Skip to main content
S3262aaProperty

Taxation-Property Subject to Taxation - Glocester - Exemption of Elderly and Disabled Persons

This bill updates property tax exemptions for elderly and disabled residents in Glocester, allowing the town to set specific limits.

Introduced37 Yea0 Nay1 Not voting
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced May 5, 2026Committee Senate Housing & Municipal Government

Plain-English Summary

This bill updates property tax exemption rules for elderly and disabled residents in Glocester. It replaces previous fixed tax credit amounts with a new system, giving the town council flexibility to set exemptions by ordinance. Under the new rules, residents aged 65 and older, or those who are permanently disabled, can receive a base property tax exemption up to $2,070, adjusted annually for inflation. Residents 80 and older can receive an additional exemption up to $1,000. It also allows the town to establish specific residency, ownership, and income requirements for these tax breaks.

For younger readers

This bill changes how the town of Glocester gives property tax breaks to older adults and people with disabilities. Property taxes are money people pay to the town for owning a home. The bill lets the town leaders decide the exact rules for these discounts. For example, people who are 65 or older, or who have a permanent disability, can get a discount of up to $2,070 on their tax bill. People who are 80 or older can get an extra $1,000 off. The town can also make rules about how long someone must live there to get the discount.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Elderly property ownersDisabled property ownersGlocester residentsGlocester town councilTaxpayers in Glocester
Impacted communities
Glocester

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Provides direct financial relief to vulnerable populations, specifically the elderly and permanently disabled, helping them afford to remain in their homes.
  • Indexes the base tax exemption to inflation (CPI-U), ensuring that the value of the tax relief does not erode over time as the cost of living increases.
  • Grants the local government flexibility to implement variable income exemptions, allowing the town to tailor tax relief to protect lower-income residents based on financial need.
  • Removes income limitations for the standard age-based exemptions, meaning wealthy elderly residents receive the same tax break as low-income seniors, which is regressive.
  • Allows the town to establish strict residency requirements, which could exclude newer residents or marginalized individuals who recently moved to the area from receiving necessary tax relief.
  • Reduces local property tax revenues, which could potentially lead to funding cuts for critical municipal public services like schools, infrastructure, or community programs.
For Conservatives
  • Reduces the overall tax burden on property owners, allowing senior citizens and disabled individuals to keep more of their hard-earned money.
  • Decentralizes government power by giving the local town council, rather than the state, the authority to set specific rules and eligibility criteria for tax exemptions.
  • Eliminates income caps for the new standard exemptions, avoiding the penalization of financial success and providing tax relief to seniors regardless of wealth.
  • Creates a complex web of variable local tax rules, residency requirements, and grandfathering clauses, increasing bureaucratic administration and regulatory complexity.
  • Shifts the local tax burden onto younger, working-class property owners and businesses who must make up the municipal revenue shortfall caused by these targeted exemptions.
  • Mandates a non-compounded methodology for inflation adjustments, which could slowly erode the real value of the tax exemption during periods of sustained high inflation.

Votes

Loading votes...

Full Bill Text

2 versions
Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 51 additions · 20 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 44-3-13.5 of the General Laws in Chapter 44-3 entitled "Property Subject to Taxation" is hereby amended to read as follows: 44-3-13.5. Glocester — Exemption of elderly and disabled persons.

(a) The town council of Glocester may, by ordinance, issue a tax credit for real property situated in the town of Glocester which is owned and occupied by owners over sixty-five (65) years of age or under sixty-five (65) years of age who are permanently disabled in an amount of one thousand one hundred fifty dollars ($1,150) adjusted annually by the rate of the annual tax increase, if any, times the per one thousand dollar ($1,000) average valuation of the exempted real properties and in like manner may also by ordinance issue a tax credit for real property situated in the town which is owned and occupied by owners with a combined adjusted gross taxable annual income not to exceed twenty-three thousand dollars ($23,000) adjusted annually by the consumer price index — all urban customers (CPI-U) published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor as set forth in the following schedule:

(1) Owners who are sixty-five (65) but less than eighty (80) years of age: — an additional tax credit not to exceed one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500);

(2) Owners who are eighty (80) years of age or older: — an additional tax credit not to exceed four thousand five hundred ($4,500).

(b) The exemption shall be pro-rated among the owners of the real property and shall be in addition to any and all other exemptions from taxation to which the person may be otherwise entitled. The exemption shall be applied uniformly. Only one exemption shall be granted to co- tenants, joint tenants, and tenants by the entirety, even though all of the co-tenants, joint tenants, and tenants by the entirety are eligible for an exemption. The provisions of this section apply notwithstanding the provisions of § 44-3-15. Notwithstanding any provision of the general laws to the contrary, the town of Glocester may, by ordinance, provide for exemptions or tax credits for real property situated in the town and owned and occupied by qualified persons as follows:

(1) The town council may establish exemptions or tax credits for real property owned and occupied by qualified persons including, but not limited to:

(i) A base exemption for real property owned and occupied by persons sixty-five (65) years of age or older, or under sixty-five (65) years of age who are permanently disabled, in an amount not to exceed two thousand seventy dollars ($2,070), which amount shall be adjusted annually by the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U). The town may, by ordinance, establish and modify the required length of legal residency within the town of Glocester as a condition of eligibility for this exemption including, but not limited to, minimum consecutive years of residency immediately preceding application.

(ii) An additional exemption for real property owned and occupied by persons eighty (80) years of age or older, in an amount not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000), which amount may be adjusted by ordinance. The town of Glocester may, by ordinance, establish and modify the required length of residency within the town for eligibility for this exemption, as well as any required duration of ownership and occupancy of the subject property.

(iii) A minimum tax provision requiring that any qualified owner-occupant receiving an exemption shall pay not less than a minimum annual tax amount as may be established by ordinance.

(iv) A variable income exemption for qualified owner-occupants who received such exemption prior to a date established by ordinance, with income thresholds, exclusions, and administration as established by ordinance, including annual verification requirements.

(v) Authority to adjust income eligibility thresholds annually based on the CPI-U or a regional equivalent, as provided by ordinance.

(vi) No income limitation shall apply to exemptions granted under subsections (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) of this section for applicants qualifying after a date established by ordinance.

(b) Consumer price index (CPI) adjustments shall be calculated using a non-compounded methodology, applying each annual percentage change solely to the original base amount.

(c) The town council may, by ordinance, establish and enforce all qualifications and eligibility criteria including, but not limited to:

(1) Age requirements;

(2) Length of residency within the town, including authority to set different residency requirements for different exemption categories;

(3) Ownership and occupancy requirements, including principal residence limitations;

(4) Legal domicile requirements;

(5) Disability status and verification, including physician certification;

(6) Income and asset limitations, including definitions and exclusions;

(7) Duration of ownership or occupancy of the property;

(8) Grandfathering provisions or date-based eligibility distinctions;

(9) Household composition or co-ownership considerations;

(10) Application procedures, deadlines, and renewal requirements;

(11) Documentation and verification requirements; and

(12) Any other reasonable qualification or administrative standard necessary to implement the exemptions.

(d) The exemptions shall be prorated among the owners, applied uniformly, limited to one exemption per property, and shall be in addition to any other exemptions otherwise authorized.

(e) This section shall apply notwithstanding the provisions of § 44-3-15.

(f) The exemptions authorized herein may be provided in addition to, in lieu of, or in combination with any other exemptions authorized by law or ordinance.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage and shall apply to assessments as of December 31, 2025, and thereafter, for use in the tax roll for fiscal year 2026–2027 and thereafter.