Relative to veterans' benefits, rights, appreciation, validation and enforcement

What it means

A veterans' benefits bill from a House-Senate conference committee. It puts into state law bonus payments for Massachusetts residents who served in Operation Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, Noble Eagle, Inherent Resolve, Freedom Sentinel and related operations: $1,000 for those who served overseas with hostile fire or imminent danger pay and $500 for others with at least 6 months of service, plus half those amounts for each later deployment. It changes several local property tax exemptions for veterans (including changing several 5-year figures to 2 and adding former prisoners of war), raises a figure in section 5N of chapter 59 from $1,000 to $1,500, adds certain federal VA payments tied to unreimbursed medical expenses to a MassHealth law provision, sets state burial aid of up to $4,000 (total cost no more than $5,000), and stops public employers from asking for military medical or personnel records when hiring. It also creates a Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture fund, lets towns set aside veteran parking at town halls, gives veterans time off for Memorial Day events, adds a 30-day court continuance for veteran assessment and diversion, names Gold Star Wives Day (April 5) and Gold Star Mothers and Families Day, and orders several studies, including one on free public college tuition for veterans.

Source: official text and history of S.2632 on malegislature.gov.