Trumbull Senior Tax Relief Expanded

Expanding Trumbull senior tax relief passed the Town Council over objections to opening it to seniors earning up to $70,000.

Councilwoman Martha Mark called the expansion "insulting to the lower brackets."

She said the lowest-earning seniors are paying for the relief to higher earning seniors.

Her colleague, Fred Palmieri Jr., added, "We're basically doubling senior tax relief."

John DelVecchio Jr. agreed with Mark. "The $70,000 bracket means somebody else is going to have to pay for it," he said. "The $70,000 bracket is a little high and I'd like to see it go away myself."

But council members did acknowledge the need for senior tax relief.

"They need the benefits," said David Pia. "I hope we will have a means testing. I support moving this forward" and tweaking it later, he said.

Chadwick Ciocci noted that Trumbull's median household income is $85,000 to $100,000, and $70,000 is less than that. "We're not talking about rich people," he said.

There were concerns that the expansion adds $600,000, doubling the cost of the current plan. 

Mark concluded, "The correct people are at the bottom, not at the top."