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APPROPRIATION COMMITTEE-ATM 2017 Article 6: Appropriate for Senior Services Program Funds Requested Funding Source Committee Recommendation $30,000 GF Approve (9-0) This article requests an appropriation for the Town's Senior Service Program of$30,000. This amount is lev- el-funded from the FY2017 request. With the continuation of a trend of steadily declining participation in the program, appropriation at this level has proved more than sufficient to meet the program's needs this year, and there is also a substantial projected carryover balance at the end of the fiscal year of approximately $41,000. However, in view of plans by the Board of Selectmen, following the 2017 Annual Town Meeting, to consider relaxation of eligibility requirements and enhancements in the wage rate and total amount of credits which can be earned in FY2018, appropriation of the full$30,000 requested is recommended. The Senior Service Program Since 2006, the Town has operated its own Senior Service Program, which allows low to moderate income seniors (age 60 and over) to perform volunteer work for the Town in exchange for a reduction in their proper- ty tax. The Town adopted this program, in substitution for a similar program previously operated under G.L. c. 59, § 5K, to allow it more flexibility in setting the age criteria for participation, the wage rate, and the total amount of credit allowed. For more information on the Senior Service Program and other property tax relief options available to seniors, including exemptions and opportunities for deferral,please refer to Appendix D. Benefits and Criteria for Participation Current income eligibility criteria are set forth in Appendix D. Participants may receive property tax reduc- tions under this program in addition to any other exemption for which they qualify, such as the $1,000 Clause 41C exemption, and may also defer the balance of their taxes under Clause 41A if they are eligible to do so. The maximum amount of the tax reduction that may be earned, under guidelines established by the Selectmen and amended in July 2014, is $1,045/year (110 hours at $9.50 per hour) for an individual and $1,330/year (140 hours at $9.50 per hour) for a two-person household toward their property tax bills. It should be noted that the State legislature recently amended G.L. c. 59, §5K, in which the Town no longer participates, to in- crease the limit of earnable credits from $1,000 to $1,500. Funding Requirements and Requested Appropriation The program operates as a continuing balance account, and unexpended funds carry over from year to year. When first established in FY2007, the program was funded at $25,000, an amount slightly higher than the av- erage annual amount that had been expended from an overlay account under the pre-existing §5K program during the 2004-2006 fiscal years. In anticipation of higher usage, the annual appropriation was subsequently increased over time from $36,000 in FY2007 to $45,000 in FY2010. This level of funding, however,proved to be more than required to allow the Town to admit all eligible appli- cants who wished to participate in the program. Although the wage level was increased from $8.50 to $9.50 in FY2014, and income thresholds have also been increased, participation has steadily declined from a high of 34 in FY2007-2008 to 23 in FY2015-2016, to just 16 in FY2017, a decrease of over 50%. To encourage greater participation in this worthy program, this Committee encourages the Selectmen, as it has in past years, to increase the wage rate (currently beneath the State's minimum wage rate of$11 per hour), raise the maximum allowed hours and total credit which may be earned to at least match that allowed under the State law, and/or relax the economic eligibility criteria for participants. The Committee recommends approval of this request(9-0). 22