County Legislator Salvatore B. Pontillo (R-Farmingdale) has filed local legislation expanding the veterans real property tax exemption to Gold Star Parents. The county is opting into this program pursuant to state legislation recently signed into law by Governor Pataki.

"This legislation provides Gold Star Parents with a veterans real property tax exemption in recognition of the sacrifice that their child made in the defense of our country," said Pontillo. "We are grateful to the brave men and women who serve us in uniform and this legislation is one way that we can acknowledge the great personal loss suffered by a family whose child is lost in battle."

The "Gold Star" reference is derived from the practice begun in World War I in which parents displayed a gold star in their window rather than the traditional mourning attire when a child was killed in war.