Better Outreach and Education: Disabled Veterans’ Property Tax Exemption

About the Program

Category: Civic Education and Public Information (Best in Category)

Year: 2020

San Diego County Assessor/Recorder/County Clerk’s (ARCC) office administers the Disabled Veterans’ Exemption (DVET). ARCC decided we could do better qualifying more 100% Service-Connected Disabled Veterans or their surviving spouses for a relatively unknown property tax break. These are veterans that gave life and limb for our country.Using zero additional budget dollars, ARCC increased the number of qualified disabled veterans from 5,524 in 2018 to 9,707 by 2019. That 4,183, or 75% increase, saves these 4,183 veterans and surviving spouses over $5,850,000 in property taxes annually.ARCC’s Taxpayer Advocate established an inter-county departmental effort and innovative public-private partnership to achieve this success. ARCC worked with the County’s Office of Military and Veterans Affairs (OMVA) to enrich public understanding of the tax exemption; ARCC trained their staff on the tax break, and they promoted it using their resources. ARCC also created a referral pipeline for taxpayers to benefit from both offices. Through an innovative public-private partnership with real estate agents, ARCC provided the agents education on the exemption break for their clients and gained media to promote the tax break on Veterans Day and Memorial Day. Through intergovernmental coordination and private industry support, ARCC now better serves the veteran community.