I flatly reject the popular and patently false narrative fostered by many that our country’s senior citizens are just barely getting by, subsisting on dog food because of their abject poverty. In fact, senior citizens are by far the wealthiest and fastest growing age-demographic in our country, state, and borough. Face reality! Certainly there are poor seniors (just as there are poor non-seniors) within the Kenai Peninsula Borough but authentically poor seniors don’t own real estate valued at $300,000 or more! If they do, guess what? They’re not poor! I am in favor of ending the inequitable property tax discounts (exemptions) that senior citizens currently enjoy in our borough. No one is asking seniors to pay more in property taxes than their younger fellow taxpayers but merely the same. The Kenai Peninsula Borough needs to stop giving discounts to seniors which commensurately increase the tax burden on the less-wealthy non-senior demographic. The current KPB Senior Property Tax Exemption is inequitable and unjust! Why are we giving the wealthiest segment of our population all these ridiculous discounts!? Injustice, injustice, I say! Stop the giveaway. End this needless entitlement.
When seniors pay their fair share then the mill rate for all taxpayers should be substantially reduced — making the property tax burden more affordable for everyone. And while we’re at it let’s get rid of the state-mandated property tax discount (exemption) for seniors too. Enough is enough. Stop giving discounts to the wealthiest age-demographic and handing the bill to poorer age-demographics. For shame! Help correct this injustice.