S 1185: Establishes the congressional chartered veterans service organizations fund; provides for gifts made to such fund on an individual's personal income tax return.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1185 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. ADDABBO, ASHBY, BORRELLO, CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, HELMING, HOYLMAN-SIGAL, MYRIE, PALUMBO, RHOADS, ROLISON, STEC, WEIK -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs AN ACT to amend the tax law and the state finance law, in relation to gifts for the support of congressional chartered veterans service organizations The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The tax law is amended by adding a new section 630-m to 2 read as follows: 3 § 630-m. Gift to the congressional chartered veterans service organ- 4 izations fund. Effective for any tax year commencing on or after January 5 first, two thousand twenty-six, an individual may elect to contribute to 6 the congressional chartered veterans service organizations fund created 7 pursuant to section ninety-nine-ss of the state finance law for the 8 support of congressional chartered veterans service organizations, who 9 help assist veterans in gaining access to the United States department 10 of veterans affairs benefits and the state department of veterans' 11 services benefits they are entitled to. Such contribution shall be in 12 any whole dollar amount and shall not reduce the amount of tax owed by 13 such individual. The commissioner shall include space on the personal 14 income tax return to enable a taxpayer to make such contribution. 15 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, all revenue collected pursu- 16 ant to this section shall be credited to the fund and used only for the 17 purposes of the congressional chartered veterans service organizations. 18 § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-ss to 19 read as follows: 20 § 99-ss. Congressional chartered veterans service organizations fund. 21 1. There is hereby created in the joint custody of the state comptroller 22 and the commissioner of taxation and finance a fund to be known as the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01933-01-5 
 S. 1185 2 1 "congressional chartered veterans service organizations fund". Monies in 2 the fund shall be kept separate from and not commingled with other funds 3 held in the sole custody of the commissioner of taxation and finance. 4 2. Such fund shall consist of all revenues received by the department 5 of taxation and finance, pursuant to the provisions of section six 6 hundred thirty-m of the tax law and all other moneys appropriated, cred- 7 ited, or transferred thereto from any other fund or source pursuant to 8 law. Nothing contained herein shall prevent the state from receiving 9 grants, gifts or bequests for the purposes of the fund as defined in 10 this section and depositing them into the fund according to law. 11 3. Moneys of the fund may be invested by the state comptroller, and 12 income from the investments of moneys deposited to this fund pursuant to 13 section six hundred thirty-m of the tax law shall be credited solely to 14 this fund. 15 4. Monies of the fund shall, after appropriation by the legislature, 16 be made available to the department of veterans' services for grants to 17 congressional chartered veterans service organizations who help assist 18 veterans in gaining access to the United States department of veterans 19 affairs benefits and the state department of veterans' services benefits 20 they are entitled to. The state commissioner of veterans' services shall 21 promulgate rules and regulations necessary for the distribution of such 22 grants. 23 5. To the extent practicable, the state commissioner of veterans' 24 services shall ensure that all moneys received during a fiscal year are 25 expended prior to the end of that fiscal year. 26 6. On or before the first day of February each year, the comptroller 27 shall certify to the governor, temporary president of the senate, speak- 28 er of the assembly, chair of the senate finance committee and chair of 29 the assembly ways and means committee, the amount of money deposited in 30 the congressional chartered veterans service organizations fund during 31 the preceding calendar year as the result of revenue derived pursuant to 32 section six hundred thirty-m of the tax law and any income generated 33 from investments of the moneys in the fund in accordance with subdivi- 34 sion three of this section. 35 7. On or before the first day of February each year, the state commis- 36 sioner of veterans' services shall provide a written report to the 37 temporary president of the senate, speaker of the assembly, chair of the 38 senate finance committee, chair of the assembly ways and means commit- 39 tee, chair of the senate veterans, homeland security and military 40 affairs committee, chair of the assembly veterans' affairs committee, 41 and the public. Such report shall include how the monies of the fund 42 were utilized during the preceding calendar year and shall include: 43 (a) the amount of money disbursed from the fund; 44 (b) the recipients of awards from the fund; 45 (c) the amount awarded to each recipient; 46 (d) the purposes for which such awards were granted; and 47 (e) a summary financial plan for such monies which shall include esti- 48 mates of all receipts and all disbursements for the current and succeed- 49 ing fiscal years, along with the actual results from the prior fiscal 50 year. 51 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.