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Showing posts with label Senate Bill 881. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Senate Bill 881. Show all posts
Tax relief could soon be on its way for Oklahoma military families following unanimous approval of legislation by the State Senate Thursday to provide an income tax exemption for serving military personnel. Sen Steve Russell, a retired Army infantryman and combat veteran, is author of Senate 881 and believes his bill would not only help military families, but the state’s economy.
“There are 32,000 who serve at our state’s bases and we have approximately 54,000 Oklahoma residents that were recruited from here and are serving somewhere. However, only 9,000 of them claim Oklahoma residency, so what that tells you is that the first chance they get to leave Oklahoma because of our tax burden they do and they become Texans, Floridians, Nevadans, or whatever it may be,” said Russell, R- Oklahoma City.
Oklahoma has the second highest military recruitment in the nation per capita, but as Russell pointed out during his debate many military personnel change their citizenship at the first opportunity because of the state’s tax rates.
There are currently 16 states including Nevada, Illinois and New York that exempt their military from paying income taxes.
SB 881 would only pertain to Oklahoman residents that are serving members of the armed services, including guardsmen and reservists. Therefore, military retirees or veterans would not qualify for the exemption.
The bill is estimated to cost the state $5 million the first year and $12 million during the second but Russell says the money gained through these individuals claiming Oklahoma residency will far outweigh the costs.
“If this bill became law, we’d actually be gaining revenue by being an acquiring state rather than a donor state. Currently, our serving Oklahomans, because they don’t have such tax relief, change their residency the first chance they get and, therefore, we don’t receive their motor vehicle fees, license fees, excise tax on automobiles that they purchase or any number of other fees,” explained Russell. “For every 10,000 soldiers that we lose there is an impact of approximately $6 million in just such fees that we do not receive because we are a losing state rather than an acquiring state. The flipside of that is that if we were an acquiring state we could have the potential to bring in 40,000 to 60,000 new Oklahomans, which would have a positive impact on the entire state.”
Russell’s bill now moves to the House for further consideration.
Under legislation passed by the Senate Finance Committee, Oklahoma military personnel could soon get some tax relief. Senate Bill 881 by Sen. Steve Russell would exempt state military pay from state income taxes.
“Our military service men and women are grossly underpaid and this is one thing we can do to help ease their financial burden,” said Russell, R-Oklahoma City. “They sacrifice so much for our country and for those around the world that can’t fight for themselves. This would be just a small token of our appreciation for their hard work and dedication.”
Oklahoma has the second highest military recruitment in the nation per capita, but Russell points out that a great many military personnel change their citizenship at the first opportunity because of the state’s tax rates.
There are currently 16 states including Nevada, Illinois and New York that exempt their military from paying income taxes.
“We can do more for our military. We often say that nothing is too good for our troops in Oklahoma and now we have the opportunity not just to talk a good talk about our soldiers, but actually do something for them.”
Under legislation passed Tuesday by the Senate Finance Committee, Oklahoma military personnel could soon get some tax relief. Senate Bill 881 by Sen. Steve Russell would exempt state military pay from state income taxes.
“Our military service men and women are grossly underpaid and this is one thing we can do to help ease their financial burden,” said Russell, R-Oklahoma City. “They sacrifice so much for our country and for those around the world that can’t fight for themselves. This would be just a small token of our appreciation for their hard work and dedication.”
Oklahoma has the second highest military recruitment in the nation per capita, but Russell points out that a great many military personnel change their citizenship at the first opportunity because of the state’s tax rates.
There are currently 16 states including Nevada, Illinois and New York that exempt their military from paying income taxes.
“We can do more for our military. We often say that nothing is too good for our troops in Oklahoma and now we have the opportunity not just to talk a good talk about our soldiers, but actually do something for them.”
Senator Steve Russell has filed a trio of bills to help ease the burden of some of Oklahoma’s most deserving citizens including soldiers, widows and adoptive families.
“My bills deal with issues that promote good government rather than complicate the lives of Oklahomans,” said Russell. “As both a 21 year veteran of the U.S. Army and an adoptive father, I’m all too aware of the hardships faced by our military families, those trying to adopt children, and those trying to survive after loss.”
Two of the Oklahoma City Republican’s bills deal with tax relief. SB 881 would exempt military personnel from paying state income taxes on their military pay.
“It’s not a question of how the state will survive the impact of this very small loss in revenue, but rather how military families survive their multiple moves, deployments and hardships while defending our freedom. We often say that nothing is too good for our troops in Oklahoma, but nothing is often what they get.”
Oklahoma has the second highest military recruitment in the nation per capita, but Russell points out that a great many service men and women change their citizenship at the first opportunity because of the state’s tax rates.
“Surely we can do better than states like Nevada, Illinois and New York,” challenged Russell.
There are currently 16 states that exempt their military from paying income taxes.
“I know I’m going to face opposition given that it’s going to be a tight budget year, but from what I’ve seen so far, we waste far more than the impact of this relief for our troops. We can cut the waste and offer hope to our troops so that they can remain Oklahomans rather than switch their citizenship to other states, which they often do.”
Russell’s SB 540 would provide an income tax exemption for Oklahoma widows or widowers whose incomes are at or below 200% of the federal poverty level.
“If we cannot ease the burden of the widow and the orphan, then it seems to me we’ve lost our way as lawmakers.”
Russell also wants to help Oklahoma’s adoptive parents by updating the state’s adoption laws to make adoption an easier and more efficient process. SB 1029 calls for a uniform standard for adoptions within the state.
“Currently, adoption isn’t uniformly regulated in the state. Parents have three options when adopting and that’s through the state, a private organization or through an attorney. The problem is that each of these uses different rules and standards, which causes confusion and problems for many families,” said Russell. “Adoption is a wonderful gift for both the adoptive family and the child. Unfortunately, some have abused the system while capitalizing on the plight of families involved in the adoption process. I want to stop that.”
The freshman lawmaker is hopeful he can carry these bills through to the Governor’s desk.
For background see: Senate Finance Comm Passes Bill to Provide Military with State Tax Exemption
