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• A RESOLUTION OPPOSING THE PASSAGE OF A PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT IN THE FORM PASSED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN 2009, PERTAINING TO A REAL PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN DISABLED VETERANS WHEREAS, a proposed constitutional amendment to grant an exemption from real property taxation for veterans who have a 100 percent permanent service related disability, as presently drafted, represents an inefficient and inequitable way to recognize the sacrifices that veterans have made; and, WHEREAS, the amendment as passed by the General Assembly in the 2009 session and before the legislature for a second vote in 2010 poses several significant policy issues: • Not all veterans would be eligible for the benefit, and many of those are already eligible for real property tax exemptions under local tax relief programs for the elderly and the disabled. • Surviving spouses of veterans who died while in service are not eligible for the tax exemption. • Veterans who do not own houses are not eligible. • Veterans with a disability rating of less than 100 percent are not eligible for the • exemption. • The exemption is granted with no regard to income level. • The State is providing tax relief using the revenues of local governments, instead of using its own revenues. WHEREAS, the Virginia Municipal League and the Virginia Association of Counties oppose this legislation; and, WHEREAS, there are many potential avenues that the Commonwealth could pursue that would provide financial assistance to all veterans with service -related disabilities, including those who do not have the means to own their own home or who are homeless, including: • Providing a state tax credit based on the real estate tax paid by the eligible veteran. The tax credit could be prorated to the level of disability and to the income level of the veteran, and could be extended to surviving spouses who have not remarried. Survivors of those who die while in service could be eligible to receive the credit at the same level as veterans with a 100 percent level of disability. • Not taxing the unearned income of veterans with service -connected disabilities. While veterans' disability income is not subject to state income taxation, unearned income is. • Increasing services available to homeless veterans. • Providing a refundable income tax credit for qualified veterans.