Reader to Reader

To The Editor:

In SU (Vol. IV No. 22 10/1/2023) Patrick White's Selectman's Report makes valid points on the potential value of the Senior Tax Work Off Town Abatement program as a tool to help eligible house-rich, cash-strapped elderly reduce their real estate taxes by allowing them to work for one of the town departments "earning" $15.00 per hour up to about 100 hours for a cap of $1,500 per year (as of 1/25/23)".

The Select Board's discussion, with Administrator Mike Canales, on the adoption of this program shows they recognize the problem that 'being over-housed" causes when increasing amounts of seniors' fixed incomes must be spent on taxes. It creates stress as they decide if they can eat, buy medicine, pay utility bills, transportation costs, or other bills.

I would like to add my voice to support of the Senior Tax Work-off Program.

This program helps the people in less-than-golden years, the people who built our community, the people living with financial stress, an embarrassment they may even hide from their children.

MA General Laws Senior Tax Program spells out the town's responsibilities for administrating the program by first having it adopted by the majority of voters at a town meeting. We can vote on this Senior Tax Work-off Program at the October 23rd Special Town Meeting and also on the proposed merger of the two school districts. If the program is approved the voters will have an opportunity to participate in the discussions the selectmen are required to conduct on the amount of the exemption, the jobs the town will have available, the application process, etc.

Many times, infighting, obfuscation, delays, and chaos, develop to defeat a proposed change. Let's build community — understand the needs of our neighbors and decide on the issues.

Christine Rasmussen

To the editor:

Last night I attended our Stockbridge Select Board meeting and I left absolutely shocked and stunned. Why? Last night was the board's annual 'tax classification' hearing.

The tax classification hearing is to determine three issues:

Will Stockbridge have a single tax rate?

Will Stockbridge adopt the Residential Tax Exemption RTE?

Will Stockbridge adopt a Small Commercial Tax Exemption (SCTE)?

The SB approved the single rate and the SCTE but voted down the RTE.

Other MA towns in which property values were driven up by second homeowners have adopted RTE. It allows primary property owners to exempt up to 35% from their assessed property values and they are taxed on that amount.

In order, however, to satisfy the town's total tax 'levy' the difference is spread out among the part time homeowners' assessments.

I grew up in Stockbridge and have been here for most of the past 70 years. Over those years I have agreed with some select board members and disagreed with others, but I have never seen anything as absurd as this. It is the full-time residents who elect these members to the Select Board. RTE gives full time residents (aka voters) a break on taxes driven up second homeowners.

After last night's meeting I could not help but wonder, 'Do they really understand what they just voted down? And at meetings I don't attend or zoom into, what else don't they understand?'

What is very strange to me is that I worked hard, even bought lawn signs (for one), and rallied voters to vote all three into office. By no means was I alone in this effort.

I went to the post office today. While there and at the coffee shop I was approached by three different voters who said, "Do Chuckie and Jamie have any idea what their job is and who voted them into office?"

Those three implied that because of the work I did to get them into office, this was my fault. If it is, I am very sorry for my campaign efforts to get them elected. In the future, however, I will drill down much deeper into candidates to find out if they will truly be representatives of the residents and voters in Stockbridge.

I was hoping that any efforts by me in this regard were suspended for a while. I guess it's time to begin looking for two more candidates as I alluded to upon departing last night's meeting.

John H. Hart

To the Editor:

I attended the last select board meeting as the annual Tax Classification Hearing was on the agenda. The tax assessor presented three options very clearly and showed how the Massachusetts Adjusted Tax Exemption Rate and the Adjusted Business Tax Rate would benefit the town residents. Several people spoke in favor of the Residential Tax Exemption. No one spoke against it at the meeting. Yet when it came to a vote, the majority voted against it. Only one voted for it. The Selectmen are elected to do what is best for the town residents so why are they against us? I don't believe that the two who voted against it should be Selectmen. They do not care about the residents of this town.

Shirley Franz Miller

Photo: Carole Owens