Bill > H4469

This bill authorizes the town of Westford, Massachusetts to establish a means-tested senior citizen property tax exemption. The key provisions include: 1) Defining "parcel" as a unit of real property and "income" as the taxpayer's total income for the purposes of the circuit breaker income tax credit. 2) Providing an exemption from property tax equal to the total tax less 10% of the applicant's income, the circuit breaker income tax credit, and any other statutory exemptions, not to exceed 50% of the property tax. 3) Establishing eligibility criteria, such as an income limit, age requirements, domicile requirements, and maximum assessed value of the property. 4) Capping the total exemptions granted under this act at 0.25% of the town's total residential property tax levy, with a process to allocate benefits if the cap is exceeded. 5) Requiring annual application for the exemption. 6) Specifying that the exemption cannot be implemented until the Department of Revenue certifies the residential tax rate. 7) Requiring the town to vote to accept the act and allowing for future revocation of the exemption. 8) Providing a 3-year sunset provision for the exemption.

Joint Committee on Revenue (Joint)

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/191/H4469