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This Ordinance has been prepared to amend 17-60 of the Gillette City Code which establishes a discounted rate for income eligible senior citizens and disabled individuals. This new ordinance adds some minor clarifying language to the existing ordinance concerning possible certification by the Federal Veterans Administration in addition to Social Security. In addition, the new ordinance provides for a new quarterly eligibility period for benefits in addition to the current annual review. Under the current ordinance, an individual must submit evidence that their annual income is less than 2 1/2 times the poverty guideline and that they are 65 years of age or older. If a person becomes disabled and looses income, they must wait for relief under this ordinance until they can establish a year of lower income. The proposed amendment would change the waiting period to three months and so a 65 year old would only have to show that their 3 month income was less than 1/4 of 250% of the annual poverty guideline amount. The current threshold is the poverty guideline for an individual $11,790, multiplied by 250% which yields $28,725 for an individual and $15,510 for a couple, multiplied by 250% which yields $ 38,775 for a couple. This amendment also clarifies that the exemption applies to seniors or disabled veterans of any age who meet the income criteria. There is language in the existing ordinance that allows the Administrator to allow eligibility on a case by case basis.
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