Proposes constitutional amendment to require State reimbursement to municipalities for total property tax exemption provided to veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities.

SCR84

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 84

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 5, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� CARMEN F. AMATO, JR.

District 9 (Ocean)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Corrado

SYNOPSIS

���� Proposes constitutional amendment to require State
reimbursement to municipalities for total property tax exemption provided to
veterans having permanent and total service-connected disabilities.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

A
Concurrent Resolution
proposing to amend
Article VIII, Section I, paragraph 3 of the New Jersey Constitution.

����
Be It
Resolved
by the Senate of the State of New
Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):

���� 1.��� The following proposed
amendment to the Constitution of the State of New Jersey is hereby agreed to:

PROPOSED
AMENDMENT

���� Amend Article VIII, Section I,
paragraph 3 to read as follows:

���� 3.��� a.� Any citizen and
resident of this State now or hereafter honorably discharged or released under
honorable circumstances from active service in any branch of the Armed Forces
of the United States shall be entitled, annually to a deduction from the amount
of any tax bill for taxes on real and personal property, or both, including
taxes attributable to a residential unit held by a stockholder in a cooperative
or mutual housing corporation in the sum of $250 in each tax year, or if the
amount of any such tax bill shall be less than $250, to a cancellation
thereof.� The deduction or cancellation shall not be altered or repealed.� Any
person hereinabove described who has been or shall be declared by the United
States Department of Veterans Affairs, or its successor, to have a
service-connected disability, shall be entitled to such further deduction from
taxation as from time to time may be provided by law.� The surviving spouse of
any citizen and resident of this State who has met or shall meet his or her death
on active duty in any such service shall be entitled, during her widowhood or
his widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, to the
deduction or cancellation in this subsection provided for honorably discharged
veterans and to such further deduction as from time to time may be provided by
law.� The surviving spouse of any citizen and resident of this State who has
had or shall hereafter have active service in any branch of the Armed Forces of
the United States and who died or shall die while on active duty in any branch
of the Armed Forces of the United States, or who has been or may hereafter be
honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active
service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States shall be
entitled, during her widowhood or his widowerhood, as the case may be, and
while a resident of this State, to the deduction or cancellation in this
subsection provided for honorably discharged veterans and to such further
deductions as from time to time may be provided by law.

���� b.��� A continuing care
retirement community shall receive a veterans' property tax deduction on behalf
of eligible veterans.� The amount of the property tax deduction shall be the
dollar amount of the deduction multiplied by the number of eligible veterans receiving
the property tax deduction immediately prior to moving into the continuing care
retirement community.� A person otherwise eligible for the veterans' deduction
who is a resident of a continuing care retirement community shall receive the
amount of the deduction to the extent of the share of the taxes assessed
against the real property of the continuing care retirement community that is
attributable to the unit that the resident occupies.� The continuing care
retirement community shall provide that amount as a payment or credit to the
resident.� That payment or credit shall be made to the resident no later than
30 days after the continuing care retirement community receives the property
tax bill on which the credit appears.� A veterans' property tax deduction shall
not be paid on behalf of any eligible veteran who resides in a continuing care
retirement community that is property tax-exempt.� A resident receiving a
payment or credit pursuant to this subsection shall not receive a veterans'
property tax deduction on any other residence owned in whole or in part by the
resident, or any residence in which the resident's spouse is living.

���� The surviving spouse of any
citizen and resident of this State who has met or shall meet his or her death
on active duty in any such service shall be entitled, during her widowhood or
his widowerhood, as the case may be, and while a resident of this State, to the
deduction in this subsection provided for honorably discharged veterans.� The
surviving spouse of any citizen and resident of this State who has had or shall
hereafter have active service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United
States and who died or shall die while on active duty in any branch of the
Armed Forces of the United States, or who has been or may hereafter be
honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active
service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States shall be
entitled, during her widowhood or his widowerhood, as the case may be, and
while a resident of this State, to the deduction in this subsection provided
for honorably discharged veterans.

����
c.��� The State shall
annually reimburse each municipality in an amount equal to the total amount of
property taxes that would have otherwise been due for each property, owned by a
person with a service-connected disability who receives a total exemption from taxation
as authorized by this section, had the property been taxed the same as other
real property within the municipality.

����
The municipality shall
reimburse each county, school district, or other local entity that is
authorized to impose property taxes within the municipality.� Each
reimbursement shall be in an amount equal to the property taxes that would have
otherwise been due to the county, school district, or other local entity for
each property, owned by a person with a service-connected disability who
receives a total exemption from taxation as authorized by this section, had the
property been taxed the same as other real property within the county, school
district, or other local entity.

(cf: Article VIII, Section I,
paragraph 3; amended effective December 3, 2020)

���� 2.��� When this proposed
amendment to the Constitution is finally agreed to pursuant to Article IX,
paragraph 1 of the Constitution, it shall be submitted to the people at the
next general election occurring more than three months after the final
agreement and shall be published at least once in at least one newspaper of
each county designated by the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the
General Assembly and the Secretary of State, not less than three months prior
to the general election.

���� 3.��� This proposed amendment
to the Constitution shall be submitted to the people at that election in the
following manner and form:

���� There shall be printed on each
official ballot to be used at the general election, the following:

���� a. In every municipality in
which voting machines are not used, a legend which shall immediately precede
the question as follows:

���� If you favor the proposition
printed below make a cross (X), plus (+), or check (
a
) in the square opposite the word "Yes." If you are
opposed thereto make a cross (X), plus (+) or check (
a
) in the square opposite the
word "No."

���� b. In
every municipality the following question:

CONSTITUTIONAL
AMENDMENT REQUIRING STATE REIMBURSEMENT FOR TOTAL PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION TO
CERTAIN VETERANS WITH DISABILITIES

YES

���� Do you approve amending the
State Constitution to require the State to reimburse municipalities every
year for the amount of the total property tax exemption provided to certain
veterans with disabilities?

���� Currently, veterans who are
totally disabled due to their military service qualify for a 100 percent
exemption from paying property taxes.� The amount of the State reimbursement
would be equal to the amount of property taxes that would have otherwise been
due on each property that receives the exemption.

���� A municipality would be
required to reimburse any county, school district, or other local entity that
is authorized to tax property in the municipality.� The amount of the payment
to each entity would be based on the amount of property taxes that would have
been owed to each entity from each exempt property.

INTERPRETIVE
STATEMENT

NO

���� This constitutional
amendment would require the State to reimburse municipalities every year for
the amount of the total property tax exemption provided to certain veterans
with disabilities.� Currently, veterans who are totally disabled due to their
military service qualify for a 100 percent exemption from paying property
taxes.

���� Currently, municipalities
are not reimbursed for the property taxes they would have otherwise received
from tax-exempt properties.� As a result, the burden of this exemption is
shifted onto property owners that do not receive an exemption.� The result
can be higher taxes on the remaining nonexempt properties.

��� Counties, school districts,
and other local entities also impose property taxes.� Municipalities collect
the property taxes on behalf of the local entities, and then disburse the
property taxes owed to each local entity.� Like municipalities, these local
entities are not reimbursed for the costs of providing property tax
exemptions.� This amendment would require a municipality to make payments to
each of these local entities from the total State reimbursement.� The amount
of each payment would be equal to the amount of property taxes each entity
would have received from each tax-exempt property.

STATEMENT

���� This concurrent resolution
proposes an amendment to the State Constitution to require the State to
annually reimburse municipalities for the lost property tax revenue related to
providing a 100 percent property tax exemption to certain veterans with disabilities.

���� Under current law, veterans
having permanent and total service-connected disabilities may qualify for a
property tax exemption equal to the full amount of their property tax bill.�
However, the State is not required to reimburse municipalities for the costs
related to the total property tax exemption.� Accordingly, counties, school
districts, and other local entities that are authorized to impose property
taxes are not themselves reimbursed for the costs related to the total property
tax exemption provided to certain veterans with disabilities.

���� Although property tax
exemptions do not reduce the total amount of property tax revenue collected by
a municipality, exempting some properties from taxation shifts the tax burden
onto other, nonexempt properties within the municipality.� As a result,
property tax exemptions may lead to an increase in property taxes for the
owners of nonexempt properties.

���� This constitutional amendment
would require the State to provide an annual reimbursement to municipalities
for the total amount of the total property tax exemption provided to veterans
having permanent and total service-connected disabilities.� Specifically, the
amount of the annual reimbursement would be equal to the total value of
property taxes that would have otherwise been collected by the municipality for
each property receiving the total property tax exemption provided to veterans
having permanent and total service-connected disabilities.� A municipality
would be required to reimburse each county, school district, and other local
entity that is authorized to impose property tax in that municipality.� Each
reimbursement would be in an amount equal to the property taxes that would have
otherwise been due to the county, school district, or other local entity from
each tax-exempt property.