Veterans' Tax Exemptions

Board of Ed to revisit Gold Star Exemption

Veterans still upset over tax exemption issue

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The Lynbrook Board of Education announced at a June 11 meeting that it would revisit the Gold Star Parent tax exemption for parents who have lost a son or daughter in the military. There is only qualifying Gold Star family in Lynbrook.

The board previously denied the motion in addition to voting down school tax exemptions for veterans in February, citing the shift of the burden to non-veterans in the village.

“We’re still in the process of gathering information regarding the veterans’ exemptions,” Trustee Bill Belmont said at the meeting. “Although we have until November to make a decision on that, I still think sooner than that, at least initially pass the Gold Star Exemption. I think for all the arguments we’ve heard on both sides [that the Gold Star exemption] is one that I don’t think we need to collect as much data as we do on the other ones.”

The next step for the board is to schedule a public hearing on the issue, before the board can vote on it again. In the public comment part of the meeting, Pat Cardone, past commander of the Howard Lathrop Post 2307 VFW in Lynbrook and Memorial Day parade chairman thanked the board for their decision to review the Gold Star Exemption, citing that the increase in taxes was estimated at 10 cents. Lynbrook School District Assistant Superintendent for Finance Paul Lynch confirmed this calculation, based on the average household value of $368,000.

Other veterans attended the meeting to voice their displeasure with the board. Frank Paz, commander of the Chateau Thierry/CPL Wainz No.145 Disabled American Veterans Chapter, said that he was disgusted by the board’s treatment of veterans.

“I never saw any of you people before, just to look at you, I don’t know if any of you were in the military, but I’m sure none of you are combat veterans,” he said. “I cannot believe you disrespected the veterans by all of you voting against a small something for the veterans.”

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