New Texas law exempts disabled vets from property taxes
August 4, 2009
Jim Strachan’s property taxes have more than doubled since he bought his Westworth Village home in 1999, putting a strain on his limited income.
Written by Anthony Spangler, Fort Worth Star Telegram
Jim Strachan says the new tax exemption "will certainly help out quite a bit.
FORT WORTH — Jim Strachan’s property taxes have more than doubled since he bought his Westworth Village home in 1999, putting a strain on his limited income.
The 47-year-old former Airborne Ranger is a 100 percent disabled veteran. Strachan’s feet, ankles and legs were ripped apart by a mortar round in Grenada in 1983, where he earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star.
But thousands of disabled veterans in Tarrant County like Strachan could soon benefit from a new Texas law that will exempt their homesteaded property taxes.
"I haven’t been approved yet," Strachan said. "But the new exemption will certainly help out quite a bit, considering how much they’ve increased my taxes in the last 10 years."
About 6,400 disabled veterans in Tarrant County were sent letters last month explaining the new exemption for service members who receive 100 percent disability benefits from the Veterans Affairs Department, or for those who would qualify for benefits and are unemployable.
The exemption is for homesteaded property belonging to qualified, living veterans. Texas voters approved the exemption in May 2007, a constitutional amendment that garnered 87 percent support at the polls.
State Rep. John Otto, R-Dayton, added the disabled veteran exemption to HB3613, a bill he authored that requires property to be valued on its own merit, not "fair and best use," which can consider factors such as adjacent development.
"The voters had already passed the constitutional amendment and we wanted to make sure it got passed into law," he said. "If we hadn’t added to my bill, it wouldn’t have passed for another two years. And we wanted to make sure those qualified veterans could benefit from the exemption."
By 2011, the loss in property tax revenue for school districts, counties and cities will be about $13.3 million, and the state will have to contribute an additional $11.4 million toward school funding to offset school-tax exemptions, according to the Texas Legislative Budget Board.
Diane Collins, director of support services at the Tarrant Appraisal District, said about 850 applications for the new exemption have been returned.
"We know we ended up mailing to more people than we think qualify," she said. "And this is retroactive to this tax year. We hope to get all of the applications returned before tax bills are sent out."
Under Texas law, veterans already qualify for property tax exemptions based on level of disability. This year, lawmakers increased the exemption on a home for 100 percent disabled veterans from a $12,000 reduction to a complete reduction.
The VA estimates that about 3,500 disabled veterans in Tarrant County will qualify for the tax exemption, based on the eligibility requirements.
Tarrant Chief Appraiser Jeff Law said the veterans who may qualify for the exemption need to apply for it.
"It is not automatic, so they still have to fill out the form and return it to us," he said. "But people need to realize that it is free to apply, and we will help anyone who needs help with the forms."
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