Thousands of disabled veterans in Nassau could get property tax break thanks to newly passed bill

Thousands of disabled veterans in Nassau County could now be eligible for a 100% property tax break after lawmakers voted to implement a new state law Monday. 

The measure, which passed unanimously, means that veterans deemed completely  disabled from a service-related condition by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will get a full tax break on their primary residence in Nassau. It pulls from a March state law that gives municipalities the option of giving certain veterans a full tax break. 

"They’re struggling. Cost of living has gone up. These are people to whom we owe a great deal," Presiding Officer Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence), who in part introduced the bill, told Newsday. "We want to take care of them. They deserve it."

Nassau is the latest of several Long Island municipalities taking  advantage of the state law. In December, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a previous version of the bill into  law that required municipalities give a partial property tax break to disabled veterans. The law limited exemptions to 15% of the assessed property value, capping the tax break at $12,000. That law will take effect on Oct. 1, applying to the 2027 assessment roll. 

Later, Hochul announced municipalities could choose to go further and give veterans a full tax break. Hempstead and Glen Cove officials, like in Nassau, have opted into this plan, offering severely disabled veterans a 100% exemption from property taxes.

Disabled veterans must meet certain requirements to receive the full tax break, according to state law. The exemption applies to veterans who are considered "permanently and totally disabled," and their condition is unlikely to improve. It also applies to disabled veterans who were honorably discharged and those who identify as LGBTQ and were discharged in any way other than bad conduct.

Obtaining a tax break is not automatic. Qualifying veterans must complete a state tax form and submit it to Nassau assessors.

Several other Long Island municipalities have passed similar measures. The Kings Park school board was also weighing a plan to give veterans a tax break by lowering their property assessments.

There are about 50,000 veterans living in Nassau, according to the Office of Legislative Budget Review. Among them, between 1,800 and 2,000 veterans could be eligible to receive the exemption.

Veterans who meet the 100% disability rating qualify for nearly $4,000 in monthly compensation, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The rate is slightly higher for those with a spouse or parents. 

Nassau's new measure applies to veterans who owe property taxes to begin with. But, at least for one veterans advocate, the bill sparked concerns about those with no  home at all.

During public comment at the legislative hearing on Monday, advocate Meta Mereday raised the question of homeless veterans, or those living in basements or sleeping on the couches of their loved ones.

"What are we doing to help them get a home? How did they end up on the street when we have empty properties, buildings?" Mereday, of Baldwin, told Newsday.

As of January 2025, 83 veterans in Nassau and Suffolk counties were living in emergency homeless shelters, according to the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless. More than 60 others were living in transitional housing sites.

The money Nassau would have gotten from disabled veterans will now be passed on to remaining taxpayers, so the law will not affect the county financially, according to the Office of Legislative Budget Review.