Saratoga County committee schedules public hearing on local 100% disabled-veteran property-tax exemption

Saratoga County's Veterans Committee voted Aug. 5 to schedule a public hearing on whether local taxing authorities should adopt a property-tax exemption for 100% permanently and totally disabled veterans.

Director Frank McClements told the committee the item grows out of two separate changes: a mandatory state-level exemption passed as part of the New York State budget and a separate local-option exemption municipalities may choose to adopt. “That was a mandatory exemption. That is law. There's no local option to that,” McClements said, adding that the local option under consideration would apply only to the permanently and totally disabled designation.

McClements presented county estimates to illustrate fiscal impact: “There's about just under 3,600 veterans county wide in receipt of VA disability compensation. Of that, 775 are 1 rated at 100%…705 have the permanent and total designation,” he said, and estimated the 2027 equalized assessed valuation at just over $46.6 billion, with an assessed-valuation reduction of roughly $105.5 million and a levy shortfall in the range of $187,000 — about 0.2% of the county levy.

Committee members asked how the exemption would be applied and whether towns and school districts would need to act; McClements replied each taxing authority that levies property taxes would have to pass its own local legislation to opt in. The committee voted to set a public hearing so municipalities and residents can comment before any local adoption.

Next steps: the committee will post hearing details and staff said they will coordinate with town assessors to identify potentially eligible properties and prepare informational materials ahead of the hearing.