Tax Relief (Nov. 2007) PDF Print
I thought you might like to know of my support for a tax relief bill to assist California veterans that was recently approved in the committee on which I serve.  One provision of this bill, H.R. 3997, the "Heroes Earnings Assistance Relief Tax Act," would make an important change to our tax laws in order to assist thousands of veterans living in California.

States currently are allowed to issue tax-preferred Qualified Veterans Mortgage Bonds, or QVMBs, to provide favorable financing on home mortgages for certain veterans.  In California, these bonds are used to help provide low-cost mortgages through the California Department of Veterans Affairs, or Cal-Vet, home loan program.  But for California and Texas, the proceeds of these bonds are limited to veterans who entered military service before 1977.

The bill approved by the Ways and Means Committee last Thursday, November 1, does away with this inequity by allowing veterans who served after 1977 to be recipients of Cal-Vet home loans financed by these special bonds.  This will help new generations of veterans in California realize the American dream of owning their own home.  The larger bill (H.R. 3997) that includes this important California veterans provision is expected to be considered by the full House of Representatives on Tuesday, November 6.  Although this is only the first step along the path for this measure to become law, if approved in the House, the bill will next move to the Senate for consideration.

This provision closely mirrors bipartisan legislation I have introduced with Rep. Susan Davis, the "Home Ownership for America's Veterans Act of 2007," and I am pleased it was included as part of a larger tax bill in the House of Representatives.  For more information on the Davis/Herger legislation, H.R. 551, please click here.