Wallkill Valley Times Feb. 17 2016 | Page 3

3 Wallkill Valley Times, Wednesday, February 17, 2016 Pine Bush school board to host hearing on senior tax exemptions By JANE ANDERSON A public hearing is scheduled for next Tuesday on raising the maximum income level for senior citizens’ eligibility for property-tax exemption in the Pine Bush School District. The hearing will take place at 7 p.m. at Circleville Middle School. The Board of Education introduced the modification at its regular board meeting Tuesday, Feb. 9 where it also reviewed changes to the Code of Conduct, listened to budget proposals for Operations & Maintenance and Buildings & Grounds, and planned to discuss at a future meeting raising the rental fees for groups to use school buildings. The maximum income level for senior citizens to qualify for a tax exemption is now $22,749, a figure that was adopted in 2008. The proposed maximum is $28,999 with, as before, a sliding percentage of taxes exempted according to income. Penalties for reckless driving on school property stalled the board’s plan to move ahead on approving a revised Code of Conduct. Board member Roseanne Sullivan pointed out that, on a discipline chart in the code, penalties wouldn’t be issued on a sliding scale: loss of parking privileges was the penalty, without specifying if it was for a month, a semester or the entire school year. After some discussion among the board, Superintendent Joan Carbone said she’d take the suggestions under advisement and offer the 40-page code for more review at the next board meeting. She thanked the 20-member committee that worked on the code rev \