Senior Circuit Breaker Tax Credit Seminar

Senator Richard Ross (R-Wrentham),
Representative Elizabeth A. Poirier (R-North Attleboro), and Representative
Paul R. Heroux (D-Attleboro) are pleased to announce that an informational
seminar on the Senior Circuit Breaker Tax Credit will be held at the Senior Center
in Attleboro on Monday, February 24th at 10:00AM. They will be
joined by Brian Lynch of the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. 

“The Senior Circuit Breaker Tax
Credit provides much-needed relief to Massachusetts seniors,” said Senator
Ross. “I encourage all interested constituents to attend this seminar and learn
more about how they can benefit from this fundamental program.” 

Representative Poirier said, “This
is yet another opportunity that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts provides for
our seniors to obtain a tax break. All eligible seniors should take advantage
of this well-deserved tax credit.” 

“I hope that my constituents take
advantage of this program.  Often,
programs like this go underutilized because they are unknown.  I am proud to advertise it with the members
of the Attleboro delegation,” said Representative Heroux. 

The Senior Circuit Breaker is a tax
credit for senior citizens whose property payments account for more than 10% of
their annual income. Eligible seniors will receive a dollar credit on their
Massachusetts tax return for every dollar that their total property tax, water
and sewer bills exceed 10% of their income. A maximum of $1030 credit is
available. Additionally, if the taxpayer has not claimed the tax credit in the
past, (s) he may claim it for the previous three years.

To be eligible, taxpayers, aged 65
years or older, must own or rent their residence in Massachusetts, and have an
annual income of: $55,000 or less for a single filer; $69,000 or less for a
head of household; and $82,000 or less for joint filers. If a taxpayer’s
property is assessed at over $700,000, (s) he is not eligible for the tax
credit. 

In 2012, the Circuit Breaker Tax
Credit provided $66 million in credits to nearly 8,000 eligible taxpayers.