Legislation sponsored by Senators Anthony Bucco, R-25th of Boonton, and Troy Singleton, D-7th of Palmyra, to create the credit was advanced by the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs Committee last week with unanimous support and now goes to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee for consideration.

TRENTON — New Jersey lawmakers are taking another stab at creating a new tax credit for disabled veterans who rent.

Legislation sponsored by Senators Anthony Bucco, R-25th of Boonton, and Troy Singleton, D-7th of Palmyra, to create the credit was advanced by the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs Committee last week with unanimous support and now goes to the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee for consideration.

The proposed credit would provide a gross income tax credit equal to 18 percent of a disabled veteran’s rent, which lawmakers said generally equates to the property taxes paid on a rental unit.

Currently, veterans who are ruled to be totally disabled and are homeowners are exempt from paying any property tax on their primary residence, and all veterans who served during wartime are eligible for a $250 property tax deduction. But there is no tax relief offered to disabled veterans who rent, even though a portion of their rent is considered to be directly related to a rental site’s property taxes.

All honorably discharged veterans who reside in New Jersey are already eligible for a $3,000 state income tax deduction. This new credit would be in addition to that, as well as the $50 credit now available to disabled seniors over 65 who rent.

The new credit would be capped at $1,000. Eligibility would be limited to veterans who served during periods of war or other military conflicts.

The credit was first proposed by Bucco and Assemblyman Ronald Dancer, R-12th of Plumsted, during the 2016-17 legislative session but was never advanced from either the Senate or Assembly Military and Veterans Affairs Committees.

Singleton joined as a co-sponsor this year following his promotion from the Assembly to the Senate and was appointed chair of the Senate panel.

“We have a moral obligation to do everything in our power to assist our veterans, especially those who are disabled resulting from their time in the service,” Singleton said. “For many of our disabled vets, real estate prices preclude them from home ownership and they rent instead. In doing so, they are not eligible for veterans’ property tax relief programs. This proposal would allow them to claim a maximum tax credit of $1,000 for the portion of their rent that goes towards property taxes, relieving some of their financial burden.”

Bucco, who was not present for the committee meeting, said renters deserve some more help.

“Disabled veterans who rent, as opposed to own a home, are missing out on critical tax deductions. This is incredibly unfair,” he said. “Every man or woman who has honorably served our country should have equal access to these programs.”

Veterans advocate Robert McNulty Sr. spoke in favor of the credit during last week’s hearing, but he urged lawmakers to remove the war time service requirement from the bill, arguing that thousands of service members are injured annually, even in peacetime.

“If we restrict how we look at injured veterans as only those injured in war service, we are ignoring thousands of people,” he said. “These individuals are serving their nation and they’re injured as a result of that service. It may have been inflicted by an enemy, but it’s no less debilitating.”

No fiscal note projecting the loss of state revenue from the proposed tax credit has been written for the measure, but expanding it from veterans injured during war service to all disabled veterans, regardless of when they served, would likely increase the measure’s expense.

Singleton said he was open to amending the measure but wanted to speak to Bucco about it first.

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