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Lansing School Superintendent Chris Pettograsso reported Monday that a preliminary analysis of an exit poll at last week's budget vote showed taxpayers would pay more so veterans could pay less.  270 voters took the time to complete the poll.  63% of those said they would support a veteran's exemption.  Pettograsso noted that only 11% of eligible voters actually voted.  She also pointed out that about half the district voters who opposed next school year's budget favored a veteran's exemption.

"We spent a lot of time throughout the day explaining what that was and talking to people," she said.  "196 people said yes to supporting the budget -- 124 of them said yes to supporting the veterans' exemption.  Of the 72 people that said no, 45 said yes to the veteran's exemption."

The exit poll was a step in reconsidering a veteran's exemption after veteran and Lansing resident Bill Howard asked the Board to instate some level of a tax break for veterans last January.  Board members have discussed other pressures on Lansing taxpayers including the continuing devaluation of the Cayuga Power Plant and the shifting of providing that revenue from the plant to district homeowners.  In a presentation two weeks ago School Business Administrator Mary June King suggested regular annual reviews of tax exemptions that could adjust them to take other tax pressures into consideration. 

"I like Mary June's idea about considering the veterans' exemption and the other exemptions in the reorganization meeting," said school board member Aziza Benson.  "At least it will be a constant reminder, and if it doesn't work out for that year for whatever reason it can always drop off."

The Lansing School District currently extends exemptions to seniors and disabled taxpayers.  If the Board Of Education decides to add the veteran's exemption it would cost between $10.88 and $20.24 of additional taxes to non-veteran owners of a median value home in Lansing. 242 properties within the Lansing school district could be exempted if the property owners were to apply for the exemption.

These dollar amounts were calculated in a theoretical scenario showing how this August's tax bills would be affected if the exemption were to be applied.  As property taxes tend to rise the real numbers might be higher if the exemption is applied in the future.  The earliest the exemption could be extended would be 2018, because state law requires that school boards approve the exemption by March 1st preceding the tax bill it is to be applied to.

The veteran's exemption law, which previously only allowed municipalities to offer exemptions, was modified in 2013 to allow school districts to offer partial property tax exemptions to private, primary residences owned by veterans, a veteran's spouse, or an un-remarried widow or widower of a veteran.  Veterans are defined as having served in a war or hostilities, including the Spanish American War, World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam, or the Persian Gulf.

Pettograsso said an analysis considering more information will be presented at the June 12th Board Of Education meeting.

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