Lindenhurst school district studying tax exemptions for veterans

The Lindenhurst school district Wednesday night will hold a workshop on a proposed school tax exemption for veterans.

The state's veterans' tax exemption law was expanded last year by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to allow school boards to authorize school property tax exemptions for veterans who served in wartime.

There are different types of exemptions: a basic 15 percent exemption for those who served during a war, another 10 percent for those who served in combat zones, and additional reductions for service-related disabilities.

Parents of veterans who died in combat could receive a Gold Star Parent exemption of up to 25 percent.

Under the law, school boards have the option of setting lower amounts of exemption. Also, the state will not reimburse districts for lost revenue due to the exemptions. Instead, non-veteran taxpayers in the district would have to make up the difference.

According to information provided to the district from the Town of Babylon, 949 properties within the district could claim a veterans tax exemption of some kind. If all of those properties claimed their basic exemption, non-veteran households would have to pay an additional $40 per year. If all of those eligible claimed the maximum exemption, according to the district, non-veteran households would have to pay an additional $110 per year. The town has no Gold Star Parents.

Wednesday night's workshop will feature Tom Ronayne, director of Suffolk County's Veterans Service Agency, who will be available to answer questions. The workshop will be at 8 p.m. at the McKenna Administration Building, 350 Daniel St.

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.