FILED ON: 11/8/2017

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 4019

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninetieth General Court
(2017-2018)

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An Act authorizing any town or city to designate a check-off box on certain tax bills to fund a Veterans Memorial and Patriotic Celebration Fund.

Whereas, The deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to provide forthwith for certain municipal veterans’ Funds, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience.
 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

Chapter 60 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 3F the following section:-

Section 3G. A city or town that accepts this section may establish a Veterans Memorial and Patriotic Celebration Fund for the purposes of this section and may, subject to the approval of the commissioner of revenue, designate a place on its municipal tax bills or motor vehicle excise tax bills, or mail with such tax bills a separate form whereby taxpayers of the city or town may voluntarily check off, donate and pledge an amount of money, which shall increase the amount otherwise due, and which shall be paid over to said city or town’s Veterans Memorial and Patriotic Celebration Fund. The money pledged or donated to this fund shall be used for the creation and restoration of monuments and other activities in the city or town that honor the contributions and sacrifices of veterans.

Any amounts donated to the fund shall be deposited into a special account in the general treasury and shall be in the custody of the treasurer. The treasurer shall invest the funds at the direction of the officer, board, commission, committee or other agency of the city or town who or which is otherwise authorized and required to invest trust funds of the city or town and subject to the same limitations applicable to trust fund investments except as otherwise specified in this section. The fund and any interest thereon shall be used for the purposes of this section without further appropriation.

Money in the fund shall be used to create, restore and maintain monuments and conduct activities or other celebrations in the city or town that honor the contributions and sacrifices of veterans. The city or town veterans’ services department shall: (i) establish an application process and eligibility criteria for approving applications for funding from the fund; and (ii) establish standards for acceptable documentation of veteran status.  The veterans’ services department shall be responsible for reviewing each application and fairly applying the eligibility criteria.