Morgan County Democrat. (McConnelsville, Ohio) 1886-1943, 1934-10-04
CONCERNING THE OLD AGE
PENSION LAW

fENolON LAW
A campaign to instruct the public
| on the principal provisions of Ohio's
old age pension law in an effort to
cut down the number of cases filed
| in which the applicants cannot quail
lily for pensions, has been inaugu-
lrated by the division of aid for the
Jagged of the state welfare depart
ment, according to announcement
| by Margaret Curran, investigator in
charge of the old age pension office
for Morgan county.
Approximately 20 percent of the
total number of application blanks
taken out at pension offices over
1.-THE state were never even filed
|when the prospective applicants
found they could not comply with
the provisions Of the law as to eli
gibility, M. L. Brown, chief of the
division of aid for the aged, told
Investigator Margaret Cur"an. An
lother 10 percent of the applicants
were unable to comply with the law
following investigation.
A statement from Mr.. Brown fol-
lows: Everyone before making an
application for old age pension
Ishould familiarize himself with the
lprimary requirements for eligibility
under the law: First, pensioner
must be at least 65 years; he Or
lshe must have been a citizen of
| Ohio at least Is years before MAX
ling application, and have lived at
lleast one year in the county in
which application is made; to be
leligible for pension, the appli-
cant's total income, both earned
and from investments or other
sources, must be under $500 year;
applicant must not have any re-
lsponsible relatives who are able to
take care of him or her.
There are many other provisions
in the law designed to protect the
Istate and the taxpayer. and to
guarantee that pensions shall be
paid only to those really deserving
them. These will be explained in
detail to any doubling prospective
applicant, by the investigators or
Iclerks in any of the county pension
offices. One provision about which
considerable misunderstanding has
larisen, is that regarding property,
stocks, bonds or life insurance held
lby pension applicants The law is
lvery clear that in such cases, where
Isuch property or other valuable
possessions are not income produc-
Iers, or the income from them totals
Hess than $500 year, the applicant
lis entitled to pension sufficient
Ito make up a total income of $500
La year, provided applicant com
Iplies with regulations and turns
lover to the state in trust his or her
property. This does not mean that
|they are making an outright gift
Ito the state. If the pensioner owns
La home, he or she remains in it af-
ter turning it over. The property
lis held in trust, and on death of the
|pensioner the amount paid out for
pensions in that case is computed,
the property disposed of, and the
state takes out what it has expend-
led for pensions and turns over the
balance to heirs of the pensioner.
If heirs so desire, they can arrange
to pay the state amount of the
pension debt and take the property
Intact. The state cannot make
profit on the properties held in
trust, and, of course, where they
are held in trust in the name of the
state they are exempt from local
and state taxation. That is only
fair, because if the owner is un-
able to keep himself or herself, he
or she surely cannot pay taxes.
Under these provisions of the
pension law, the applicant owning
non-income producing property is
put on the same basis as the one
who has nothing, so far as comput-
ing amounts of the pensions is con-
cerned, and at the same time the
frugal person who saves during his
or her life to buy a home, has his
or her equity in it protected under
the trust agreement. While the
property is held in trust owners
are assured of a home for life, rent
free and tax free, and the pension
|allowed them pays their living ex-
|penses. Thus, their frugality pays
them in the peace of mind and
security afforded them in their own
home, as compared with the less
fortunate pensioner who did not
own his or her home and is COM
PEELED to rely on the unce! tainty of
renting a home.
Morgan county to date has 9S on
he pension roll.