Work off that tax bill
By Diane Beaudoin Journal Correspondent

Ashby Senior Ethel Mattson does some filing while working at Ashby Town Hall. Mattson works three hours a day at different offices in the Town Hall to reduce her tax bill. Journal Photo / Jeffrey W. Boudreau

For the first time, Ashby has implemented a senior tax work-off program to assist with tax bills that can sometime be difficult to pay.

Dondi LaRue, the town's administrative assessor, and secretary for the work-off program said to date, the town has two seniors taking advantage of the money saving opportunity.

"Not everyone is aware we now have this program, and we are hoping to get more seniors involved," La Rue said.

The seniors that are working can save up to $500 on their tax bills by doing things such as filing, alphabetizing, stamping, and working on maps for the town clerk.

The way the program works is department heads notify the assessor's office with needs they have, and when seniors come into to find out about the abatement, they are asked to fill out an application.

"We look for skills to match the needs," La Rue said.

Once a senior is accepted, an interview is set up with the department head, and if an agreement that a match has been made is reached then it becomes a reality. La Rue said the two components to be eligible are the person must be at least 60 years old and meet an income component as well.

"Ashby is a part-time town, so these are all important jobs that may sound mundane, but need to get done. These jobs are very valuable to us," La Rue explained.

Other jobs available are stuffing tax bills, and stamping various pieces of information.

La Rue said Ashby received help on getting the program off the ground from Lunenburg and Ashburnham. Both towns have the abatement program in operation.

"They showed us how it works and helped us get it up and running," she noted.

La Rue said a four-person committee oversees the program, and over the years, they have seen a great deal of seniors coming into town hall and expressing difficulty with paying their bills.

"It averages a saving of $500, per year, per household. Doing the breakdown, it measures out to $6.75 per hour, 74 hours per year, which is three hours per week. It is a wonderful program and we are hoping to get more seniors involved," La Rue said.

Anyone interested in finding out more about the program can call La Rue at (978) 386-2427, extension 15. The assessors office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon.