S522

An Act providing a proportional property tax exemption to certain disabled veterans, amending and supplementing P.L.1948, c.259.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259, (C.54:4-3.30) is amended to read as follows:

1. a. The dwelling house and the lot or curtilage whereon the same is erected, of any citizen and resident of this State, now or hereafter honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances, from active service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, who has been or shall be declared by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs or its successor to have a service-connected disability [from paraplegia, sarcoidosis, osteochondritis resulting in permanent loss of the use of both legs, or permanent paralysis of both legs and lower parts of the body, or from hemiplegia and has permanent paralysis of one leg and one arm or either side of the body, resulting from injury to the spinal cord, skeletal structure, or brain or from disease of the spinal cord not resulting from any form of syphilis; or from total blindness; or from amputation of both arms or both legs, or both hands or both feet, or the combination of a hand and a foot; or from other service-connected disability declared by the United States Veterans Administration or its successor to be a total or 100% permanent disability, and not so evaluated solely because of hospitalization or surgery and recuperation, sustained through enemy action, or accident, or resulting from disease contracted while in such active service] of at least 30 percent, shall be exempt from taxation, on proper claim made therefor, in proportion to their percentage of service-connected disability, up to and including a total or 100 percent disability, and such exemption shall be in addition to any other exemption of such person's real and personal property which now is or hereafter shall be prescribed or allowed by the Constitution or by law but no taxpayer shall be allowed more than one exemption under this act. In the case of a resident of this State with a service-connected disability that is less than total or 100 percent disability but who is deemed by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs or its successor to be unemployable as a result of service-connected disability, the exemption shall be 100 percent. For any exemption granted pursuant to this subsection that is less than 100 percent, the exemption shall not exceed $10,000.

b. (1) The surviving spouse of any [such] citizen and resident of this State, who at the time of death was entitled to the 100 percent exemption provided under this act, shall be entitled, on proper claim made therefor, to the same exemption as the deceased had, during the surviving spouse's widowhood or widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, for the time that the surviving spouse is the legal owner thereof and actually occupies the said dwelling house or any other dwelling house thereafter acquired.

(2) The surviving spouse of any citizen and resident of this State who was honorably discharged and, after the citizen and resident's death, is declared to have suffered a total or 100 percent service-connected disability as provided in subsection a. of this section, shall be entitled, on proper claim made therefor, to the same exemption the deceased would have become eligible for. The exemption shall continue during the surviving spouse's widowhood or widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, for the time that the surviving spouse is the legal owner thereof and actually occupies the dwelling house or any other dwelling house thereafter acquired.

c. The surviving spouse of any citizen and resident of this State, who died in active service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, shall be entitled, on proper claim made therefor, to an exemption from taxation on the dwelling house and lot or curtilage whereon the same is erected, during the surviving spouse's widowhood or widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, for the time that the surviving spouse is the legal owner thereof and actually occupies the said dwelling or any other dwelling house thereafter acquired.

d. The surviving spouse of any citizen and resident of this State who died prior to January 10, 1972, that being the effective date of P.L.1971, c.398, and whose circumstances were such that, had said law become effective during the deceased's lifetime, the deceased would have become eligible for the exemption granted under this section as amended by said law, shall be entitled, on proper claim made therefor, to the same exemption as the deceased would have become eligible for upon the dwelling house and lot or curtilage occupied by the deceased at the time of death, during the surviving spouse's widowhood or widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, for the time that the surviving spouse is the legal owner thereof and actually occupies the said dwelling house on the premises to be exempted.

e. [Nothing in this act shall be intended to include paraplegia or hemiplegia resulting from locomotor ataxia or other forms of syphilis of the central nervous system, or from chronic alcoholism, or to include other forms of disease resulting from the veteran's own misconduct which may produce signs and symptoms similar to those resulting from paraplegia, osteochondritis, or hemiplegia] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) pending before the
Legislature as this bill).

(cf: P.L.2019, c.413, s.1)

2. (New section) The State shall annually reimburse each taxing district in an amount equal to 102 percent of the amount of any property tax exemption granted by that taxing district pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30) in that taxing district.

3. (New section) a. On or before June 1 of each year, each tax assessor shall certify to the county tax board the number of property tax exemptions provided for pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30), and the total amount of all such exemptions.

b. On or before June 15 of each year, each county board of taxation shall, on a form prescribed by the director, certify to the Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury from the tax lists certified with it for each taxing district for the current tax year the following:

(1) Number of property tax exemptions allowed for the current year pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30);

(2) Total dollar amount of property tax exemptions allowed for the current year pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30);

(3) Separately, the number and dollar amount of property tax exemptions allowed or disallowed, as certified by the tax collector, from the time of certification made the previous year and prior to certification or the current year pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30); and

(4) The totals for (1), (2), and (3) above by district and for the county as a whole.

4. (New section) For each year, each county board of taxation shall include in the table of aggregates prepared pursuant to R.S.54:4-52 the full estimated amount of the property tax exemptions as provided for in section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30), but that amount shall not be included in the total on which the tax rate is to be computed.

5. (New section) The Director of the Division of Taxation in the Department of the Treasury may inspect all records in the office of the collector and the assessor with respect to claims and allowances for the property tax exemption provided for in section 1 of P.L.1948, c.259 (C.54:4-3.30).

6. This act shall take effect January 1 next following enactment.

STATEMENT

The bill grants a property tax exemption to honorably discharged veterans having a service-connected disability in proportion to their disability percentage rating. The exemption is only granted to those with a disability percentage rating of at least 30 percent, and the exemption is capped at $10,000. Those with a 100 percent disability percentage rating would still be allowed a 100 percent property tax exemption without a cap, as is the case under current law.

In addition, the bill grants those honorably discharged veterans having less than a 100 percent service-connected disability, but who are unemployable, a 100 percent property tax exemption, which matches the current 100 percent property tax exemption for honorably discharged veterans having a 100 percent disability percentage rating.

As under current law, the bill allows the 100 percent property tax exemption to extend to the surviving spouse of a veteran. However, the newly allowed property tax exemption for a veteran with a less than 100 percent property tax exemption would not extend to the surviving spouse.

The bill also eliminates all references to medical conditions so that any service-connected disability, as determined by the United States Department of Veterans' Affairs, will make a veteran eligible for the property tax exemption.

Finally, the bill proclaims that the State shall annually reimburse taxing districts, including for administrative costs, for the property tax exemptions granted to disabled veterans and their surviving spouses. The bill includes reporting provisions so proper reimbursement can be made.