Services

The State of Connecticut offers a state run Elderly Tax Benefit known as the Circuit Breaker. It is for eligible real estate taxpayers within the Town of East Lyme. To apply, you must have reached the age of 65 prior to December 31, 2020 or be totally disabled if under the age of 65. You are applying for a credit on the taxes due on your primary residence in East Lyme. Under the law, Social Security income MUST be declared and the program requires you to provide information regarding all GROSS income received during 2020.

The new income limit, including GROSS income and Social Security:

$45,800 for married couples and

$37,600 for single persons.

                        LOCAL TAX CREDIT OPTION:

Also, the Town of East Lyme provides on Additional Tax Relief for elderly and totally disabled homeowners. The new income limit, including GROSS income and Social Security is

$45,800 regardless of marital status.  For further information, contact the Assessor’s Office at the Town Hall.

Filing dates for the above programs are February 1, through May 15, 2021.

Please note, due to COVID-19 restrictions, if you are already on the program, you do not need to re-apply this year. You will be automatically renewed and will not have to reapply until 2023. Anyone new will need to contact the Assessor’s Office to an appointment and you will be met outside.

The Town Hall is currently closed to the public.  There is also a Veteran’s Exemption that is available. For more information, contact the Assessor’s Office.

In this free, LIVE webinar session, join resource coordinator, Marc Levesque, to learn more about aging considerations work knowing in terms of environmental modifications, fall prevention, and polypharmacy dangers to make home even safer. Q&A with the expert will follow the presentation.

To register for any HHC virtual class, please call 1-855-442-4373 or visit hartfordhealthcare.org/virtualclasses. Once registered you will receive an email with easy instructions on joining the virtual class.

Sponsored by: Hartford HealthCare

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is a safe, convenient, and responsible way to dispose of unused or expired prescription drugs that are currently sitting in your home. The East Lyme Police Department has a Drop Box located in its Lobby so residents can safely dispose of prescription drugs. The Drop Box is available while the PD is open so you don’t have to wait until the 24th of April.

The October 2020 Take Back Day brought in 985,392 pounds (492.7 tons) of medication. This is the largest amount ever collected in the program’s ten years!

Update:

If you have not already contacted the   Senior Center office, there are no available appointments.

You can contact T.V.C.C.A. and inquire about their V.I.T.A. program (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) to see if they have any available appointments.

The AARP Tax-Aide program provides free tax counseling and preparation for middle to low-Income taxpayers with special attention to those people aged 60 and over.  Because of COVID-19 concerns, the process will be different this year. Please call the Senior Center at 860-739-5859 for details.

Taxpayers must provide their:

1. Personal Identification and Social Security Number,
2. Copies of your 2020 Federal and Connecticut tax returns, and
3. All 2020 income reports that have been received: (SSA-1099, all 1099s, all W-2s, Unemployment Compensation forms), Brokerage Statements, and all  other forms that indicate Federal and/or Connecticut income taxes were paid in 2020.

At this time, there is no time table for re-opening the Senior Center. Updates on our status will be posted on the East Lyme Town Hall website –  www.eltownhall.com, and the East Lyme Senior Center page on the SECT regional senior center website –  www.seniorcenterct.org, our Facebook page and on the Senior Center answering machine.