- Target:
- Town of Bennington, VT and the State of Vermont Legislature
- Region:
- United States of America
Several counties in the state of Vermont provide an exemption on taxes to town governments once a Veteran reaches a disability rating of 50% or greater. (32 V.S.A. § 3802 (11) )
However each year the disabled Veteran must go into a local government office and certify that they are still qualified for this benefit. This is where I feel the problem is, if paperwork becomes "lost" that Veteran loses. The veteran faces potential discrimination from government officials who "doubt" paperwork.
It is time to stop asking our Disabled Veterans to fight! Our country sent them off to war. Even if you don’t agree with the war (who does) PLEASE HELP ME TELL MY STATE TO STOP ASKING ITS VETERANS TO FIGHT!!!
I know first hand the difficulties facing our disabled Veterans in the state of Vermont. My husband is one, and we are currently fighting our town on the exemption issue. Our town Collection Agent refused to discuss the exemption issue with us when she was first presented my husband's paperwork. She questioned why it did not detail his medical issues. I refused to give her private medical information. Since then our town has claimed no attempt has ever been made to get this benefit and of course they can not find the paperwork we have provided. I contacted each of my Senators and Rep for my county, out of 13 only 2 would speak with me.
It is shocking but this type of discrimination (my personal opinion) happens everyday to many Veterans. It is our elected officials who sent these young men and women off to war and it is their responsibility to ensure fair, legal, ethical, and just treatment is provided.
This should apply even if they voted no for the war, even if it was a predecessor who made the vote .... they now hold the responsibility! The voters provided this benefit and if the elected officials will not honor this law what is next?! What group will find themselves facing the same discrimination?
We the undersigned citizens of the United States of America ask you, Senators and Representatives for the State of Vermont to stop asking your Veterans to fight for benefits the voters of your towns and counties provide.
We ask you to make the exemption benefit a life long benefit. Once a Veteran provides their town, city or county office, or any elected official within that office paperwork showing a disability rating higher than 50% the exemption will be applied until the death of said Veteran.
The exemption will still apply to a spouse of said Veteran if the marriage was intact at time of Veteran’s death, until remarriage or death of said spouse.
We are asking you to close the potential for discrimination, remove that burden from your disabled Veterans. After all haven’t they given enough?
You can further help this campaign by sponsoring it
The Helping Disabled Vermont Veterans petition to Town of Bennington, VT and the State of Vermont Legislature was written by Elizabeth Percey and is in the category Patriotism at GoPetition.