Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ROBERT AUTH
District 39 (Bergen)
Assemblyman GREGORY E. MYHRE
District 9 (Ocean)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblymen S.Kean, Inganamort, Assemblywoman Fantasia and Assemblyman Peterson
SYNOPSIS
Establishes “Veteran Obituary Fund.”
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing a fund for veteran obituaries and supplementing Title 38A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is established in the Department of the Treasury a dedicated, non-lapsing fund to be known as the “Veteran Obituary Fund.” The fund shall be credited with any money for veteran obituaries received by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs through fundraising efforts, such as donations or grants, or other sources, such as State appropriations. All interest earned on monies in the fund shall be credited to the fund. Investment of such monies shall be consistent with policies of the Division of Investment. The monies in the fund shall be administered by the State Treasurer, to be held in the fund until appropriated by law. Not later than 180 days after the effective date of this act, P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and periodically thereafter, the State Treasurer shall certify to the Legislature the total amount of monies in the fund.
b. The Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs and the Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Affairs may solicit and accept donations or grants of money or property from any source for the purposes of the “Veteran Obituary Fund” and may distribute appropriations made by law for that purpose. Any donations or grants received shall be credited to the “Veteran Obituary Fund” established pursuant to this section.
2. a. A taxpayer shall be allowed to deduct from gross income the amount of money or the fair market value of property donated to the “Veteran Obituary Fund” established pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), not to exceed $50,000 for the taxable year in which the donation occurs. When the fair market value of property offered in donation to the fund exceeds $500 or a taxpayer intends to claim a deduction in an amount greater than $500, a taxpayer shall attach to the return and furnish to the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, or its representative, an independent appraisal of the fair market value of the property.
b. The deduction of the fair market value of the donation of property shall not reduce the taxable income of the taxpayer below zero.
c. In the event that the Adjutant General of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, the Deputy Commissioner of Veterans Affairs, or their representatives, accept donated property on behalf of the fund, the department shall provide the taxpayer written acknowledgement that includes, at a minimum, the name of the taxpayer and, if the value of the property is greater than $500, the fair market value of the property based on an independent appraisal provided by the taxpayer.
d. For the purpose of this act:
“Taxpayer” means a person or entity required to pay tax to the State pursuant to the “Corporation Business Tax Act,” P.L.1945, c.162 (C.54:10A-1 et seq.) or the “New Jersey Gross Income Tax Act,” P.L.1976, c.47 (C.54A:1-1 et seq.).
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes a dedicated, non-lapsing fund in the Department of the Treasury to be known as the “Veteran Obituary Fund.”
Under the bill, the “Veteran Obituary Fund” will be credited with any money received by the New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to pay for the cost of veteran obituaries. The bill also authorizes the Adjutant General and the Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs to solicit and accept donations or grants of money or property from any source for the purposes of the fund and to distribute appropriations made by law for these purposes. Under the bill, taxpayers are permitted to deduct the amount of money or property donated to the fund from their gross income, not to exceed $50,000 for the taxable year in which the donation occurs. The bill requires taxpayers to obtain an independent appraisal of the fair market value of property offered in donation to the fund when that value exceeds $500 or a taxpayer intends to claim a deduction in an amount greater than $500. The taxpayer must furnish the appraisal to the department and file the appraisal with their return.
The bill also requires the department to provide written acknowledgement of donations of property. The acknowledgement must include the name of the taxpayer, as well as attestations of the fair market value of the property in certain instances.
On average, obituaries cost several hundred dollars. New Jersey veterans should not forgo being memorialized or honored upon their passing due to this expense.