Rep. Goehner Proposing Bill To Ease Tax Burden For Seniors
Twelfth District Rep. Keith Goehner (R-Dryden) has introduced legislation that would ease the tax burden on senior citizens who own a home with extra living space.
Under current state law, seniors already receive a tax exemption for their primary residence if they meet certain qualifying thresholds.
Goehner's proposal, House Bill 2375 (HB 2375), would further those tax deferrals by including properties that include detached accessory dwelling units (ADU), which are defined as separate, autonomous spaces providing independent living facilities for one or more people.
"If a senior citizen qualifies for that property tax exemption and has an attached ADU, they do get that exemption on the additional space that adds value of their home," explains Goehner. "However, if they own property with a detached ADU, they don't currently get the tax exemption. So my bill basically just brings parity to both attached and detached ADUs."
HB 2375 has a total of 16 co-sponsors with strong bi-partisan support that includes six democrats.
Goehner's fellow 12th District legislator, Rep. Mike Steele (R-Chelan) is one of the bill's co-sponsors.
HB 2375 is currently in the House Committee on Finance where it received a public hearing on Thursday (Jan. 26).
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