Photo: Beech Street Center, home of the Belmont Senior Center
Belmont took one giant step towards a promise linked to this year’s successful $8.4 million override when the Select Board voted unanimously at its meeting on Oct. 21 to formalize the Senior Tax Relief Working Group.
“It is something that has been talked about for years and we finally are moving towards a best case solution,” said Working Group member and Belmont Library Board of Trustees Chair Kathy Keohane. Mark Paolillo, formerly on the Select Board, Comprehensive Capital Budget Committee member Aaron Pikcilingis, and the team’s pro-tem Chair, Financial Director Jennifer Hewitt, made up the working group.
Created in July, “a good bit of what we’ve been doing is just understanding the current state and then outlining … what actions could we take short-term, medium-term, and long-term,” according to Keohane.
At last Monday’s meeting, the task force highlighted the need to formalize their responsibilities and membership. As of Monday, the committee was only a quasi-formal group acting in an advisory role to the Board. Having never been sworn in by the Town Clerk, their actions were limited.
“I think the charge [the specific set of responsibilities, goals, and objectives assigned to a group] is going to make them a whole committee,” said Town Administrator Patrice Garvin.
The committee’s first objective is to present an article at the upcoming Special Town Meeting next month asking the members to accept the provisions of MGL Chapter 60, Section 3d, which will allow the town to establish a fund to defray the real estate taxes of elderly people. The article also indicates that the fund will be administered by a new committee made up of the Chair of the Assessors, the town Treasurer, and three residents.
After successfully adopting Chapter 60, the major goal facing the Work Group will be reviewing the list of available options under the dozens of potential clauses in the general law and presenting a subset of those to the annual Town Meeting in May 2025. Under the law, the town is limited to a single exemption plan.
And one such clause in the law favored by the Task Force is what several towns have gravitated to: creating a donation fund.
“Residents would be able to donate to a fund [which] would be administered by the committee, and it would be allocated according to eligibility rules,” said Hewitt. Keohane said, “Many surrounding towns already have and implement such a fund… many years ago. So this would be a very positive step forward, and we can work through the mechanics.”
The Select Board’s Roy Epstein questioned who actually establishes the eligibility criteria: Does the new committee create them, or are they simply recommendations to the Select Board that can be approved, rejected, or enhanced? Hewitt believed that would need to be determined.
The task force discussed the importance of establishing guidelines and the committee’s role in determining which seniors are eligible to participate in the program. The group is also eager to receive community input, especially regarding establishing guidelines and the committee’s role in determining which seniors are eligible to participate in the program.
“Obviously, anytime you put something out there, more sets of eyes just provide more information and more feedback. So you just go and continue to refine and retool and update as we go,” said Hewitt.
Paolillo noted that while the group is leaning towards a donation model, all recommendations must undergo a financial analysis to determine their short—and long-term effects on the town’s budget.
“I think we are open-minded about all the different options. Clearly, the financial impact of that has to be considered.”
Hewitt also discussed the potential for a petition for a separate tax relief program and the impact of the new state-approved Hero Act on veterans’ exemptions.
The new task force will report in greater detail to the Select Board in February/March.
“We’ve been working on some updates to some existing programs, focusing on outreach and education, updating and enhancing policies and procedures,” said Hewitt. “We are definitely a work in progress.”