State Delegation/Mayor Celebrate Expanded Tax and Fee Deferral Program

BOSTON—Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur, Representative Kate Lipper-Garabedian, and Senator Jason Lewis celebrated the passage of legislation to allow the City of Melrose to expand the City’s property tax and fee deferral program to additional older residents. After being introduced by Mayor Paul Brodeur and unanimously passed by the City Council, this proposal was brought to the State House where it was passed by the Legislature and signed by Governor Baker at the start of January.

Under the previous program, income-eligible Melrose seniors aged 65 and older could defer property taxes, water and sewer fees, and trash fees with a modest interest rate until the property was sold or the owners passed away. This legislation expands this deferral option to income-eligible Melrose residents aged 60 and older, and increases the maximum annual income amount for eligibility from $45,000 to $60,000 to enable more senior residents to consider this deferral option.

"I am delighted to work with Representative Lipper-Garabedian and Senator Lewis to support our lower-income older adults who experience day-to-day challenges as a result of their financial conditions,” said Mayor Paul Brodeur. “Many are living on a fixed income, forcing them to delay retirement or make other difficult choices to stay in their homes. The passage of this law, which I first introduced to the City Council shortly after taking office in 2019, represents my commitment to relieving our longest-standing Melrose residents from these financial burdens.”

“I am pleased to have ushered through this local policy to empower more of the City’s seniors to age in the communities and homes they love,” said State Representative Kate Lipper-Garabedian. “The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced how critical – and, for far too many, tenuous – housing stability is. In my role last session as Vice Chair of the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs, this point was underscored in the context of the Commonwealth’s aging population. I’m proud to partner with the City to look for opportunities to support the housing needs of our senior population.”

“Rising property taxes and fees have created serious financial burdens for many of Melrose’s elderly residents,” said State Senator Jason Lewis. “I’m grateful to Mayor Brodeur and Representative Lipper-Garabedian and very pleased that we were able to secure the passage of this important legislation that will provide assistance and relief to more Melrose residents.”

To learn more about the exemption and to access the application, visit the City of Melrose website at www.cityofmelrose.org/assessor, and for questions, contact the Assessor's Office at 781-979-4104 or assessors@cityofmelrose.org.