Town Council votes to amend town firefighter's ordinance

12/21/2006

By: G. C. Gould , Staff Writer

The Rocky Hill Town Council voted to amend the town's firefighter's ordinance to provide a tax abatement for retirees with 20 years of active duty if they are age 55 and over. The tax abatement will also go to E.M.T. personnel in Rocky Hill with similar restrictions once they retire.

The firefighters must meet other eligibility criteria, including making a certain percentage of calls and the department's three hour weekly meetings. The tax is removed from property taxes owed to the town of Rocky Hill, such as house or car taxes.

Supporting the motion, yet with some reservation, Councilman Rocco Sanzo said, "One thing you have to remember is when you don't pay the tax, someone else in town has to."

Councilman Timothy Moriarty said the amount was not enough. "We'll go for it for now. Compared to a paid department, this is peanuts."

There is also a cost savings to the town through the decreased rate of homeowners insurance because of high ratings for the Rocky Hill Fire Department.

Rocky Hill was the first Connecticut town to supply a $1,000 tax abatement for firefighters who are currently serving active duty.

"This will help with the retention and passing down of knowledge from one to another," said Barbara Gilbert, town manager. "To have a paid fire department would cost about $3 million," she added.

Mayor Tony LaRosa said there are eight eligible firefighters this year, amounting to a cost of $8,000 to the town.

The firefighters also are required to be residents of Rocky Hill to receive the abatement.

Chief Joe Kohanek thanked the council for approving the motion. "Your support means an awful lot to the guys and also means we'll be here 25 years from now."

In other news, the council also upped the pay $40 for assistant registrars and to minimum wage for office assistants for work done on Election Day. They also voted to raise the annual salaries of registrars of voters and their deputies, which had not been changed for two years.