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The Southampton County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously April 22 to authorize conducting public hearings on Tuesday, May 27, in reference to proposed amendments to the county’s Elderly and Disabled Persons Tax Relief Ordinance and the Solid Waste Management Fee Ordinance. 

Southampton County Administrator Brian S. Thrower noted that the amendments to these ordinances had been discussed at the board’s April 16 budget work session and came at the request of Southampton Commissioner of the Revenue Amy B. Carr.

A staff report in the April 22 board meeting packet noted that the ordinance revisions raise the income qualification limit to $45,000, as well as increase the maximum exemption amount. 

The report noted that the meeting packet also included amendments to the Solid Waste Management Fee Ordinance as it related to the exemptions for elderly and disabled persons. 

Both ordinances need to be updated since the income qualifications are tied together, the report stated.

During the April 22 meeting, Thrower said to the board, “Basically, as you remember, the amendments are needed to keep up with the cost-of-living increases and wage increases so that the residents that do qualify for these programs will be able to continue participating in the program.”

The amended Elderly and Disabled Persons Tax Relief Ordinance lists the following as one of the qualifications for grant of exemption:

“The total combined income during the immediately preceding calendar year from all sources of the owners of the dwelling living in the dwelling, and of the owners’ relatives living in the dwelling, shall not exceed forty-five thousand dollars and zero cents ($45,000.00); and the first six thousand five hundred dollars ($6,500.00) of income of each relative living in the dwelling, other than the spouse of the owner, shall not be included in such total.”

The amended Solid Waste Management Fee Ordinance states that a fee exemption, in whole or in part, shall be provided for multiple groups, including qualified residents who are 65 years of age or older or who are permanently and totally disabled that are deemed to be bearing an extraordinary burden in relation to their income and financial worth, subject to restrictions and provisions, one of which is the following:

“The total combined household income during the immediately preceding calendar year from all sources shall not exceed forty-five thousand dollars and zero cents ($45,000.00);”.

The amended Elderly and Disabled Persons Tax Relief Ordinance notes that persons qualifying for and claiming an exemption under “Division 2. Exemptions for Certain Elderly and Disabled Persons” shall be relieved of that portion of the real estate tax levied on the qualifying dwelling and land in the amount calculated in accordance with the following schedule:

• Range of income: $0 — $28,099; Exemption: 100% up to a maximum of $1,250.
• Range of income: $28,099.01 — $33,733; Exemption: 75% up to a maximum of $1,250.
• Range of income: $33,733.01 — $39,367; Exemption: 50% up to a maximum of $1,250.
• Range of income: $39,367.01 — $44,999.99; Exemption: 25% up to a maximum of $1,250.
• Range of income: $45,000 and above; Exemption: 0%.

The amended Solid Waste Management Fee Ordinance states that persons qualifying for and claiming an exemption under Section 13-16 shall be relieved of that portion of the solid waste management fee in an amount calculated in accordance with the exemption percentage schedule presented in the other ordinance.

“So we’re recommending that you authorize conducting public hearings on both of the ordinances at your May 27th meeting,” Thrower said at the April 22 board meeting.

The board’s unanimous vote promptly followed.