Riverhead school board OKs veterans property tax exemptions

A school property tax exemption for certain veterans was unanimously adopted last night by the Riverhead Board of Education after an emotion-charged public hearing at Riverhead High School.

Under the measure approved last night, veterans who served “during a period of war” as defined by a new state law that took effect Dec. 1 are entitled to school property tax exemptions beginning in the 2015/2016 school year. Also eligible are “Gold Star” parents, who lost a child in war.

Exemption levels are determined by the veteran’s service and status. The noncombat veteran exemption is 15 percent of a property’s assessed valuation, with a basic maximum exemption of $12,000; the combat veteran exemption is 25 percent of assessed value, with a basic maximum exemption of $20,000; the combat veteran exemption is 50 percent of assessed value, with a maximum exemption of $52,000.

Veterans turned out in force last night, as they have on both of the other nights when the board had the proposed exemption on its agenda for discussion, to urge the board to approve the exemption. Among them was Riverhead Town Councilman John Dunleavy, a Navy veteran, who reminded school board members that Americans tend to “take for granted” the citizens who serve in the military.

Riverhead resident Kimberly Wilder told the board she believes property tax exemptions should be offered to all people who “strive for peace and harmony,” not just military veterans. Property tax exemptions for military veterans raise “other concerns,” she said.

“A lot of America’s wars, especially since the Bush era have been so immoral and wars of imperialism,” Wilder said. The exemption “encourages people to sign up for war, encourages the the whole culture.”

Vietnam veteran Don Sievers, who served 12 years in the U.S. Navy, took the podium but turned to speak directly to Wilder in the audience.

“Ma’am, I respect and honor your position,” he said. “Peace is a wonderful thing and all the organizations that promote peace in this country are wonderful…they should be supported. But we don’t live in a perfect world. There are people that are out to get us…Did we forget 9/11?” he asked. “We need an armed force to protect us,” he said, drawing loud applause from the audience.

School board member Amy Lantz, an Air Force veteran, also addressed Wilder. “When you sign up into the military you don’t sign up for war… you sign up to support your country unconditionally,” Lantz said. “This is more about recognition than anything else.
Something I will never, ever forget was when I came back and my child was under two years old and being away for so long, she didn’t recognize me,” a choked-up Lantz said. “I will never forget that. That’s the price that I paid, and no amount of tax is going to replace that. But it’s simply the recognition and the thank you,” Lantz said to applause.

Veterans have had property tax exemptions on their county and town taxes, but last year state lawmakers authorized the exemption for school property taxes.

The exemption would apply to some 1,700 parcels in the Riverhead town portion of the district and remove about $4 million in assessed valuation from the district’s tax rolls.
The resulting loss of revenue would have to be recovered by increased taxes on nonexempt properties. RCSD school taxes on the “average” home in the Town of Riverhead would increase by $21.15 per year; the school tax bill on the “average” home in Southampton Town within the Riverhead school district would increase by $24.36 per year; district taxpayers in the Brookhaven portion of the district would see their tax bills rise by $19.28 per year for the “average” home in that township.

There could be additional impacts, Riverhead Town Assessor Laverne Tennenberg told the school board at its March 25 meeting. Since the veterans exemption would come off the assessed valuation before the existing 50-percent STAR exemption for low income seniors, upon which the state’s STAR reimbursement to the school district is based, the STAR reimbursement will be reduced, Tennenberg said. Calculation of the resulting reduction in the STAR property tax reimbursement to the school district cannot be completed until additional information and software is made available by the state.

With board president Ann Cotten-DeGrasse absent, the board voted 6-0 to approve the exemption.