Assessor briefs commission on HB47 veterans tax changes; partial-disability exemptions raise implementation questions

San Juan County assessor staff briefed commissioners on recent state legislation, House Bill 47, that expands property-tax exemptions for veterans and creates a new partial-disability exemption, but said many implementation details remain unresolved.

The assessor's office reported that the increase of the standard veteran exemption from $4,000 to $10,000 is already effective in 2025 for applicants who have completed the county application process. The office reported 2,510 approved veteran exemptions in the county and an estimated FY25 revenue impact of about $352,924 from the increase.

The assessor said the partial-disability exemption—whereby a veteran’s disability rating (10, 20, 30 percent, etc.) would map to a percent exemption—was scheduled to begin in 2026 but that the state and federal VA systems are not yet providing county assessors with a clear, privacy-compliant way to enumerate how many partially disabled veterans live in the county. The assessor noted several unresolved implementation questions the county and state are working to answer: whether exemptions apply in full when property titles list multiple owners (for example a veteran and a spouse), whether trusts qualify, how multiple exemptions would stack, and whether veterans could apply exemptions across multiple residences.

The assessor said the county will accept partially disabled exemption applications this year, but staff are holding them until the state finalizes procedures. The assessor encouraged veterans to file so the county can process them once rules are clarified, and said the county would notify applicants and the public when the state and VA provide the necessary data or instructions.

Commissioners and staff discussed outreach efforts, including the county's veterans fair and public notices, to encourage eligible veterans to apply.