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Brighton board reviews aged-income property-tax exemption; staff outlines timelines and impacts
Summary
Deputy Superintendent Lou Alaimo presented scenarios for changing the district ged-income (senior) property-tax exemption, showing modest per-household impacts and emphasizing a need to verify town timelines and hold a public hearing before any change.
Deputy Superintendent Lou Alaimo told the Brighton Central School District Board of Education on Oct. 1 that the board has authority mainly over the tax levy while certain exemptions affect the district nd that recent state changes allow local boards to raise the aged-income exemption limit up to $50,000.
Alaimo presented a technical analysis of the district—xemption profile and several scenarios the board could consider. He said the aged-income exemption value has grown—y about $3,000,000 since 2021 and that, at current levels, the exemption reduces the tax base by roughly 0.5 percent; the town—igure is higher (about 0.9 percent). Using a $200,000 taxable-value example, Alaimo said the current district-level impact is about $27 on the annual tax bill; adopting the town pproach could raise that impact to roughly $41 (he also outlined a scenario with a $50,000 limit that would produce different totals).
"We were currently at limits, and I don't think we've revisited since 2014," Alaimo said, describing the earlier income thresholds and how the 2023 law expanded local options. He cautioned that changing thresholds could increase applications and that the numbers in his slides are estimates of magnitude rather than definitive totals.
A resident who spoke during public comment, Mary, said she moved to Brighton for the schools and asked the board to consider aligning the town and school district income ceilings so seniors on limited incomes would benefit. "An extra thousand dollars a year does make a big difference," she said.
Board members thanked Mary for raising the matter and described next steps. One board member said staff would gather more information and that a public hearing would be required before any change; Alaimo added that the board should verify town deadlines for finalizing exemptions and that any district changes would likely be felt in the 2025-26 tax year if the timetable were tight.
No formal vote was taken; the presentation was informational and the board signaled they wanted more analysis before making policy changes.
