Educational sessions for eligible residents are being planned this year as the Hempfield supervisors on Monday enacted a senior tax rebate program.
Township Manager Aaron Siko said the sessions will include information about the program and offer help filling out applications.
“We have strategy in place to disseminate information into the community,” he said, including through “Headlining Hempfield,” the township website and tax bill mailings.
The township supervisors approved an ordinance Monday to create the program. Officials proposed it along with a 3-mill fire tax that was added this year to fund the fire department. That doubled the millage rate to 6 mills and, in turn, doubled property tax bills starting this year.
The additional fire tax revenue is expected to solely fund the $1.95 million public safety department. Three mills of taxes brings in about $1.6 million.
Hempfield’s property tax levy hadn’t been changed since 1990.
The rebate cost to the township will be an estimated $85,000 to $140,000 taken out of the $1.6 million in property tax revenue.
For residents who qualify, it will essentially wipe out the cost of the added 3-mill fire tax, keeping their property tax bills steady.
“We’re offering a path for our seniors to maintain the same level of taxes that they were paying in previous years,” said Supervisor Doug Weimer.
To qualify:
• At least one property owner must be 65 or older as of Jan. 1 of the tax year for which the rebate is being requested.
• The applicant has to have owned and lived in the home for at least five consecutive years.
• All township property taxes must be paid in full with no delinquencies.
• A resident must meet income guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Homeowners have to apply for the rebate annually. Siko said property tax bills must be paid on time before the rebate is sought.
The deadline to apply for a rebate will be July 31.
“It was an opportunity that the board wanted to move forward to continue to keep Hempfield Township an affordable place for seniors who call Hempfield home,” Siko said.
Information about the rebate program will be on the township website.
Township property tax bills will be mailed March 1. They are collected in March and April at a 2% discount. A 10% penalty is added July 1, according to the tax collector.
Siko said he is planning for the educational sessions between the March 1 mailing and July 31 deadline for rebate applications.
