SEYMOUR — Giving volunteer firefighters and EMTs some extra relief on their annual property taxes will be the subject of a public hearing Dec. 16.
The Board of Selectmen will hold a virtual hearing via ZOOM at 6:45 p.m. Residents can find log-in formation here.
The board at its Dec. 1 meeting voted in favor of increasing the annual tax abatement up to a maximum of $1,500 for volunteer members of Citizens Engine Co., Great Hill Fire Co. and Seymour Ambulance Association. Selectman Patrick Lombardi, president of Citizens, who’s been involved in volunteer firefighting for nearly 40 years, abstained from the vote.
Seymour created an ordinance nearly 20 years ago, creating an abatement program after the state passed a law enabling municipalities to offer such tax breaks. The state recently increased the annual maximum abatement to $2,000. Seymour’s abatement program for volunteers ranged from $500 to $1,000 a year. First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis said boosting the amount to $1,500 should help with recruitment and retention.
“A $1,500 tax abatement to those that meet the criteria is much cheaper than us having a paid fire department,” Drugonis said. “These volunteers are leaving their families on holidays, they’re leaving their families in the middle of the night and during the day to fight fires.”
Drugonis explained the town isn’t just giving money away. Eligibility is based on a points system where volunteers earn annual points based on the amount of training completed, number of calls and drills they attend, length of service, attendance at meetings and involvement in community service.
The tax break would also be extended to retired volunteers, age 65 and older, who have at least 25 years of service with the town’s fire or ambulance departments, and are still active in town. Volunteer service in other towns is not applicable.
The proposed ordinance change can be read in its entirety on the town’s website at Proposed Ordinance Changes (seymourct.org)
Selectman Al Bruno said the abatement serves as a way to not only “encourage volunteer service in the community,” but allows the town to say “thank you” to those who put their lives on the line every day.
Lombardi concurred.
“$1,500 may not sound like a lot, but it is an excellent recruiting and retention tool for the fire department to use,” Lombardi said.
Ambulance Chief Kyle Kelley said there are currently 75 active volunteers, of which about 10 – 15 of them would qualify for the abatement.
“This would be a huge benefit to our members and our community,” Kelley said. “It’s a great way to give back to the volunteers, especially during these crazy times.”
The fire department currently has about 115 volunteers, but it wasn’t immediately known how many may be eligible for the abatement.
