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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-05-29-REPSC-min.attach.notes Public Hearing of the Residential Exemption Policy Study Committee (Ad Hoc) Public Comment Tuesday, May 29, 2018 Estabrook Room, Cary Memorial Building Call to order 7:OOPM LexMedia (Ryan) is recording/live Introduction of Committee members Mr Zhao Hearing timeline Mr Pato Committee background& charge, role of the audience Mr Cloth personal testimony Mr Andersen main presentation Ms Cutler and Mr Zhao managed Q&A, Open comment Question & Answer portion "Who votes on this proposal[whether RE is implemented]?"The Selectmen would decide whether to use RE in Lexington, not voters, not Town Meeting. Tax levies such as Proposition 2 1/2 and Debt Exclusion require public votes, this does not. "Who determines what the increase in tax rate will be?Is it the voters?I thought that voters need to approve any rate increases. Thanks. "Also "Do the Selectmen have to renew the program annually? Can the Town Meeting make the decision to change or discontinue the program?" Town meeting sets the town budget annually, Selectmen set the tax rate to meet the budget. RE would be revenue neutral, so Selectmen would be setting the RE rate. "What data is available on the proportion of family units living in condos having difficulty paying property taxes?"We do not have difficulty paying data for any of these property classes. It is a question central to this Committee's focus, however. "7f a home is owned by a revocable trust and the grantor is a resident, is it owner-occupied?" It depends on how the trust is written. Generally, if the trust lists you as a trustee and you have a beneficial interest, then yes. For Medicaid trusts,however, a life-state would have to be specified in the trust, and most Medicaid trusts seem not to. There exist 1400 homes owned in trust in town, and each would have to be looked at individually. Each lawyer writes trust language differently. This would be a lot of start-up work for assessors. There is no legal counsel on this committee! Having your attorney consult with the assessor would be the best course for determining how your trust's eligibility would be determined. "Can Town expenses be significantly reduced by having town employees and teachers join Group Insurance Commission health care and pay a similar percent to State employees (25010)?" Town employees have been participants in the Group Insurance Commission(GIS) program since 2012, and this question is beyond the scope of tonight's hearing. "It was mentioned... 'if the homeowner applies for the exemption..., 'but isn't the exemption applied to all owner-occupied properties?"Yes, there is one number (exemption) that would be applied to all owner-occupied properties, Part of implementing RE would be determining which properties are owner-occupied. The mechanism for determining whether a home is actually owner-occupied might be through an application process. How verification of ownership and residency would work has not yet been ironed out because we don't know if RE is actually going to be enacted or not. Verification processes vary among the towns and cities that have enacted RE. Some require proof of homeowner insurance, driver's license, other forms of verifying residency. RE first became available in 1979, with most of the communities that use it having done so for most of this time. Everett, however, was a recent adopter, and it took a couple years to get all qualifying properties because in the first year, not everyone was aware of the new policy and didn't provide the required information. "Do we have enough Selectmen to handle this task every year?How often do they meet?"We have five Selectmen. Members of the volunteer board are elected for 3-year terms on a rotating basis with two members one year, two the next, and one in the third year of the cycle. However, professional staff, not Selectmen would be doing the detailed work to implement RE, should the Selectmen choose to use it. Choosing the policy is the sole responsibility of Selectmen, not Town Meeting. "What info/data does the Committee need to gather to determine whether RE would help Lexington residents stay in their homes?"This is a very difficult answer to determine. Survey could be one approach but has limitations (response rate, embarrassment at sharing challenges in paying taxes). "Benefits arise as the assessed value falls further below break-even. Is there a way to limit increases in assessed value and/or the tax rate such that the benefits of the exemption are eliminated or reversed in the future?"No, the State would not agree to unequally applied assessments. Assessments have to track market values of properties. Every year, the break-even point is recalculated. "Can you have an exemption without the owner-occupied provision?Essentially, can you apply it holistically to ALL properties?" Within the State law allowing residential exemptions, no. There may be other means of mitigation for tax burden, but not discussing them tonight. "Do towns have the power to adopt a graduated income tax and wouldn't that be more closely tied to need?"Towns cannot institute income tax in MA. Property tax is good for towns because property value doesn't fluctuate like income does. Property tax helps us have stable town services, when state aid is more volatile. "What about elders in larger homes on a fixed income?"If you are in a home above the break- even point, then taxes would increase. RE does not provide assistance for an older couple in a $1.6mil home. This program is really intended to help those in small- to mid-sized homes. Not those in large homes. This is a blunt instrument—it does not look at ability to pay at all, that's not an allowed aspect of this program per state law. There are other, existing programs that do provide assistance that are not currently serving very many people. Being able to give means- based assistance requires applying to State Legislature for Home Rule Petition. The 3 things that really affect how RE raises or lowers an individual's property tax are: 1) exemption rate selected 2) the difference between the assessed value of your property and the average assessed value of all residential properties, and 3) the percent of residential properties that are owner-occupied. Adjustments to the RE rate are made annually. Open Comments portion: Pat Costello, Preston Rd. She co-chairs the Selecmen's Tax Deferral and Exemption Study Committee with Ms Blier. How many houses would we keep in town if RE implemented? Wants people to be aware of circuit breaker resource (if you are >65, home value<$, and income <$, other requirements, can receive a refundable credit from State)-487 households that qualified for this—meaning low income and house value $693k. Not everyone who is eligible is aware of this program. Frank Sandy, TM p6—there's not a perfect correlation between ability to pay and any other single parameter. But there is a good correlation between house value and ability to pay, same with income. This is a proposal that those who can afford to pay are more likely to pay more of the tax burden, and will help those in smaller houses, who are more likely to be poor. Strong endorsement of implementing RE. Losing elders to get young families increases town expenses b/c is leads to more lads in the schools. Pamela Tames, Bertwell Rd. Pleased and grateful the Selectmen and this Committee are considering this issue of helping those in modest size houses to stay in town. She has been here for years, raising 3 kids, and wants to stay here, and worries in future she may not be able to because of increasing taxes. Gloria Bloom–She doesn't think RE would make much difference one way or another for most of the people she knows. She mentioned means-testing, might help those who need help without raising the ire of developers and others who would be against RE. Communities that want to provide excellent education need more state and fed funding because that affects everyone and local revenue alone cannot provide the required level of funding. Pat Hillsinger—Muzzy High Condo development. RE would be a wonderful thing for her. She's been here 1 year. She fits into none of the other categories—because one has to be resident 5+ years to qualify. Pat Costello thanked us for the very clear and informative presentation. Public Hearing adjourned 8:15pm.