Banisch: Thanks Residents Who Attended and Approved Senior Tax Relief Program at Special Meeting

By Jack Kramer, Correspondent

MADISON, CT — It took an issue like a senior tax relief program to energize Madison residents. The town has struggled in the past to get enough residents at town meetings to have a quorum – 75 votes are needed.

But that didn’t happen Thursday night – as nearly 300 people jammed a Town Meeting vote, where residents voted 222-57 to approve a senior tax relief program.

First Selectman Tom Banisch said Friday that he “wanted to thank everyone” for turning out. He added there was actually more than 300 people at the meeting, but that some left before all the votes were counted, which is why the total vote count was only 279.

Banisch said the program will go into effect sometime over the next few weeks, once all the paperwork is taken care of.

It’s been over a year in the making but Madison will soon have a senior tax relief program in place.

The plan is something that has been a priority of Banisch since he was first elected to office in 2015.

Once elected, he named a committee to investigate a program to ease the property tax burdens for town seniors most in need.

Banisch said “the intent of the freeze program is to help the neediest seniors in Madison be able to stay in their homes. To that end, both income and property valuation are considered.”

File photo courtesy of WFSB 3 TV and Dennis House