Senior tax work-off
lunenburgbudgetproject.org — written by the Lunenburg Budget Project, an independent tool for residents. Not affiliated with the Town of Lunenburg, the School Committee or the school district. The data this page is computed from: /data/topics/senior-tax-work-off.json
Seniors in the work-off fell from 16 in 2010 to 6 in 2025, while the cap rose from $750 to $1,500.
How a season is counted
A season runs from 1 January to 1 November. What a senior earns comes off the third-quarter tax bill of the next fiscal year, so the 2016 season is charged to FY2017.
Since 2014 a senior in the program is paid as a town employee, and federal tax, Medicare and retirement are withheld. It is the net pay that is credited, so the cap is the most a senior can earn, not the reduction on the bill.
Every figure here is a total for all participants. No participant is named and no one’s amount is shown.
| Count a record prints | Our sum of two approvals | |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 16 | not published |
| 2011 | 13 | not published |
| 2012 | not published | 13 |
| 2013 | not published | not published |
| 2014 | 12 | not published |
| 2015 | 9 | not published |
| 2016 | 11 | not published |
| 2017 | 9 | not published |
| 2018 | 8 | not published |
| 2019 | 7 | not published |
| 2020 | 7 | not published |
| 2021 | 6 | not published |
| 2022 | 8 | not published |
| 2023 | 11 | not published |
| 2024 | 9 | not published |
| 2025 | 6 | not published |
No count is published for 2013. 2012 is our sum of the Assessors’ two approvals.
| Before withholding | After withholding | Basis not stated | Ours: hours times the rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | not published | not published | $10,500.00 | not published |
| 2011 | not published | not published | $8,766.00 | not published |
| 2012 | not published | not published | $9,520.00 | not published |
| 2013 | not published | not published | not published | not published |
| 2014 | not published | not published | $9,402.50 | not published |
| 2015 | not published | not published | not published | $8,655.00 |
| 2016 | not published | not published | $8,372.50 | not published |
| 2017 | not published | not published | not published | $8,620.00 |
| 2018 | not published | not published | $7,712.50 | not published |
| 2019 | not published | not published | $8,761.00 | not published |
| 2020 | not published | not published | $6,678.84 | not published |
| 2021 | not published | not published | $4,853.25 | not published |
| 2022 | not published | $7,550.82 | not published | not published |
| 2023 | not published | not published | $9,363.65 | not published |
| 2024 | $9,607.50 | not published | not published | not published |
| 2025 | $4,406.25 | not published | not published | not published |
One total a season. The 2023 figure is printed as “under” it. Two seasons have a second, different total: see below.
What it means: The totals are not one series. Since 2014 the credit is pay net of withholding, and the reports print some years before it, one after it and most without saying, so a change between two colours is not a measured change.
| Hours a report prints | |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 865.50 hours |
| 2016 | 837.25 hours |
| 2017 | 862.00 hours |
| 2018 | 771.25 hours |
| 2019 | 837.25 hours |
| 2020 | 523.75 hours |
| 2021 | 359.50 hours |
| 2022 | 587.25 hours |
| 2023 | not published |
| 2024 | 640.50 hours |
| 2025 | 293.75 hours |
Before 2015, only rough totals with no season named: over 1,500 (FY2011 report), over 900 (FY2014 report). None is printed for 2023.
What it means: Total hours fell from 865.50 in 2015 to 293.75 in 2025, and the two earlier rough totals are higher still. No report says how they split between departments.
The cap and the hourly rate, season by season
- A record states it for that season
- Between two seasons that state it: our reading
- The record is unclear
▼ a vote that changed it ┆ Paid as wages from 2014: the net is credited
Most one senior could earn
Up to $750
Council on Aging and committee minutes; the 2014 season paid “anywhere between” the two caps.
Up to $1,000
The committee voted in January 2014 to take it to Town Meeting; no Town Meeting vote is held.
Up to $1,500
Select Board vote, April 2019; in force from July 2019, mid-season.
Hourly rate
$8 an hour, ours
Ours: $750 for 93.75 hours, from the committee’s 2011 minutes.
$10 an hour
$12, then minimum wage
The committee moved the rate to minimum wage in March 2020; the cap stayed.
$15 an hour
No rate is printed for 2012, 2013, 2014, 2021, 2023. The FY2022 report prints $15 as the rate when it was written, not the rate paid in 2022.
Departments that took part, as each report lists them
- Listed in that season’s report
- No program section that year
▼ the event
Department or board
Council on Aging
Public Library
Building and zoning
Board of Health
Public works and sewer
Treasurer and tax collector
Assessors
Schools
Select Board
Facilities and grounds
Fire
Police
The grouping of names is ours: Treasurer, Tax Collector and Treasurer/Tax Collector are one row. No report says how many hours each department received. Before 2015 they name only the school system and “various town departments”.
1 · The facts
16
seniors who finished the 2010 season
6
seniors who took part in the 2025 season
$1,500
most one senior can earn in a season, since July 2019
$10,500.00
taken off tax bills for the 2010 season
$4,406.25
earned in 2025, before withholding
$9,000.00
the most 6 seniors could earn in 2025: ours
our estimate
865.50
hours worked in 2015, all departments
293.75
hours worked in 2025, all departments
12
applicants the Assessors had money for, April 2019
6
seniors working for the town that month
—
hours worked in each department, any season
not published
—
seniors, hours and dollars for the 2013 season
not published
2 · What it shows
- 1
16 seniors finished the 2010 season; 6 took part in 2025.
What it means: The program reaches fewer households than in its first recorded year. No record held says why, and nothing here tests a reason.
- 2
The cap doubled, from $750 to $1,500; a season’s total fell from $10,500.00 to $4,406.25.
What it means: A larger cap has not raised what comes off tax bills in total: the total follows the number of people taking part.
- 3
In 2025, 6 seniors earned $4,406.25 of the $9,000.00 their caps allowed.
What it means: Together they earned about half of it. Whether for lack of hours or by choice, no record held says.
- 4
In April 2019 the Assessors had money for 12 applicants; 6 seniors were working.
What it means: That year money was not what limited the program. What did, the minutes do not show.
| Seniorsnot from the books | Hoursnot from the books | Departments listednot from the books | Tax reductionnot from the books | Before or after withholdingnot from the books | Sourcenot from the books | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 16 (about 14 credited) | $10,500.00 | not stated | Board of Assessors; Council on Aging | ||
| 2011 | 13 | $8,766.00 | not stated | Board of Assessors; Senior Tax Work-Off Committee | ||
| 2012 | 13 (our sum) | $9,520.00 or $8,720.00 (ours) | not stated | Board of Assessors | ||
| 2013 | Senior Tax Work-Off Committee | |||||
| 2014 | 12 | $9,402.50 | not stated | Board of Assessors; Council on Aging | ||
| 2015 | 9 | 865.5 | 7 | $8,655.00 (ours) | before withholding | Annual report |
| 2016 | 11 | 837.25 | 9 | $8,372.50 | not stated | Annual report; Senior Tax Work-Off Committee |
| 2017 | 9 | 862 | 8 | $8,620.00 (ours) | before withholding | Annual report |
| 2018 | 8 | 771.25 | 6 | $7,712.50 | not stated | Annual report |
| 2019 | 7 | 837.25 | 5 | $8,761.00 | not stated | Annual report |
| 2020 | 7 | 523.75 | 7 | $6,678.84 | not stated | Annual report; Council on Aging |
| 2021 | 6 | 359.5 | 5 | $4,853.25 | not stated | Annual report |
| 2022 | 8 | 587.25 | 5 | $7,550.82 | after withholding | Annual report |
| 2023 | 11 | under $9,363.65 | not stated | Board of Assessors | ||
| 2024 | 9 | 640.5 | 6 | $9,607.50 or $9,674.50 | before withholding or not stated | Annual report; Board of Assessors |
| 2025 | 6 | 293.75 | 5 | $4,406.25 | before withholding | Annual report |
| FY2011 report, season not stated | 13 | over 1,500 | Annual report | |||
| FY2014 report, season not stated | 11 | over 900 | Annual report |
As printed. “Ours” marks a figure we computed: hours times the printed rate, or two approvals added. A blank is not published in any record held.
Where two town records disagree
The 2010 season, seniors
The 2012 season, dollars
The 2024 season, dollars
The year the town adopted it
What it means: Each pair is shown as printed. Nothing held says which is right, and we do not average them.
What no record held answers
Hours in each department, for any season: every report prints one total.
The 2013 season, and the 2023 season’s hours and departments: neither annual report has the program’s section.
Whether the totals for 2018 to 2021 are before or after withholding, and what 2022 was before it.
Which account pays the credits. The Assessors’ minutes say “likely” the overlay, and ask.
When Town Meeting accepted the program, and whether it voted the 2014 move to $1,000.
Two annual reports, FY2011 and FY2014, count 13 and 11 seniors with no season stated; they are in the table, not the charts.
Sources
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2011-05-03
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2011-12-06
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2012-12-04
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2013-03-05
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2013-05-14
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2013-12-10
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2015-05-05
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2024-02-26
- Town of Lunenburg — Board of Assessors minutes, 2026-02-04
- Town of Lunenburg — Council on Aging minutes, 2010-01-12
- Town of Lunenburg — Council on Aging minutes, 2010-12-14
- Town of Lunenburg — Council on Aging minutes, 2014-11-18
- Town of Lunenburg — Council on Aging minutes, 2020-03-10
- Town of Lunenburg — Select Board minutes, 2019-03-05
- Town of Lunenburg — Select Board minutes, 2019-04-16
- Town of Lunenburg — Senior Tax Work-Off Committee minutes, 2011-11-14
- Town of Lunenburg — Senior Tax Work-Off Committee minutes, 2014-01-27
- Town of Lunenburg — Senior Tax Work-Off Committee minutes, 2016-11-15
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2011 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2014 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2015 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2016 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2017 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2018 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2019 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2020 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2021 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2022 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2025 (the program's own section)
- Town of Lunenburg — Annual Town Report, FY2024 (the program's own section)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — senior-tax-workoff.csv (every figure, its cite and the text found there)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — senior-tax-workoff-departments.csv (each department as printed, and our grouping)