[Adopted 10-2-2004 by Ord. No. 253a]
A.
Low Income Senior Citizen Tax Credit program requires
an annual application, income verification, financial statements and
Federal Income tax returns, if required to file, to be filed with
the Tax Assessor's office.
C.
All applications must be received in the Tax Assessor's
office on or before March 1st annually,
for the previous Tax Assessment year.
[Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 303]
D.
All applications will be reviewed by the Tax Assessor,
an approval or denial letter will be sent to the applicant within
thirty (30) days from the deadline date.
E.
A one-time life insurance payment to the spouse of
the applicant will not disqualify the spouse from the program based
on income for that year. Thereafter, the spouse must meet all the
conditions of the program. Income and other benefits from the insurance
payment, in subsequent years, will apply to the total income.
F.
Appeal from any Tax Assessor's determination concerning
eligibility or interpretation of the provisions in this ordinance,
shall be directed to the Tax Review Commission of the Town.
A.
The applicant must be 65 years of age or older on
or before December 31st of the Tax Assessment Year for which this
exemption is being applied. Proof of age may be established by birth
certificate, baptismal certificate, certificate of citizenship or
by other means normally accepted by the Social Security Administration.
[Amended 3-19-2007 by Ord. No. 303]
B.
RESIDENCY
The applicant must have been the owner-occupant of
the property and a legal resident of the Town for one-year prior,
for which this tax exemption Program credit is intended. Proof of
ownership of the property for which the exemption is claimed, may
be established, by confirmation of the Tax Assessor that the property
tax on said property has been levied on the residence of the applicant
continuously for the required period of time.
One legally domiciled within the Town for at least 183 days
a year, and who is eligible to become a qualified elector in the Town.
Seasonal or temporary residency shall not be sufficient.
C.
[1]Affidavit sworn to before a notary public by the applicant
as to his or her income, including social security benefits, all other
income of the household and asserting that no other income is brought
into the household shall be required. Further, the applicant will
provide to the Tax Assessor any pertinent documentation to prove financial
eligibility, including an applicant's investment and banking statements
and any other documents which are relevant to proving eligibility.
For the purposes of determining total income, any losses due to real
estate, stocks, gambling, and other investments shall not be deducted
from income.
[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Subsection C, regarding full payment
of property taxes on owner-occupied residential property, which immediately
followed, was repealed 2-11-2019 by Ord. No. 379. This ordinance also
redesignated former Subsection D as Subsection C.
D.
Prior to December 1st, the Tax Assessor must send to each current
exemption participant a verification document requiring proof of ownership
and residency for only those participants that own property in a Life
Estate or Trust.
[Added 2-11-2019 by Ord.
No. 379; 3-11-2024 by Ord. No. 412]
(1)
Recipient must complete and return this Proof of Residence document,
to the Tax Assessor's office prior to March 15th;
(2)
If the Proof of Residence document is not received by March
15th, the Tax Assessor must remove all corresponding exemptions from
the Recipient's tax account(s);
(3)
Once the tax bills are sent, a potential recipient whose exemptions
have been removed due to not filing the Proof of Residence documents
to the Tax Assessor in the time prescribed, shall have the right to
submit a Tax Exemption Removal Complaint form to the Town Council
through the Tax Assessor's office. This Tax Exemption Removal Complaint
form will be submitted to the Town Council by the Tax Assessor within
thirty (30) days of receipt, along with a request for tax abatement
equal to the value of the exemptions removed.
Applications for Tax Credit provided for herein
shall be made in the form approved by the Town Council.
The application for each and every year shall
be filed with the Tax Assessor by March 1.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance provided a retroactive effective
date of 12-12-2012.
All Tax Credits will be on a fiscal-year basis
in accordance with the current financial management procedures of
the Town.
[Added 5-13-2013 by Ord. No. 356[1]]
For the purposes of this exemption, household gross income will
be calculated with an annual increase equal to Social Security Administration’s
Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLA) effective as of December 31, 2011
and thereafter.
Example for § 192-9A, $30,000 income level: SS COLA increase for 2011 was 0%, for 2012 was 3.6% and 2013 will be 1.7%, therefore creating an adjusted household gross income limit to an amount of $31,080 for 2012 and $31,608 for 2013, and so on.
Example for § 192-9B, $20,000 income level: SS COLA increase for 2011 was 0%, for 2012 was 3.6% and 2013 will be 1.7%, therefore creating an adjusted household gross income limit to an amount of $20,720 for 2012 and 21,052 for 2013, and so on.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance provided a retroactive effective
date of 12-12-2012.
[Amended 3-11-2024 by Ord. No. 412]
The penalty for anyone falsifying the amount
of his or her income and for violating any part of this article shall
result in the loss of all benefits, and the applicants' property shall
be returned to the normal tax rate. The amount of tax money the applicant
has saved through these benefits will be billed to the applicant in
addition to interest at the rate being used by the Collector of Taxes
on delinquent accounts at the time of discovery of the false statement
or violation.
Nothing contained herein shall abrogate or affect
the authority of the Assessor under the provision of G.L. 1956 § 44-3-3
(16), as amended.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 192-14, Review of Article,
was repealed 5-13-2013 by Ord. No. 356, which ordinance provided a
retroactive effective date of 12-12-2012.
