← Appropriations & Oversight Committee · 2015-06-18 · Appropriations and Oversight Committee Meeting
ORDER-2015-174 : Senior Work Off Abatement Local Option
Agenda original PDF
Minutes original PDF
ORDER-2015-174 Accepting Act of Legislature/Local Option Senior Work Off Abatement Local Option Recommend Passage Board of Aldermen
Transcript
▶ 2:49:06 Peter D. Mortimer: The next order we have before us, I think you might as well stay right in that chair, Mr. Wilcox, is order 2015-174. It's the senior work off abatement loan option.
▶ 2:49:19 Speaker 5: Okay. Would you like to explain this?
▶ 2:49:21 Speaker 9: Yep. Thank you, sir. The city has adopted, since 2001, 2002, a senior work off program. It's a state guided program. The funds are taken from the overlay account, and currently the max value that can be applied to taxes is $750. In my research, I've only found it's been adjusted one time around 2007, 2008. Predates my time here, but I did try and find that number. So we have made an adjustment from 500 to 750 at one point. My recommendation is we go from 750 to 1,000. Roughly that will be 100 hours based off of minimum wage laws currently, and again, it's to help the people. There is a 60 year old at qualification, and it is Chapter 59 5K as far as the guidelines.
▶ 2:50:11 Speaker 6: Motion to recommend.
▶ 2:50:12 Peter D. Mortimer: Second. We have a motion to recommend from Alderman Boisselle, duly seconded by Alderman McAteer-Margolis. in queue we have alderman inferno followed by alderman burr thank you thank you very much mr
▶ 2:50:21 Gail Infurna: chairman just a quick question um do you have any idea how many seniors do you take advantage of
▶ 2:50:29 Speaker 9: this yes i do um 2014 we had 16 seniors 2015 right right as of right now we have 14 seniors i estimated 17 seniors with this topic being discussed and kind of expanding the program i bumped it up a little sure 17 is what i expect and how does one um find out about this
▶ 2:50:53 Speaker 9: as far as the program it's actually uh run by the council on aging um we are in the process of putting all of that online re-looking at the um the all the forms and how you sign up for it and make that more available online and and maybe easier for the general public to fill out
▶ 2:51:15 Peter D. Mortimer: sure great thank you very much thank you very much alderman inferno alderman bird please
▶ 2:51:20 Jaclyn L. Bird: thank you i think alderman inferno just answered my question uh asked the questions that i had and you answered them um so 16 people 16 people in 2014 took advantage of it 14 seniors in 2015 and the cost of the program is just what we remember the 750 per year correct um with with the current
▶ 2:51:44 Speaker 9: rates um let's see uh it's basically uh ninety seven hundred dollars for uh last year for um fourteen people and the increase um would be thirty five hundred if we adopted this um
▶ 2:51:58 Peter D. Mortimer: increase to one thousand dollars thank you thank you mr chairman thank you alderman byrd next in
▶ 2:52:04 Mary Beth McAteer-Margolis: line we have alderman mccarty and my goals thank you mr chairman thank you mr wilcox um so the requirement for this is that um the scene it'd be someone over the age of 60. that's right is
▶ 2:52:16 Speaker 9: there no income requirement currently there is not an income requirement but um we we are looking at all the um i think there's a process for fitting people in so um i think the council and agent
▶ 2:52:30 Mary Beth McAteer-Margolis: might be able to speak to that a little better okay i know that we have um a lot of great seniors who do volunteer you know volunteer and and take advantage of this not only in City Hall but I know like where I work in Winchester we have people at the library who come in and help and I think it's not only great for the city to be able to offer this and take advantage of you know those people's you know giving them a little incentive but it's also great for the seniors to get out and be active in the community so I'm in full support of this and I'm supportive of
▶ 2:53:04 Peter D. Mortimer: the increase thank you thank you alderman mcateer margolis any further alderman wishing to be heard seeing none is there a motion please there was there was a motion made by alderman boyce thank you second by alderman mcateer margolis all in favor please say aye aye any opposed hearing none this order will be recommended to the full board for passage the next order we have before us is This is order 2015-197, agreement between the town of Redding and the city of Melrose with the provision of services for the Melrose Senior Health Inspector.