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Highlands Today

County Considers Financial Aid For Combat Troops

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By Jim  Konkoly | Highlands Today

Published: November 10, 2007

SEBRING — While the person giving the invocation to start the Highlands County Board of Commissioners meetings changes every week, one thing stays constant.

Every meeting begins with expressions of gratitude to and prayers for the men and women serving in the military.

At Tuesday's meeting, the commissioners will discuss a proposal to provide up to $900 per year in financial aid to military personnel from Highlands County serving in combat zones in the war on terrorism.

Highlands County is likely to become the 14th county in the state to offer such aid through an exemption on property taxes or a stipend to help with expenses.

"I am only one commissioner, but I certainly think this will have the support of the entire commission," said Commissioner Andy Jackson. He and Don Bates are the two veterans on the five-member board of commissioners.

"I think that anything within reason to show our support for the people who are serving in combat zones is very appropriate," Jackson added.

Bates called the proposal a concrete way to give people defending the country "recognition of their contributions."

Last month, the Highlands County Veterans Council, representing 26 veterans groups, endorsed this idea.

Joe Dionne, the county's veterans services officer, said the veterans council is proposing a county reimbursement grant of $75 per month, up to $900 per year, for every month served in a combat zone by property owners from Highlands County.

The grant is aimed at helping pay property taxes, but could be used to cover any expenses, Dionne said.

Thirteen other counties offer similar grants, ranging from $600 to $1,500 per year.

Dionne said the $900 figure was chosen after discussion with Bernis Gainer, director of the county's office of budget and management.

"The county is not rich enough to be able to afford the amounts of the richer counties," Dionne said. "There are monetary constraints on the county ... and this is a matter of what we can do to support our troops."

Particularly with the all-volunteer military, and many National Guard and Reserve troops pulled out of civilian life to serve overseas, Dionne said, "I think it's necessary and vital that we support the troops when they are away from their families.

"No matter what you may hear or think about the politics on Iraq," he added, "when our troops are in harm's way, they are serving and doing a job for us."

Like similar programs in 11 counties, the proposal here would be for military personnel who own property in the county. Unlike those counties, which include Polk, Hillsborough and Pinellas, the aid here would not be restricted to an exemption or reduction in property taxes.

Awarding the grant to cover any expenses, Dionne said, "is an acknowledgment that military personnel serving in combat areas can have (financial) pressures at home."

Two counties, Palm Beach and Wakulla, offer similar grants that are open to all residents, regardless of whether they own property.

Wakulla County offers a $50 per month grant to troops in combat zones which can be taken either as cash or a reduction in property taxes.

Palm Beach County offers a grant of up to $50 per month for all county residents in military service, no matter where they are stationed.

Roy Whitton of Lake Placid, a retired Air Force colonel and president of the South Central Florida Chapter of the Military Officers Organization, brought the idea to the veterans council after learning of the programs in other counties.

"I think the American public as a whole, and certainly here in Highlands County, appreciate what these young men and women and doing in the world wide war on terror," Whitton said.

Betsy Waddell, president of the county veterans council, said veterans organizations solidly back this idea.

"When you look at what these people are sacrificing for us, and the cost of living," she said, "this is one of the honorable things we can do to say 'thank you' for putting your life on the line for us."

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