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           Assemblyman Greg Ball Announces Landmark Program to Provide NYS
    Veterans with Free SUNY/CUNY College Tuition

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  April 11, 2008

           Assemblyman Greg Ball(R-Carmel) held 2 press conferences today in the 99th Assembly District to
    announce that his landmark program to create a tuition remission program for veterans has been
    included in the 2008-09 State Budget.  The budget was passed by both houses earlier this week.
            The 2008-09 State Budget includes $2 million in state funding to create Ball's tuition remission
    program for combat veterans.  New York State veterans who served in the hostilities of Vietnam,
    Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf will be eligible for tuition assistance benefits equal to the cost of
    SUNY undergraduate tuition, or the equivalent at any other New York State higher education
    institution.            




    Westchester County Board Approves Property Tax Break
                           for Veterans of the Cold War

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 22, 2008

    County Board Chair Bill Ryan (D-IN-WF, White Plains) and Legislators Vito Pinto (D-IN-WF,
    Tuckahoe) and Jim Maisano (R-C, New Rochelle) had legislation approved this week that will deliver a
    property tax break for Cold War veterans.

    To qualify, a veteran must have served on active duty in the United States Armed Forces for over 365
    days during the Cold War period, specifically between September 2, 1945  and December 26, 1991.

    “Now, Cold War Veterans, the spouse of a Cold War Veteran or the un-remarried surviving spouse of a
    deceased Cold War Veteran would be eligible for a partial tax exemption on the assessed value of their
    residential property,” Ryan continued.  “I’m pleased that my legislative colleagues realized the
    importance of this legislation and passed it overwhelmingly.”

    Maisano, a Cold War vet himself, said that the previous state law extended benefits to some Cold War
    veterans, but not to others.  "Once I raised this issue with our state delegation, they began working
    hard to correct the inequity. I congratulate my colleagues for addressing this issue and taking action to
    'right a wrong' that was long overdue."

    Pinto, the Board’s veterans liaison, said, “As a Vietnam veteran myself, I am honored to co-sponsor this
    legislation. We were up against a state-imposed February 1 deadline so I urged my colleagues to move
    as quickly as possible to meet it. By passing it this week, we ensured that eligible veterans would be
    able to file an application with their local assessor's office in time for the 2009 tax rolls."

    The County Board's action follows the recent enactment by the state of an amendment to the state real
    property law (Section 458-b) that authorizes "counties, cities, towns and villages to enact Local Laws
    exempting from taxation a portion of the assessed value of the residential real property of a Cold War
    veteran, the spouse of a Cold War veteran or the un-remarried surviving spouse of a deceased Cold
    War veteran."

    The extent of the tax break is based upon a formula developed by the state that is based on the
    assessed value of residential property. The exemption itself would last for ten years.

    Ryan, Pinto and Maisano said they would work to explore additional ways to further expand Cold War
    veterans' benefits.  

    For more information on the property tax exemption application, a veteran should contact the local tax
    assessor's office.