Veteran Minnesota Tax Credit

TAX CREDIT, TAX CREDIT For Military Service!

You may already know about this benefit, I just learned about it and thought there may be others like me that did not have the information. The 2008 omnibus tax bill in Minnesota (Laws 2008, ch. 366) provides for an income tax credit for past military service. It is a $750.00 credit. A credit is a deduction dollar for dollar against income tax owed. The credit took effect in tax year 2009 for returns filed in 2010. Eligible filers can sue form M-1C to claim the credit.

So who is an eligible filer?

To qualify for the credit, a veteran must:

•have served in the military (this includes the National Guard and Reserves)for at least 20 years;

•have a service-connected disability rated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as being 100 percent total and permanent; or

•be eligible for military retirement pay.

A veteran must have at least $750.00 of state income tax liability to receive full credit amount. A veteran with less than $750.00 in income tax liability is eligible for a credit up to the amount of the tax. What this means for example- In tax year 2014, a single veteran without dependents with the standard deduction, would need to have earned $24,069.00 (Federal Adjusted Gross Income) to receive the full credit.

Unfortunately, the credit is not available to high income earning veterans. The military service credit is phased out for veteran with Federal Adjusted Gross Income (FAGI) of $30,000.00 or more. When $30,000.00 of income is reached, the credit is reduced by 10 percent in excess of $30,000.00. When income (FAGI)is over $37,500.00 there is no longer a credit available to take.

Social Security benefits are not included in FAGI, so receipt of benefits will not subject an individual to the income based phaseout. However, if a veteran has no taxable income or income over $37,500.00 there is not tax credit.

Expedited Veterans Disability Process

Previously I had written about how social security treats VA disability ratings when a disabled servicemember attempts to obtain disability benefits.

Although there is no increase in the weight given to a VA disability rating, there is a new expedited Veterans disability process. 

If you are a veteran with a 100% disability rating from the VA, you have a new process that under which Social Security will treat your application as high priority and issue an expedited decision.

To receive expedited treatment, you must prove, with a VA notification letter,  that you have a 100% rating.  That with your application for Social Security disability benefits begins the process.

Unfortunately, Social Security only expedites the process, it give no additional weight to the fact you have a 100% rating from the VA, and it does not represent, in any manner, that you will be approved for benefits.

Social Security emphasizes that even with a 100% VA rating, you must still meet the strict eligibility requirements for a disability finding.

From a public relations standpoint such an program sounds great, but without additional weight given to the VA rating in the Social Security arena in most cases it will just allow a quicker receipt of a denial.

Most veterans coming out of the service with a disability are young and although disabled, social security’s disability program is designed for applicant’s over 50 years of age.  Although I have had some success in obtain benefits for younger individual, it is very difficult.  The best thing that could happen , for the disabled veteran, would be adopting of a regulation that requires Social Security to give significant weight to the 100% VA rating.

For more information – go to http://ssa.gov

Since writing this blog, I have spoken with several veterans trying to obtain social security benefits.  They have misconstrued the expedited process thinking it assures benefits to a veteran with a 100% disability rating.  After explaining that all the process does is allow a earlier look see, there has been a lot of anger displayed.  Unless their disability meets/equals a listed impairment, they most likely will receive a denial.  Most of the Veterans are young, and a younger individual has a tough time obtaining benefits.  Explaining all of this, they feel that the process really is of no benefit to them.  

In many cases, those suffering PTSD, will need a hearing before an administrative law judge to have a real chance at benefits, just because of the need to prove how disabling the PTSD

GI Bill and Equality of Education

It is apparently very, very hard is not impossible task for Congress to change the GI Bill to help insure that veterans get a good education for the money paid.  Unfortunately a lot of private universities/colleges are more concerned about putting the GI bill money in their pocket and provide a substandard eduction to the vet.  Many of the school are not even accredited.

The private colleges and universities have lobbyists who have been very effective in protecting the interests of the schools over those of the vet.  Millions of dollars flow from the vets GI Bill education benefits to these schools.  It is a big deal.  The graduation rate is terrible and the private school refuse to disclose the graduate rate, employment rate i.e. information showing that they provide a benefit for their services.

Congressmen who appear to love money more then the vets have stepped in time and time again to stop changes to the GI Bill that would benefit the vet. These are veteran who depended upon their representative fair governess in this area.

For example  representative JOHN KLINE, from Minnesota has accepted $48,000.00 from an agency that lobbies for the private schools.  Does it affect his actions in Congress?  Apparently, YES,--recently killed a attempt to make changes to the GI Bill that would put some limits on the money paid to these private institutions, making some linkage to success of the veterans and the education provided.  Sounded reasonable?

The men and women who served and served honorably deserve better than this from their representatives.  I would have trouble sleeping at night trying to justify accepting money for my benefit knowing it goes to perpetuate protection for the schools financial interests over the interest of the vets.

This is just and opinion by someone upset over another new report of bad happenings effecting vets.

POST TRAUMATIC STRESS, THE WAR VETERAN AND SOCIAL SECURITY

POST TRAUMATIC STRESS, THE WAR VETERAN AND SOCIAL SECURITY

You have served your country fighting in a foreign war. You have returned home and you notice something is wrong. You are having nightmares. You have trouble concentrating. Sudden loud noises make you duck for cover. You have trouble functioning on a day-to-day basis. You very likely suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Many people suffering a traumatic injury due to such things as assault, murder, rape, death of a friend or other traumatic event have been found to suffer the effects of PTSD. One of the worst inflicters of traumatic injury is war. A soldier can be exposed to seeing first hand horrendous death or mutilation caused by today's weapons of war. Battles and IUD's can take a close friend's life, and the soldier can be exposed to the relentless fear of death on each mission.

The statistics are alarming. Over 40 percent of the 1.6 million veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now seeking compensation for injuries. Most, if not all, claim the injuries to be service-related . Further, for the first time in modern history Reserves and National Guard have been called up and carried a large burden of the war.

Women also served in greater numbers in these wars, and are accounting for a larger percentage of claims.
The new munitions used in the war, body armor and very improved battlefield and immediately associated care have allowed more service members to survive from wounds that would have been fatal in prior wars. This has resulted in higher numbers of service members suffering new injuries.

The Social Security Administration has a program that gives service members an ability to receive expedited processing of disability claims. If you are a veteran or active duty service member and you become disabled while on active duty (anytime after September 2001), you are eligible to get an expedited decision in your Social Security disability case. It does not matter where or how you became disabled. In processing your claim, Social Security will not consider where or how the disability happened. Your disability does not need to be related to your military duty, it just needs to have occurred while you were on active duty.

What to do to apply?

First, you must let the Social Security Administration know that your medical condition began while you were on active duty. Secondly, you must identify the location where your military records are kept. Do not rely upon the Department of Defense which will routinely send the names of ill or injured service members. Many times these reports may be incomplete. Remember when you file for disability with Social Security you must make sure that you provide the proof that you are, or were, a service member.

If reported correctly, your application will be marked as a Military Casualty/Wounded Warrior (MC/WW) file and expedited through all stages of the disability decision process as a critical case. (If you have filed for benefits with the VA, that will not automatically be an application for Social Security disability benefits. Social Security will require a separate application).

Evidence that will help in your application include:

Original or certified copy of your birth certificate or proof of U.S. citizenship or legal residency if foreign born;

Form DD 214, if discharged from military service;

Proof of military pay;

Medical records that you have or that you can easily obtain from all military and civilian sources

The fact that your case will receive expedited treatment does not lesson your burden to prove that your disability or disabilities are so severe that they prevent you from working competitively employed in any job within your functional capacity. There are no provisions in the law that make a wounded warrior's burden of proof less then anyone else applying for disability benefits. Further, by the way the system is structured, if you are under 50 years of age, your burden to obtain benefits is just that much more difficult. If you have read my blog entry on how Social Security treats a disability rating from the VA, you can see that being disabled for VA does not automatically qualify you for social security disability benefits. Social Security requires additional proof of inability to be competitively employed.

If you are in this situation and believe that you are unable to work because of a disability, you need an attorney on your side to advocate your position.

Disclaimer: Blogs posted herein are intended neither as legal advice, nor do they create nor attempt to create an attorney-client relationship. The person viewing my blogs is admonished that an attorney-client relationship may only be created with the express consent to the parties to it.

TRUST VETS

Having served during the time period in which we where embroiled in Vietnam, I had a different experience than what servicemembers  see today.

I make that comment because I have recently become associated with ‘Trust Vets’ ‘Friend of Veterans’.  Soldiers, active, inactive, reserve or guard, past, present or future, are people who involuntarily or voluntarily put aside part of their life for their country.  Since the death of the draft, the services have been filled from the ranks of  volunteers.  All those who have served in any capacity, have a common heritage, service to our country and to others.

I think it is tremendous to see an organization, like ‘Trust Vets’  provide  a common nexus, that provides servicemembers an ability to help each other, and to work with others who have a common ‘service’ connection.

If you are curious or interested take a look at its web site – www.trustvets.com