[Adopted 11-18-2019]
This chapter is hereby established upon acceptance by the City Council of MGL c. 59, § 5K, entitled "Property tax liability reduced in exchange for volunteer services; persons over age 60." The program shall be effective beginning in Fiscal Year 2021.
A. 
To assist senior citizen homeowners of the City with the payment of residential property tax bills.
B. 
To increase the involvement of senior citizens in the municipal government and the school system of the City.
C. 
To acknowledge and affirm the skills and abilities of Springfield senior citizens and the community's continuing need for their services.
A. 
An applicant must meet or exceed the following requirements to be eligible to participate in the program:
(1) 
Must have attained the minimum age of 60 years by July 1 for the fiscal year in which the credit is intended to apply.
(2) 
Must own and reside in a home in the City or be the current spouse of such homeowner residing in the same household for which real estate taxes are paid to the City by the applicant and on which a credit is requested. "Ownership" means the assessed owner of the property on which the tax to be credited is assessed, or have acquired ownership before the work is performed and the credit applied. If the property is subject to a trust, the senior must have legal title (be one of the trustees), on the applicable January 1 assessment date.
A. 
There must be a request for volunteer assistance under the program by municipal or school department offices based upon the needs of the municipal or school department offices.
B. 
The volunteer opportunities may include, but are not limited to, municipal offices, schools and special City projects.
A. 
An applicant must meet eligibility requirements set forth in § 355-19.
B. 
The applicant must have the appropriate skills necessary for the position.
C. 
The department head and the applicant must agree and assent to the assignment of the applicant to a particular department.
D. 
The Director of Elder Affairs or their designee will coordinate and execute this program and shall develop an application for the senior tax work-off program.
E. 
The Director of Elder Affairs or their designee will enter all qualified applicants into a lottery and randomly select the applicants.
A. 
Under MGL c. 59, § 5K, the hourly rate for service credit cannot exceed the state's minimum wage; therefore, the rate shall be set to the state's minimum wage in effect at the time.
B. 
The maximum tax credit to an individual shall be $1,000 per fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). The maximum credit per household shall be $1,000 per fiscal year.
C. 
The maximum number of hours to be credited will be determined by dividing the maximum credit amount of $1,000 by the state minimum wage per hour in effect at the time.
D. 
The credits will be charges against the overlay account. No checks will be issued to participants.
E. 
Upon completion of the number of hours necessary to reach the maximum credit allowed under this section, or fraction thereof, a credit in accordance with M.G.L. c. 59, sec. 5K, will be applied to the participant's corresponding fiscal year residential property tax bill. Earned credits must be applied to the actual tax bills for the fiscal year.
F. 
Applicants are on notice that while the tax credit earned is not considered "income" for Massachusetts state taxes, it is currently considered taxable income for federal tax purposes, and the City is not obligated to issue IRS Form 1099s for amounts less than $600.
A. 
The Director of the Department of Elder Affairs ("Director"), with assistance from the Regional Serving the Health Information Needs of Elders ("SHINE") director employed by the Department, shall monitor, supervise and administer the program.
B. 
Applications for such program, including, but not limited to, the forms of application, required supporting documentation, and limitations on time period for that application process for each fiscal year, shall be prepared by the department head or their designee, in coordination with the City of Springfield Human Resources Director, in a form suitable to meet the goals of this article.
A. 
Acceptance is based on the ability of the applicant to perform tasks required in available positions.
B. 
Placements are drawn by random lottery. Requests for certain positions by applicants will be considered; however, applicants must be willing to accept a position when offered based on the offer made by the Director or their designee.
C. 
Applicants have the right to refuse placements, but each lottery winner will be offered an interview.
D. 
Applicants must certify that their income does not exceed the limits set by the Massachusetts Circuit Breaker Tax Credit.
E. 
To start, the program will be limited to no more than 20 participants. Positions will be offered on the basis of qualification, availability, location and ability to perform the required tasks. The program will be evaluated before continued implementation in FY 2022.
F. 
Applicants are not eligible to participate in two consecutive fiscal years.
G. 
To be credited in a given fiscal year, volunteer services must be completed between the months of July 1 and September 30 in such fiscal year.
A. 
The Department of Elder Affairs shall maintain written records for each participating taxpayer, including but not limited to the number of hours of service, the applicable state minimum wage amount in effect, and the total amount of the real property tax credit. Such records shall be provided to the Board of Assessors in order that the actual tax bill reflect the reduced amount. A copy of such record shall also be provided to the taxpayer prior to the issuance of the actual tax bill.
The provisions of this article are declared to be severable, and if any section, subsection, sentence, clause or part thereof is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of any remaining section, subsection, sentence, clause or part of this article.