Tax Break for Sitka seniors ends:

SITKA — Sitka’s senior citizen sales tax exemption ends at midnight Saturday, June 30, replaced by a needs-based rebate.

In a cost-savings move, the Assembly at its April 24 meeting narrowly approved eliminating the long-standing exemption from sales tax for residents age 65 and up, deciding instead to offer a needs-based rebate to qualifying Sitka seniors at the end of each fiscal year.

The rebate amount is $350 per senior per year, or $450 per household with two or more qualifying seniors. The figure is a broad estimate of the sales tax seniors pay on essentials, such as food, utilities and...