Bill Text: NY S07461 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Clarifies the definition of veteran to include career members of the armed forces for purposes of the veterans alternative tax exemption by considering individuals who meet certain conditions to have been discharged or released from active military service of the United States despite the fact that no discharge may have been issued.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-06-07 - SUBSTITUTED BY A3381A [S07461 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S07461-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          7461

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                      May 30, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed,
          and when printed to be committed to the Committee on  Veterans,  Home-
          land Security and Military Affairs

        AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to clarifying the
          definition  of  veteran  to include career members of the armed forces
          for purposes of the veterans alternative tax exemption

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Paragraph (e) of subdivision 1 of section 458-a of the real
     2  property  tax  law, as amended by section 83 of part PP of chapter 56 of
     3  the laws of 2022, is amended to read as follows:
     4    (e) "Veteran" means a person (i) who served in  the  active  military,
     5  naval,  or air service during a period of war, or who was a recipient of
     6  the armed forces expeditionary medal, navy expeditionary  medal,  marine
     7  corps  expeditionary  medal,  or  global  war on terrorism expeditionary
     8  medal, and who (1) was discharged or released therefrom under  honorable
     9  conditions, or (2) has a qualifying condition, as defined in section one
    10  of  the  veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other than
    11  bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, or (3)  is  a  discharged
    12  LGBT  veteran,  as defined in section one of the veterans' services law,
    13  and has received a discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from
    14  such service, (ii) who was employed by the War  Shipping  Administration
    15  or Office of Defense Transportation or their agents as a merchant seaman
    16  documented  by  the United States Coast Guard or Department of Commerce,
    17  or as a civil servant employed  by  the  United  States  Army  Transport
    18  Service  (later  redesignated  as  the United States Army Transportation
    19  Corps, Water Division) or the  Naval  Transportation  Service;  and  who
    20  served  satisfactorily  as  a  crew  member  during  the period of armed
    21  conflict,  December  seventh,  nineteen  hundred  forty-one,  to  August
    22  fifteenth,  nineteen  hundred  forty-five,  aboard  merchant  vessels in
    23  oceangoing, i.e., foreign, intercoastal, or coastwise  service  as  such

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06348-04-3
        S. 7461                             2

     1  terms  are defined under federal law (46 USCA 10301 & 10501) and further
     2  to include "near foreign" voyages between the United States and  Canada,
     3  Mexico, or the West Indies via ocean routes, or public vessels in ocean-
     4  going  service  or  foreign waters and who has received a Certificate of
     5  Release or Discharge from Active Duty and a discharge certificate, or an
     6  Honorable Service Certificate/Report of Casualty, from the department of
     7  defense, (iii) who served as a United States civilian  employed  by  the
     8  American  Field  Service  and served overseas under United States Armies
     9  and United States Army Groups in world war II during the period of armed
    10  conflict, December  seventh,  nineteen  hundred  forty-one  through  May
    11  eighth,  nineteen  hundred  forty-five,  and  who  (1) was discharged or
    12  released therefrom under honorable conditions, or (2) has  a  qualifying
    13  condition,  as defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and
    14  has received a discharge other than bad  conduct  or  dishonorable  from
    15  such service, or (3) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section
    16  one  of  the  veterans' services law, and has received a discharge other
    17  than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, (iv) who served as a
    18  United States civilian Flight Crew and Aviation Ground Support  Employee
    19  of  Pan  American World Airways or one of its subsidiaries or its affil-
    20  iates and served overseas as a result of Pan  American's  contract  with
    21  Air  Transport  Command or Naval Air Transport Service during the period
    22  of armed  conflict,  December  fourteenth,  nineteen  hundred  forty-one
    23  through  August fourteenth, nineteen hundred forty-five, and who (1) was
    24  discharged or released therefrom under honorable conditions, or (2)  has
    25  a  qualifying  condition,  as  defined  in  section one of the veterans'
    26  services law, and has received a discharge other  than  bad  conduct  or
    27  dishonorable  from such service, or (3) is a discharged LGBT veteran, as
    28  defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a
    29  discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, [or]
    30  (v) notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, who  are
    31  members  of  the  reserve  components  of the armed forces of the United
    32  States who (1) received an  honorable  discharge  or  release  therefrom
    33  under  honorable  conditions,  or  (2)  has  a  qualifying condition, as
    34  defined in section one of the veterans' services law, and has received a
    35  discharge other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such  service,  or
    36  (3)  is  a  discharged  LGBT  veteran,  as defined in section one of the
    37  veterans' services law, and has received  a  discharge  other  than  bad
    38  conduct  or dishonorable from such service, but are still members of the
    39  reserve components of the armed forces of  the  United  States  provided
    40  that  such members meet all other qualifications under the provisions of
    41  this section, or (vi) who shall be considered to have been discharged or
    42  released from active military service of the United States under  honor-
    43  able  conditions  if:  (1)  the individual served in the active military
    44  service of the United States for the period of time such individual  was
    45  obligated  to serve  at  the time of  entry  into service; (2) the indi-
    46  vidual  was  not discharged or released from such service at the time of
    47  completing such  period  of obligation due to an intervening  enlistment
    48  or  reenlistment;  (3)  the individual would   have  been eligible for a
    49  discharge or release under conditions other than  dishonorable  at  such
    50  time except for such intervening enlistment or reenlistment; and (4) the
    51  individual  served  in  the active military service of the United States
    52  for a period of at least ten years, provided that such individual  meets
    53  all other qualifications under the provisions of this section.
    54    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.