Reprinted from The Trumbull Times © Copyright 2010
November 24, 2010

By Donald Eng

Senior citizens and veterans may soon be paying lower property taxes as part of a plan announced Monday by First Selectman Tim Herbst.

"Senior citizens have contributed a great deal to our town," Herbst said in a statement announcing the formation of a bipartisan committee to examine a tax rebate program. "In appointing this committee, I would like the town to examine the feasibility of offering a tax rebate to senior citizens and veterans on their car taxes, assuming they meet qualifying income thresholds and age requirements." The committee members include Town Treasurer John Ponzio, former state Rep. Elaine Hammers and American Legion Cmdr. George Areson. Finance Director Maria Pires and Tax Assessor Mark DelVestern are also on board to provide technical assistance. In addition to their current roles, both Ponzio and Hammers are former finance board chairmen. Hammers is a former Trumbull finance director and Areson served on the finance board and the Senior Citizens Tax Relief Study Committee, in addition to private sector work as a corporate accountant.

The committee is slated to present its report in late spring, meaning tax relief of at least a few hundred dollars a year could be on the way as soon as the next fiscal year. But exactly who would qualify remains up in the air, Herbst said.

"This is not something we can just do, it needs to be very targeted," he said. "But let's crunch the numbers and see how it works out."

Initial proposals call for a zeroing out of automobile taxes for seniors and veterans. Hammers said she was looking forward to seeing if the group could assist younger veterans in some way.

"Veterans don't necessarily have to be World War II vets; they could be someone who is 30 years old, and looking to start a family," she said. "Think about it. The younger veterans enlisted when we were at war, which says a lot about the kind of person they are, with a dedication to community service. This is the kind of person who makes the community better."

The key, Hammers said, is ensuring the budget remains under control. Cutting taxes for some could mean nothing more than transferring the expense to others, she said, which makes spending control crucial.

Still, she said, she was optimistic the group could reach some sort of agreement to help the segments of the population most in need of a break.

"I think it would be a good idea to correlate tax relief programs with the length of time people have lived in town," she said. "Say there is a senior who can't afford to stay here anymore, but has paid taxes in town for 40 or 50 years. Do we want to force them out?"