New COA member appointed
The selectmen voted unanimously this week to appoint Suzanne Roberts to the Council on Aging Board of Directors. A relative newcomer to town, Roberts is a geriatric social worker with Cooperative Elder Services, an adult daycare center in West Groton. Her appointment brings the COA board up to its full complement of nine members.
2013 tax work-off program set to go
The 2013 senior tax work-off program will operate under new guidelines that could save participants up to $1,000 off their property tax bills. But because the town allotment for the program remains at $10,000, the COA might have to impose income restrictions for the first time if more than 10 residents apply. Lower-income applicants will have first priority.
In previous years, the rebate limit was $750 per household, and seniors could work up to 93.75 hours. This year, participants can work up to 125 hours each; if they work fewer hours, the rebate amount will be pro-rated accordingly at the rate of $8 per hour. To qualify for the program, residents must be at least 60 years old as of the start of the fiscal year, July 1, 2012, and must have owned the property for at least a year prior to that date. Only one abatement is allowed per fiscal year on any property, which must be the participant’s primary residence.
In 2012, 22 residents signed up for the program, but not all of them earned the full rebate. Work-off jobs included clearing conservation trails and checking stickers at the boat ramp as well as helping out at the library, the schools, the COA, and the town land-use office.
Applications for the Senior Tax Work-off Program are available online at the Council on Aging website or at Hildreth House, 13 Ayer Road. They must be completed and returned by Feb. 28, 2013.
On the road with COA
Call the COA office at 978-456-4120 for more details or to sign up for trips.
- Friday, Feb. 8. At the Harvard Museum of Natural History and Peabody Museum of Archeology, seniors will see prehistoric bones of animals from the time of the dinosaurs, meteorites from outer space, and a collection of 3,000 glass flowers at adjacent museums at Harvard University. Lunch is in Harvard Square at Fire & Ice. The trip will leave Hildreth House at 8 a.m. and return by 3 p.m. The cost is $20, plus lunch.
