The Board of Selectmen voted Tuesday night to extend the deadline for real estate tax payment from May 1 to June 1, pending the approval of the legislature at the state level.

Town Administrator Derek Sullivan noted that many of Wareham’s residents, including working seniors and those in the trades and hospitality business, have been hard hit financially by the pandemic. 

Additionally, while excise taxes are past-due at this point, the town is not charging late fees beyond the legally mandated interest on the bill. 

Sullivan also noted that he is re-examining the Fiscal Year 2021 budget, as state funding is likely to drop, and revenue for the town from sources like hotels will likely be far below normal. Hotels, motels, and Airbnb vacation rentals are currently prohibited from renting to anyone for leisure purposes. 

“We’ll try to work with everybody, but we still need to run our operations as well,” Sullivan said, adding that his goal is to avoid any layoffs due to reduced revenue. “We have a rainy day fund for a reason.”

“The people deserve everything we can do for them at this point,” Selectman Patrick Tropeano said.