Brewster School Board Approves Veterans’ Tax Exemption Level
By Tom Auchterlonie
Members of Brewster’s school board approved a property tax exemption level for veterans and their spouses.
The approved level, passed by the board at its Feb. 25 meeting, allows for an exemption amount of up to $33,000 of assessed value for non-combat zone veterans, plus an additional amount of up to $22,000 for veterans in combat zones. Another amount, up to $110,000, is permitted for veterans with a service-connected disability.
The measure was approved 5-0, with board member Alberta Kozma abstaining because her husband is a veteran. There were six out of seven members present for the vote.
The vote was not to adopt the exemption but instead to change the amount. Following a Feb. 11 public hearing, the school board approved the exemption but went with a default level, according to a slideshow list. Under the default level, the non-combat figure was up to $12,000 of assessed value, an additional amount of up to $8,000 for combat zone veterans, plus up to $40,000 for veterans with a service-connected disability.
There were several levels that the school board could have gone with, according to the slideshow. The maximum level allowed is up to $54,000 of assessed value for non-combat, an additional amount of up to $36,000 for combat and up to $180,000 for the disability category.
The exemption means, however, that the tax burden gets shifted within the community, a point of concern for some school district officials. For example, Interim Superintendent Timothy Conway, whose son is a veteran, supported an exemption for veterans but expressed concern about the reaction to school taxes. He did not favor going with the maximum level, an option that had some support in the audience. Despite some disagreement about what level should be adopted, there was applause from the audience after the board gave its approval.
Under the maximum level, the average tax increase amount for non-veteran taxpayers would have been $127.44 in Southeast, $79.90 in Patterson and $0 in Carmel (there are no veteran exemptions there currently, according to data). Under the default level, the average in Southeast was $13.93, at $8.75 in Patterson and also at $0 in Carmel.
Several local veterans were present in the audience for the board meeting and multiple attendees voiced their support. Andy Scheer, a veteran who spoke at the meeting, felt there was a “very strong vested interest.”
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
