Bill Sponsors
Representative Alex S. Finkelman
Committee
House Municipal Government & Housing
Summary
Select
This legislation modifies the property tax exemption program for residents of Jamestown who are sixty-five years of age or older. It expands the income eligibility criteria by adding a new tier. Under the new rules, seniors with an income between 220% and 240% of the federal poverty guideline are eligible for a tax exemption equal to 10% of the assessment cap or their property’s assessed valuation. Previously, the cutoff was 220%. The bill adjusts the numbering of existing income brackets to accommodate this addition.
Sponsor
Analysis
Pros for Progressives
- Expands the social safety net for elderly residents living on fixed incomes, helping to prevent housing displacement due to rising property costs.
- Utilizes a progressive, tiered structure based on income relative to federal poverty guidelines, ensuring that relief is targeted toward those with financial need rather than wealthy homeowners.
- Recognizes the rising cost of living by increasing the income threshold, acknowledging that those slightly above the previous poverty guidelines still struggle with housing affordability.
Cons for Progressives
- Provides financial relief exclusively to property owners, offering no assistance to elderly renters who may face similar financial struggles and housing insecurity.
- Reduces the local tax base, which could potentially force cuts to essential public services or education funding that benefit the broader community.
- Relies on complex means-testing and administrative hurdles rather than providing universal support for the elderly, potentially excluding those who struggle to navigate the paperwork.
Pros for Conservatives
- Reduces the tax burden on senior citizens, allowing them to keep more of their own money and maintain financial independence.
- Supports the concept of local control by allowing the Jamestown town council to determine specific exemption rules for their specific community.
- Encourages homeownership and stability by making it more affordable for long-term residents to remain in their properties as they age.
Cons for Conservatives
- Shifts the tax burden onto other taxpayers, including younger families and businesses, to subsidize the exemptions for a specific demographic.
- Creates a more complex tax code with additional brackets and regulations, increasing the administrative size and scope of local government.
- Functions as a form of wealth redistribution by granting special privileges based on income levels rather than applying a flat tax rate to all property owners.
Constitutional Concerns
None Likely
Impact Overview
Groups Affected
- Seniors (65+)
- Jamestown Homeowners
- Low-Income Residents
- Tax Assessors
- Jamestown Taxpayers
Towns Affected
Jamestown
Cost to Taxpayers
Amount unknown
Revenue Generated
None
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Regulatory
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Bill Status
Current Status
Held
Comm Passed
Floor Passed
Law
History
• 01/16/2026 Introduced, referred to House Municipal Government & Housing
Bill Text
SECTION 1. Section 44-3-13.6 of the General Laws in Chapter 44-3 entitled "Property Subject to Taxation" is hereby amended to read as follows:
44-3-13.6. Jamestown — Exemption of persons 65 years and over.
(a) The town council of the town of Jamestown may, by ordinance, exempt from valuation for taxation, the real property situated in the town and owned and occupied by any person sixty- five (65) years or over, which exemption is in addition to any and all other exemptions from taxation to which the person may be otherwise entitled.
(b)(1) The town council of the town of Jamestown may, from time to time, by ordinance, make changes in the amount of exemption granted and the rules and regulations as it deems necessary to promote the purpose of this section. The schedule of exemptions is as follows:
(i) Taxpayers with an income of not less than two hundred twenty percent (220%) and not more than two hundred forty percent (240%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of ten percent (10%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less;
(i)(ii) Taxpayers with an income of not less than two hundred percent (200%) and not more than two hundred twenty percent (220%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of twenty percent (20%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less;
(ii)(iii) Taxpayers with an income of not less than one hundred and eighty percent (180%) and not more than two hundred percent (200%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of thirty percent (30%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less;
(iii)(iv) Taxpayers with an income of not less than one hundred and sixty percent (160%) and not more than one hundred and eighty percent (180%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of forty percent (40%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less;
(iv)(v) Taxpayers with an income of not less than one hundred and forty percent (140%) and not more than one hundred and sixty percent (160%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of fifty percent (50%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less; and
(v)(vi) Taxpayers with an income of not more than one hundred and forty percent (140%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of sixty percent (60%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less.
(2) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this section, any person receiving an exemption pursuant to chapter 359 of the Public Laws January Session 1984, at the time of the adoption of the ordinance contemplated in this section and whose property is assessed in excess of the assessment cap and who qualifies for an exemption under the terms of any ordinance adopted pursuant to this chapter shall receive an exemption based on the assessment value, not limited by the assessment cap.
(3) For purposes of this section, the income described in subdivision (1) of this subsection is that specified in the federal poverty guideline for one person for all individual owners and that specified for a family of two (2) for all joint owners, including husband and wife. Only one exemption is granted to cotenants, joint tenants, and tenants by the entirety, even though all the cotenants, joint tenants and tenants by the entirety are sixty-five (65) years of age or over and occupy the property. In addition to the requirements of domicile within the town of Jamestown at the time of making application, the applicant must have been a resident of the town for a period of five (5) years ending with the date of assessment for the year for which exemption is claimed; provided, however, that the exemption shall not be allowed in favor of any person unless the individual has presented to the assessor a true and exact account of his or her ratable estate as provided for in §§ 44-5-15 and 44-5-16 for the year for which exemption is claimed, together with evidence that he or she is entitled to the exemption.
(c) No income-bearing residential property, business or combination of business and residential property, owned and occupied by any person or persons sixty-five (65) years of age or over is entitled to the exemption provided in this section. It is the express purpose of this section to confine the exemption to residential property exclusively used as residential property by the owners of the property. Professional persons who operate and conduct their respective professions from LC003859 - Page 2 of 5 their residences are not entitled to the exemption provided for in this section. The practice of the profession from any residence is deemed, for the purpose of this section, to constitute it income- bearing property.
(d) All exemptions terminate upon the conveyance of the subject property, death of the person excepted, or the moving of the person from the town of Jamestown; also when the subject property is altered as to character and use that the property becomes subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this section.
(e) When used in this section:
(1) “Federal poverty guideline” means the poverty guidelines issued each year by the Department of Health and Human Services and published in the federal register.
(2)(i) “Income” in subsection (b) of this section means annual cash receipts before taxes from all sources except as provided in this section. Income includes money wages and salaries before any deductions; net receipts from non-farm self-employment (receipts from a person’s own unincorporated business, professional enterprise, or partnership, after deductions for business expenses); net receipts from farm self-employment (receipts from a farm which one operates as an owner, renter, or sharecropper, after deductions for farm operating expenses); regular payments from social security, railroad retirement, unemployment compensation, strike benefits from union funds, workers’ compensation, veterans’ payments, public assistance (including aid to families with dependent children or temporary assistance for needy families, supplemental security income, and non-federally-funded general assistance or general relief money payments), and training stipends; alimony, child support, and military family allotments or other regular support from an absent family member or someone not living in the household; private pensions, government employee pensions (including military retirement pay), and regular insurance or annuity payments; college or university scholarships, grants, fellowships, and assistantships; and dividends, interest, net rental income, net royalties, periodic receipts from estate or trusts, and net gambling or lottery winnings.
(ii) “Income” does not include the following types of money received; capital gains; any assets drawn down as withdrawals from a bank, the sale of property, a house, or a car; or tax refunds, gifts, loans, lump-sum inheritances, one-time insurance payments, or compensation for injury. Also excluded are non-cash benefits, such as the employer-paid or union-paid portion of health insurance or other employee fringe benefits, food or housing received in lieu of wages, the value of food and fuel produced and consumed on farms, the imputed value of rent from own-occupied non-farm or farm housing, and federal non-cash benefit programs like Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, school lunches, and housing assistance.
(3) “Resident” means one legally domiciled within the town of Jamestown for a period of LC003859 - Page 3 of 5 five (5) years ending with the date of assessment for a year for which the exemption is claimed. Mere seasonal or temporary residence within the town, of whatever duration, does not constitute domicile within the town for the purposes of this section. Absence from the town for a period of twelve (12) months is prima facie evidence of abandonment of domicile in the town. The burden of establishing legal domicile within the town is upon the applicant.
(4) “Due evidence”: No exemption from taxation on the valuation of real property, as provided in this section, is allowed, except upon the written application, which application is on a form prescribed by the assessor. It is the burden of the applicant to prove his or her eligibility for the exemption in this section and the tax assessor may require the applicant to produce supporting information including, but not limited to, federal and/or state income tax returns and birth certificate. If this information is required, the tax assessor shall maintain the confidentiality of the information. The assessor may, at any time, inquire into the right of a claimant to the continuance of an exemption under this section; and, for that purpose, he or she may require the filing of a new application or the submission of any proof that the assessor deems necessary to determine the right of the claimant to continuance of the exemption.
(5) “Assessment cap” means the sum of one hundred forty-two thousand dollars ($142,000) as the sum may be adjusted from time to time as provided in this section. At any times that the tax assessor updates the assessments for real property in the town, the tax assessor shall adjust the assessment cap by the percentage increase or decrease between the median residential property value based on the aggregate residential property assessments then made under the new revaluation, or statistical updates, and the median residential property value under the previous revaluation, or statistical updates.
(6) “Median residential property value” means the assessment, which is the midpoint of the frequency distribution of residential property assessments or the assessment above which and below which fifty percent (50%) of the assessments lie.
(f) Nothing contained in this section abrogates or affects the authority conferred upon the assessor by the provisions of § 44-3-4.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
44-3-13.6. Jamestown — Exemption of persons 65 years and over.
(a) The town council of the town of Jamestown may, by ordinance, exempt from valuation for taxation, the real property situated in the town and owned and occupied by any person sixty- five (65) years or over, which exemption is in addition to any and all other exemptions from taxation to which the person may be otherwise entitled.
(b)(1) The town council of the town of Jamestown may, from time to time, by ordinance, make changes in the amount of exemption granted and the rules and regulations as it deems necessary to promote the purpose of this section. The schedule of exemptions is as follows:
(i) Taxpayers with an income of not less than two hundred twenty percent (220%) and not more than two hundred forty percent (240%) of the federal poverty guideline an exemption of ten percent (10%) of the assessment cap or the assessed valuation, whichever is less;
(2) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this section, any person receiving an exemption pursuant to chapter 359 of the Public Laws January Session 1984, at the time of the adoption of the ordinance contemplated in this section and whose property is assessed in excess of the assessment cap and who qualifies for an exemption under the terms of any ordinance adopted pursuant to this chapter shall receive an exemption based on the assessment value, not limited by the assessment cap.
(3) For purposes of this section, the income described in subdivision (1) of this subsection is that specified in the federal poverty guideline for one person for all individual owners and that specified for a family of two (2) for all joint owners, including husband and wife. Only one exemption is granted to cotenants, joint tenants, and tenants by the entirety, even though all the cotenants, joint tenants and tenants by the entirety are sixty-five (65) years of age or over and occupy the property. In addition to the requirements of domicile within the town of Jamestown at the time of making application, the applicant must have been a resident of the town for a period of five (5) years ending with the date of assessment for the year for which exemption is claimed; provided, however, that the exemption shall not be allowed in favor of any person unless the individual has presented to the assessor a true and exact account of his or her ratable estate as provided for in §§ 44-5-15 and 44-5-16 for the year for which exemption is claimed, together with evidence that he or she is entitled to the exemption.
(c) No income-bearing residential property, business or combination of business and residential property, owned and occupied by any person or persons sixty-five (65) years of age or over is entitled to the exemption provided in this section. It is the express purpose of this section to confine the exemption to residential property exclusively used as residential property by the owners of the property. Professional persons who operate and conduct their respective professions from LC003859 - Page 2 of 5 their residences are not entitled to the exemption provided for in this section. The practice of the profession from any residence is deemed, for the purpose of this section, to constitute it income- bearing property.
(d) All exemptions terminate upon the conveyance of the subject property, death of the person excepted, or the moving of the person from the town of Jamestown; also when the subject property is altered as to character and use that the property becomes subject to the provisions of subsection (e) of this section.
(e) When used in this section:
(1) “Federal poverty guideline” means the poverty guidelines issued each year by the Department of Health and Human Services and published in the federal register.
(2)(i) “Income” in subsection (b) of this section means annual cash receipts before taxes from all sources except as provided in this section. Income includes money wages and salaries before any deductions; net receipts from non-farm self-employment (receipts from a person’s own unincorporated business, professional enterprise, or partnership, after deductions for business expenses); net receipts from farm self-employment (receipts from a farm which one operates as an owner, renter, or sharecropper, after deductions for farm operating expenses); regular payments from social security, railroad retirement, unemployment compensation, strike benefits from union funds, workers’ compensation, veterans’ payments, public assistance (including aid to families with dependent children or temporary assistance for needy families, supplemental security income, and non-federally-funded general assistance or general relief money payments), and training stipends; alimony, child support, and military family allotments or other regular support from an absent family member or someone not living in the household; private pensions, government employee pensions (including military retirement pay), and regular insurance or annuity payments; college or university scholarships, grants, fellowships, and assistantships; and dividends, interest, net rental income, net royalties, periodic receipts from estate or trusts, and net gambling or lottery winnings.
(ii) “Income” does not include the following types of money received; capital gains; any assets drawn down as withdrawals from a bank, the sale of property, a house, or a car; or tax refunds, gifts, loans, lump-sum inheritances, one-time insurance payments, or compensation for injury. Also excluded are non-cash benefits, such as the employer-paid or union-paid portion of health insurance or other employee fringe benefits, food or housing received in lieu of wages, the value of food and fuel produced and consumed on farms, the imputed value of rent from own-occupied non-farm or farm housing, and federal non-cash benefit programs like Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, school lunches, and housing assistance.
(3) “Resident” means one legally domiciled within the town of Jamestown for a period of LC003859 - Page 3 of 5 five (5) years ending with the date of assessment for a year for which the exemption is claimed. Mere seasonal or temporary residence within the town, of whatever duration, does not constitute domicile within the town for the purposes of this section. Absence from the town for a period of twelve (12) months is prima facie evidence of abandonment of domicile in the town. The burden of establishing legal domicile within the town is upon the applicant.
(4) “Due evidence”: No exemption from taxation on the valuation of real property, as provided in this section, is allowed, except upon the written application, which application is on a form prescribed by the assessor. It is the burden of the applicant to prove his or her eligibility for the exemption in this section and the tax assessor may require the applicant to produce supporting information including, but not limited to, federal and/or state income tax returns and birth certificate. If this information is required, the tax assessor shall maintain the confidentiality of the information. The assessor may, at any time, inquire into the right of a claimant to the continuance of an exemption under this section; and, for that purpose, he or she may require the filing of a new application or the submission of any proof that the assessor deems necessary to determine the right of the claimant to continuance of the exemption.
(5) “Assessment cap” means the sum of one hundred forty-two thousand dollars ($142,000) as the sum may be adjusted from time to time as provided in this section. At any times that the tax assessor updates the assessments for real property in the town, the tax assessor shall adjust the assessment cap by the percentage increase or decrease between the median residential property value based on the aggregate residential property assessments then made under the new revaluation, or statistical updates, and the median residential property value under the previous revaluation, or statistical updates.
(6) “Median residential property value” means the assessment, which is the midpoint of the frequency distribution of residential property assessments or the assessment above which and below which fifty percent (50%) of the assessments lie.
(f) Nothing contained in this section abrogates or affects the authority conferred upon the assessor by the provisions of § 44-3-4.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.