New York, New York: Council to Vote Thursday on Full Property Tax Exemption for Disabled Veterans

The New York City Council will vote on Thursday on a bill that would fully exempt the primary residence of permanently and totally disabled veterans from city property taxes. Speaker Julie Menin and council members announced the vote on Wednesday, Veterans Day, and said the Council is set to approve the package at its stated meeting tomorrow.

The lead bill, Introduction 1051-A, is sponsored by Council Member Frank Morano, who chairs the Committee on Veterans. It would provide that the main home of any permanently and totally disabled veteran is fully exempt from taxation and from special district charges, assessments and special ad valorem levies, as long as the veteran meets the other requirements of section 458-a of the state real property tax law. Bloomberg Law reported that the bill would lift the city's current caps, which limit the existing break to $9,600 for family homes of up to three units and $72,000 for other property types, and that the measure has 29 sponsors, enough to pass the 51 member Council.

What Morano and Menin said

"New York City is home to as many as 200,000 veterans, whose selfless sacrifices have kept us safe, and who now deserve real support in our city," Menin said. She said her father, Robert Jacobs, was a doctor at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, and that the Council is marking Veterans Day with action that helps veterans afford to stay in their homes.

Morano said New York State has already given local governments the authority to eliminate property taxes for veterans who are 100 percent disabled as a result of their military service, and that it is time New York City did its part. He put the reach at meaningful relief for approximately 4,500 veteran households at a cost to the city of less than $5 million.

Two companion bills

Introduction 488-A, sponsored by Council Member Inna Vernikov, would require the Department of Housing Preservation and Development to report every year on how many veterans or surviving spouses apply for housing in city run Mitchell-Lama developments and how many are selected for occupancy. The aim, Vernikov said, is to confirm that applicants who benefit from a veteran preference are in fact veterans, and to connect more veterans to the Mitchell-Lama benefit.

Introduction 928-A, sponsored by Minority Leader David M. Carr, would establish a permanent LGBTQ+ liaison inside the Department of Veterans' Services. The liaison would do outreach to LGBTQ+ veterans, coordinate help with discharge characterization upgrades, and connect veterans with programs at the department and other agencies.

Support and city funding

Ryan S. Graham, legislative committee chair for VFW District 1, said the VFW has backed the real property tax change for nearly a decade, since it first appeared in Queens County VFW legislative priorities in 2018. Lynn A. Faria, chief executive of SAGE, praised Intro 928-A and pointed to the SAGEVets program, which has worked since 2014.

The Council also noted that in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget it secured more than $4 million for veteran programs, including a $3.4 million allocation for citywide initiatives covering veteran health, housing, education, employment, benefits access, community development and cultural programming. Thursday's vote is the final step at the Council. The tax bill takes effect immediately once it becomes law, and the finance commissioner must notify the state Department of Veterans' Services within 30 days.