(2) Who are disabled by injury or disease incurred or aggravated during active military service in the line of duty and are receiving any form of pension or compensation from the United States Government for total, service-connected disability.

The exemptions provided in this paragraph apply to the property of that veteran, including property held in joint tenancy with that veteran's spouse or held in a revocable living trust for the benefit of that veteran.

A.Exemptions granted under this paragraph on or after April 1, 2002 require a 100% reimbursement to the municipality for the property tax revenues lost tB.o that municipality.__ Exemptions granted on or after April 1, 2002 under this paragraph are not considered eligible for reimbursement under paragraph H.__Municipal property tax revenues lost as a result of exemptions granted prior to April 1, 2002 are not 100% reimbursable but may be reimbursable under section 661.

Sec. 3. 37-B MRSA §505, sub-§5 is enacted to read:

5.__Public assistance designation.__Assistance granted to veterans or their dependents pursuant to this section is designated public assistance within the meaning of Title 22, section 9-A.__The department retains administrative responsibility for assistance granted under this section.

Sec. 4. Notification. The Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Maine Revenue Services shall notify by regular mail each municipality of the provisions of that section of this Act that amends the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, section 653, subsection 1, paragraph C at least 60 days prior

to the beginning of the first property tax year to which the changes apply.

Sec. 5. Application. That section of this Act that amends the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 36, section 653, subsection 1, paragraph C applies to property tax years beginning April 1, 2002.

Sec. 6. Appropriation. The following funds are appropriated from the General Fund to carry out the purposes of this Act.

2001-02 2002-03

DEFENSE, VETERANS AND

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT,

DEPARTMENT OF

Bureau of Veterans' Services

Personal Services $55,000

All Other 260,000 $200,000

Provides funds to the Bureau of Veterans' Services to hire one new full-time support staff position and to convert 4 part- time support staff positions to full-time staff positions in the bureau's regional field offices and for the purchase of new computers and software to provide staff training in computer applications for staff in the bureau's field offices. Provides funds to provide aid to veterans and their dependents pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes,

Title 37-B, section 505.

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE,

VETERANS AND EMERGENCY

MANAGEMENT ________ ________

TOTAL $315,000 $200,000

SUMMARY

This bill reduces from 15 to 5 the years of creditable service a state employee who is a member of the Maine State Retirement System must have before the employee is eligible to purchase service credits for service in the Armed Forces of the United States. It also removes the requirement that members joining after January 1, 1976 must have served in a federally recognized period of conflict to be eligible to purchase military service credits.

This bill expands eligibility for the veterans' property tax exemption and removes from statute eligibility requirements related to federally recognized periods of war. It also makes all honorably discharged veterans who are 62 years of age or older eligible for the veterans' property tax exemption authorized by this bill. The bill requires the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, Maine Revenue Services to notify each municipality of this expanded eligibility at least 60 days prior to the beginning of the first property tax year to which this expanded eligibility applies.

This bill designates as public assistance aid provided to veterans and their dependents pursuant to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 37-B and requires that the Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management retain administrative responsibility for this aid.

This bill also restores funding for support staff positions in the Department of Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management, Bureau of Veterans' Services regional field offices that were eliminated in the budget cuts of 1990. It provides funding to purchase new computers and software for the regional offices that will, among other things, link them with the bureau's Togus claims office. The bill also restores funding to provide aid to veterans and their dependents.