Older Pennsylvanians in Monroe and Pike counties may finally get the property tax relief they've been waiting for.

According to a statement released Sunday by Rep. Rosemary Brown (R-189), homeowners, and renters, may apply for a property tax/rent rebate starting Monday.

Forms will be available for download from the Department of Revenue's website, with paper hard copies available in the coming weeks.

Those wishing to apply for the rebate must meet the following requirements:

— Be age 65 or older

— Be a widow(er) aged 50 or older

— Be a disabled person 18 years old or older

The income limit is $35 thousand a year for homeowners, and $15 thousand a year for renters. Half of Social Security income is excluded.

The rebate is unrelated to a referendum held in November, in which Pennsylvanians voted in favor of eliminating property taxes altogether. Currently, property taxes play a large part in the funding of area public schools. Monroe County has some of the most proportionally underfunded schools in the state. Stroudsburg, East Stroudsburg and Pocono Mountain school districts are funded less than half the amount per student that some districts in the state receive.

The maximum standard rebate is $650, but supplemental rebates are available. Those supplemental rebates can boost the total to $975, although further requirements will need to be met by the applicant. The supplemental rebates are made possible thanks to new legislation requiring profits made from slot machines to fund property tax relief of qualifying seniors in areas of the state with particularly high tax burdens.

Applicants do not need to seek out a filing service to prepare these forms, Brown will be offering assistance free of charge at her district office in East Stroudsburg. Information regarding income, property tax or proof of rent paid will be required in order to fill out the forms quickly and accurately.

After qualifying for the first rebate, the Department of Revenue will automatically send seniors an application for the next year. If the application is filed via computer, the department will send a copy of rent certification forms to be completed online.

Rebate checks will be mailed starting July 1 this year, and each year after.

"The property tax/rent rebate program is one of many initiatives supported by the Pennsylvania Lottery, which dedicates its proceeds to support programs for older Pennsylvanians." Brown said in the release.

For more information on required documents or filing assistance, visit http://bit.ly/2Du4RpH or call Brown's office at 570-420-8301.

The deadline to file is June 30, 2018.