County Council unanimously passed a bill at its last meeting of 2007 that recognizes qualifying Kaua‘i veterans with a one-time real property tax credit of up to $1,500 and creates a future tax exemption for deployed active-duty military personnel. The
County Council unanimously passed a bill at its last meeting of 2007 that recognizes qualifying Kaua‘i veterans with a one-time real property tax credit of up to $1,500 and creates a future tax exemption for deployed active-duty military personnel.
The gesture, Councilman Mel Rapozo said, is a “very small price” for the county to pay to say thank you to local veterans deployed to combat or hazardous duty zones prior to the 2008 tax year.
It is uncertain exactly how much the tax break will cost the county, but Rapozo called the amount “peanuts” and said he did not care about the “financial impact.” He continued that if it costs $1.5 million — though it will be “way less” — he would make up the difference by curtailing “airport greeters” or by finding other ways to trim the budget.
This bill is more important than shoreline setbacks or the bike path, he added.
The passionate comments underscored the importance of the bill for Rapozo and a handful of other veterans and residents who testified in support of the legislation.
The only noted apprehension over the credit came from veterans whom Councilman Tim Bynum said he surveyed.
Most of these individuals, he said, were uncomfortable with the bill and said they take pride in paying their property taxes and would not apply for the charity.
Rapozo said he did not hear from a single veteran who didn’t want the tax credit.
An amendment introduced by Councilman Jay Furfaro at the Dec. 19 meeting at the Historic County Building made the credit a one-time deal instead of an annual allotment and increased the potential eligibility pool by nixing a 90-day wartime service requirement.
The change passed 4-3, with Rapozo and council members Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho and Ron Kouchi in opposition.
“This is a start,” Rapozo said, referring to the final version. “We’ll keep fighting for more.”
He said he hopes the credit will afford veterans an opportunity to take their families out to a special dinner, for instance, or go on a vacation they would have been unable to otherwise.
Council Chair Bill “Kaipo” Asing and Councilwoman JoAnn Yukimura questioned the overall fairness of the bill.
Asing said he did not support the 90-day service requirement because the credit would fail to help someone who entered a combat zone and two days later, for instance, returned home injured.
“I served and got wounded, no break for me?” he said, speaking hypothetically.
The chair said he remains concerned about the fairness of veterans getting a break because they own land.
“What happens to the guy who doesn’t own anything and doesn’t get a break?” Asing said. “When we start selecting, it’s very, very difficult.”
Yukimura said she was unsure “we’re giving it where the need is the greatest.”
She noted a number of homeless veterans and renters who would receive nothing from the new law.
She also pointed out that the wealthiest qualifying landowners would receive the highest amount of tax relief.
Councilman Ron Kouchi said the message of the bill is to say “thank you” to those who served in combat — without looking at their wallets.
“I look at need,” Yukimura said.
The county’s only way to recognize these veterans, Rapozo said, was with the real property tax.
Iseri-Carvalho said she was shocked by how many hours council was spending on a bill “that really was a no-brainer to me.”
“It’s very easy to look at something and pick it apart to not support it,” Kouchi said, adding that he was happy to vote in favor of the bill even though he opposed the amendment.
Bynum said Friday that he understood the final version to be a one-time credit this year with the intention of revisiting the issue during the total tax reform process next year. But at the council meeting, Iseri-Carvalho remained skeptical about a tax credit for veterans being addressed in the tax reform process.
“It will fall through the cracks,” she said, noting that the tax reform package has been in the works for the past four to five years. “We need to address it here.”
The tax credit does not apply to veterans who were discharged under other than honorable conditions. A surviving spouse is also qualified to receive the credit, provided the individual meets the same provisions required for the veterans.
To qualify, a veteran must provide to the finance director proof of service in a combat zone or hazardous duty area. Supporting documents include DD Form 214, orders, leave and earning statement reflecting combat pay, letters from unit commanders attesting to combat duty and dates, combat awards and decorations or other official documentation specifying dates of combat duty.
The law creates with some restrictions a full exemption of the real property tax assessment for the primary residence of deployed active-duty military personnel, effective July 1, 2008.
Past combat zones include the various theaters of World Wars I and II and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. Current combat zones include the Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan. Hazardous duty areas include Bosnia/Herzegovina, Croatia, and the former Republic of Yugoslavia.
The 2008 tax year runs from July 1, 2008, to June 30, 2009.
To receive this tax credit, eligible veterans must file Claim Form P-8 with the real property assessment office by Feb. 1. The form can be picked up at the assessment office at the Lihu‘e Civic Center, Kapule Building, Suite A-454, or downloaded from the real property assessment Web site at www.kauaipropertytax.com starting Monday.
To apply for the exemption, qualified individuals must file Claim Form P-9 with the real property assessment office by June 30 of the tax year for which the exemption is claimed, starting with the 2009 tax year.
For more information, call the assessment office at 241-6222.
