The MODL office in Cookeville, NS. Photo: Evan Taylor

The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg (MODL) experienced a surge of applications for its annual low-income tax rebate program after it expanded the qualifying parameters.

In March, the MODL announced that the qualifying household income threshold for the program would be increasing from $29,999 to $38,000.

As a result, the MODL received 553 applications for the program this year, 547 of which were approved. With rebates maxing out at $530 this year’s program will cost the MODL $176,405.

“The Property Tax Rebate Program is one of the ways that Council supports low-income homeowners,” says Mayor Carolyn Bolivar-Getson. “The changes we made to the program in March expanded the eligibility criteria, and we are pleased that more homeowners were able to receive a rebate under this program

In 2021, the MODL received 347 applications, of which 339 were approved, costing the MODL $78,068. That represents nearly 60 per cent growth in both the number of applications received and approved, while the cost of the program increased by 125 per cent.