Many States Providing Cash, Tax Breaks And Other Help To Soldiers

Saturday, August 25th 2007, 11:13 am

By: News On 6

LANSING, Mich. (AP) _ When Michelle Engel returned from a trip to Florida to help her sick mother, she found a leaking hot water heater in her home that had damaged drywall, carpeting and floorboards.

Her husband, John, and son, Michael, could not help _ they were both stationed in Iraq with the Michigan National Guard. Another son, Joshua, was also unavailable. He was stationed with the Air Force in Japan.

But Engel did not have to deal with her damaged home in Reading entirely on her own. A fund set up in Michigan to help the families of National Guard and military reserve troops gave her $1,700 to help with repairs.

Michigan is among more than 20 states that give military personnel and their families income tax breaks, college tuition help and emergency financial assistance as volunteer forces and National Guard troops are increasingly relied upon. Most of the programs have been established since the National Guard began playing a larger role in Afghanistan and Iraq after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Many states offer some sort of educational assistance to National Guard children or spouses, most often when the enlisted family member is killed or disabled. Several states have broadened the programs to include branches of the U.S. military.

``Families tighten their belts and make adjustments,'' said Engel, who welcomed her husband and son home from Iraq recently. ``But we all have needs, especially when the heads of households are deployed.''

In New Jersey, officials are considering providing home health care aides to disabled and elderly veterans. Wisconsin allows soldiers called to active duty to cancel cell phone contracts with no penalties.

In Michigan, one lawmaker has proposed that active duty military personnel get free admission to state parks, while another wants a deer hunting season specifically for disabled veterans.

States are recognizing soldiers often need emotional and economic help as they return to civilian life. They are working to add programs, but also say they must do more to promote the ones they already have and add staff or training to make them more accessible to military personnel and their families.

Rena Guttrich's son Bruce is a medic who has served in Iraq and now is stationed at Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington.

``So many men and women are coming back home with issues to deal with,'' she said. ``Managing the money, managing the stress is a challenge.''

Guttrich leads the West Michigan Military Family Support Group, one of hundreds around the country offering parents, spouses and friends a chance to network on troop-related issues.

Some reservist and National Guard families lose a large chunk of their income when a military member has to give up a civilian job for active duty. Lawmakers hope that improved benefits will help recruitment and retention efforts.

In 2004, Michigan set up an income tax checkoff program to allow residents to donate to a military family relief fund. The fund provides up to $2,000 a year for families with members called to active duty for the military reserves or National Guard. The cash can be used for housing, health care, food, clothing, car payments or other necessities.

More than $2 million has been raised through the checkoff, according to the Michigan Senate Fiscal Agency. Veterans and military groups support a bill that would extend the program past the end of this year, when it's scheduled to expire.

Indiana earlier this year joined a growing list of states that give income tax breaks to active duty personnel, raising the maximum allowable income tax deduction for military pay from $2,000 to $5,000.

In 2005, New Mexico became the first state to start paying the life insurance premiums of its National Guard troops. The $250,000 policies would cost a National Guard member about $200 a year, but the state covers the cost through an insurance company contracted by the federal government.

Michigan lawmakers are considering requiring employers to provide up to 10 paid days of bereavement leave for people whose family members are killed during military service. Despite some concerns about the potential costs to small businesses, the bills appear to be gaining support.

It's all part of states adjusting their laws to fit a military that has become virtually all volunteer, as opposed to a few decades ago when forces were drafted, said state Rep. John Garfield, a Republican from Rochester Hills in southeast Michigan and a Vietnam veteran.

``We have to do what we can to provide some sense of security when they feel like everything in their lives is being controlled by somebody else,'' said state Rep. Terry Brown, a Democrat representing Michigan's upper Thumb region. ``You need to know that next paycheck is still coming.''