The town has a variety of volunteer opportunities that call for light, medium, or heavy time commitments and for specific skills or no particular skills at all, only an interest in the board’s work and willingness to learn.  We—the Board of Selectmen—are providing you with information that we hope will pique your interest.  This column focuses on the Senior Tax Relief Committee.

Senior Tax Relief Committee

The Tax Relief Committee is concerned with identifying, researching, developing, and promoting a variety of strategies designed to ease the property tax burden on Wayland residents age 65 and over.  This includes researching existing options for providing tax relief and informing citizens of their benefits and drawbacks, seeking alternative methods for easing the property tax burden, and working to gain support for changes to state legislation and local bylaws and practices.  It also includes working with similar committees in other communities and with state legislators to identify and file legislation.

The seven-member committee includes one member representing the Council on Aging, one member representing the Board of Assessors, one member representing the Finance Committee, two members representing the Board of Selectmen, and two members representing the community at large.  Members are appointed for three years with staggered terms.

The two at-large members are vacant.  One will expire June 30, 2019 and the second June 30, 2020.  The board meets on alternate months—only six times per year.  If you are concerned about not having enough time to serve on a town board or if you want to test the waters to see if volunteering is for you, this may be just the committee for you!

Lin Bradford, the acting co-chair, says that if even one person benefits from the work of this committee, it is worth the effort!  Won’t you help?