously, and sent it to the legislature for approval. When it eventually goes into effect it will be more than a glimmer, it will “lift the burden” significantly for about 250 of our neighbors.
xxxxx Sudbury has been struggling with this issue for years. There have been articles on Warrants for the past six or seven Town Meetings, but they never gathered sufficient support
xxxxx There’s a lesson here for other towns trying to address this issue:
xxxxxxx Article 2 was not:
xxxxx Divisive. Previous attempts were often seen as Old against Young, shifting the tax burden from seniors to younger taxpayers. This article was targeted; about 250 families will benefit, but the rest of the 1100 senior-taxpayers in town will share the cost.
xxxxx Expensive. The plan will raise everyone’s taxes by 0.5%. A $5,000 tax bill will become $5,025. In future years the Selectmen will have the option of increasing this, but only to a maximum of 1%. Previous attempts had “predicted” costs that were vague and unreliable.
xxxxx Confusing. Based on a plan already adopted in Hamilton Massachusetts, the plan could be (and was) explained to the Town Meeting members in less than half-an-hour, and was endorsed by both the Finance Committee and the Board of Selectmen. The sponsor consulted with the Town Administration and tried to make the plan as easy as possible to administer.
xxxxx Article 2 is designed to work with, and to supplement the Circuit Breaker Tax Credit, the major senior tax-relief program supported by the Commonwealth. The Circuit-breaker provides up to almost $1,000 in credit to those who qualify and whose property taxes exceed 10% of total income. In general, the same group of taxpayers will qualify for each. They are those who meet income guidelines ($51,000 single, $77,000 family. There are also limits on household value and time of residence. In Sudbury there are between 200 and 250 families who qualify, and the new plan will benefit only those whose property taxes still exceed 10% of income after the Circuit-Breaker.
xxxxx Last week AARP distributed a list of the ten states to avoid in retirement, and we were ranked Number eight, mainly because of property taxes. They have also pointed out that on average the Massachusetts property tax burden is twice as high (7.0%) for homeowners 65 or over, as it is for homeowners under 65 (3.5%). And, the burden falls hardest on lower income taxpayers, (17.7% of income on the lowest quartile versus 3.2% on the highest quartile).
xxxxx Article 2 won’t make this issue go away, but it’s a positive step in the right direction. Considering all the other dark economic news we’re seeing, it really is a glimmer of light.
xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx David Levington