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Rep. Page introduces H.104 to exclude veterans disability benefits from income tests for state programs
Summary
Representative Woodland Page told the House Human Services Committee H.104 would exclude veterans disability benefits from income calculations used to determine eligibility for several state-administered assistance programs across multiple agencies.
Representative Woodland “Woody” Page of Newport introduced H.104 to the House Human Services Committee, saying the bill would exclude veterans disability benefits from household income when determining eligibility for several state assistance programs.
Page said the bill amends language across four statutory sections to add veterans disability benefits to existing exclusions in formulas used to calculate taxable or adjusted gross income for program eligibility. Sections named in the bill target multiple agencies: the electricity and natural gas efficiency entity (30 VSA §209), the Department for Children and Families (33 VSA §125), the Department of Vermont Health Access (33 VSA §405), and the Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (33 VSA §506). The bill also references federal tax code definitions (26 U.S. Code §62) for adjusted gross income.
Page said veterans’ disability payments are generally nontaxable at the federal and state levels and that it is unclear whether those payments are being included in income-counting rules used by the state for certain benefit programs. The measure would make the exclusion explicit for the programs named in the text. Committee members asked whether similar exclusions apply for municipal property-tax exemptions; Page said municipal exemptions vary by locality and that the bill focuses on state-level program income calculations. Another member asked whether federal funding rules for programs such as fuel assistance or child-care subsidies could constrain state changes to income calculations; Page said some programs are federally funded in part and that language or coordination might be needed where federal eligibility rules apply.
No committee vote was taken during this introduction; members said legislative counsel and agency staff would be asked to clarify language and any federal funding constraints if the bill proceeds.
