[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Hillsdale as indicated in article histories.. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 10-6-2020 by Ord. No. 20-12]
The Borough will allow for either a veteran or surviving spouse of a veteran to obtain municipal property tax relief upon proper claim pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:4-3.30 et seq. An "eligible veteran" shall be defined as a member of the armed forces who was either honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service, in time of war, in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, who has been or shall be declared by the United States Veterans' Administration or its successor to have a service-connected disability and to be determined to be 100% permanently disabled.
A. 
In order to qualify for the municipal tax exemption, the veteran or someone on his/her behalf, under oath, must file a written claim with the Tax Assessor's office. The Tax Assessor's office will supply the applicant with the appropriate paperwork, and the applicant will be required to provide the Tax Assessor's office with the following information:
(1) 
Reason for exemption;
(2) 
A description of the property for which the exemption is claimed;
(3) 
A certificate of claimant's honorable discharge or release under honorable circumstances from active service, in time of war, and a certificate/letter from the United States Veterans' Administration or its successors, certifying to a service-connected disability;
(4) 
Any other documentation as required by statute at the time the application is made.
B. 
In order for a surviving spouse of a veteran to qualify for the municipal tax exemption, the spouse, under oath, must file a written claim with the Tax Assessor's office. The Tax Assessor's office will supply the surviving spouse with the appropriate paperwork, and the applicant will be required to provide the Tax Assessor's office with the following information:
(1) 
Proof to establish that the spouse is the owner of legal title to the premises on which the exemption is made;
(2) 
That the claimant occupies the dwelling house on said premises as the claimant's legal residence in the State of New Jersey;
(3) 
That the veteran has been declared by the United States Veterans' Administration, or its successor, to have a service-connected disability or that the veteran shall have been declared to have died in active service, in time of war;
(4) 
That the veteran is or would have been entitled to the exemption at the time of death;
(5) 
The claimant is a resident of the State of New Jersey and has not remarried.
In determining a grant of a municipal tax exemption under this section, the Borough will prorate the exemption for the remainder of the year in which application is made and accepted by the Borough, from the date of the application to the Tax Assessor, or the from the date of the approval of the exemption by the United States Veterans' Administration, whichever is later. There shall be no retroactive refund granted, regardless of the disability date determination of the United States Veterans' Administration.