I am starting this petition to help North Carolina become more competitive with surrounding states regarding Veteran benefits for 100% Disabled Veterans. Currently, North Carolina offers Veterans a $45,000 exemption from the taxable value of their house. As taxes in the area are starting to rise as more people move into the Triangle, I am concerned that Veterans who rely solely on their 100% disability income, will not be able to afford the increasing taxes. As NC strives to be a military and Veteran friendly state, I think we need to ask ourselves if we are doing enough. The average home price in Johnston County, NC is $265,000 which is a 21.4% increase from 2020. That means 100% Disabled Veterans are only getting a 16.9% reduction on their property taxes. The situation in Wake County presents an even larger gap . Wake County's average home value is $397,500, up 23.5% from 2020, which means Disabled Veterans are currently only saving 11.3% on their property taxes. 

I think it is time that NC became Property Tax Exempt for Disabled Veterans, as they have sacrificed a great deal for our freedoms and way of life, especially in North Carolina. We know that taxes will continue to increase as we have companies like Apple and Google moving to the area. Home values will continue to increase and Veterans will have to keep paying increasing property taxes as the $45,000 exemption becomes a smaller percentage of their total home value. With all counties being revenue-neutral in NC the tax burden shift would be minimal to non-disabled veterans since 100% Disabled Veterans make up such a small percentage of the NC population. The population of Veterans receiving disability in NC is 192,426 of the 730,000 veterans living here. The information I found for Wake County is that there are 1,180 100% Disabled Veterans of the 9680 Disabled Veterans. As of 2019, 1.112 million people are living in Wake County, NC. This equates to moving .01% of the taxes they pay to the rest of the population or .03% if we are moving the tax burden to other parcels in Wake County assuming all of those Disabled Veterans own a house. These percentages should be similar in all counties in NC, including Johnston. The parcel owners in NC Counties would see a minimal shift in their property taxes while greatly benefit the Disabled Veterans in our state.

We need to focus on better protecting the Disabled Veteran population we have and continue to make sure that they can afford to live comfortably in this beautiful state as we move into a time of significant growth in population and property values. 

States that have 100% Property Tax Exemption for 100% Disabled Veterans:

#1. ALABAMA
#2. ARKANSAS
#3. FLORIDA
#4. HAWAII
#5. ILLINOIS
#6. IOWA
#7. MARYLAND
#8. MICHIGAN
#9. NEBRASKA
#10. NEW HAMPSHIRE
#11. NEW JERSEY
#12. NEW MEXICO
#13. OKLAHOMA
#14. PENNSYLVANIA
#15. SOUTH CAROLINA
#16. TEXAS
#17. VIRGINIA