Three SQs To Assist Veterans
Tulsa World Editorial: Three state questions protect American heroes
Staff Writer
Three constitutional amendments going before voters in Nov. 4 will deal with obviously unjust problems for Oklahomans serving in the military and their spouses.
State Questions 770 and 771 would make surviving spouses of military personnel killed in the line of duty eligible for 100 percent homestead exemptions on their property taxes.
The measures stems from the astounding case of a Cleveland County woman whose husband was killed in the 2009 Fort Hood massacre. Thinking she was exempt, the woman did not pay the property taxes on her home.
After five years of unpaid taxes, the county moved to seize her home and sell it at a sheriff’s auction. After Rep. Mike Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City, brought the issue to the attention of the Legislature, private individuals stepped forward to pay the woman’s tax bill and prevent her from losing her home.
Reynolds offered the two state questions to prevent the same thing from happening in the future.