Arizona SB 1444 is being scheduled for a hearing in the Senate Appropriation Committee. We need to contact the committee members to urge them to support SB1411: income tax subtraction; military retirement.

Please consider sending the draft message at the end of this Email to the Senate Appropriations Committee members ASAP to encourage them to support the Bill in committee.

                    Guidance for processing and sending your Email(s).

When you are ready to send the Message at the end of this text to all members of the Senate Appropriations Committee members, copy the Draft Message at the end of this update and paste it as the text of a new Email the way you usually prepare to send an Email, and add your name after “Respectfully”.

Then come back here and copy: ‘ SB 1444: Income Tax Subtraction; Military Retirement ‘ and paste it  as the subject of your new Email

Then come back here and copy one of the group of Email addresses of the Senate Appropriations Committee members shown below and paste it on the Bcc: line of your new Email

Then hit Send to send your new Email

Email addresses with Semi-colons for members of the Senate Appropriations Committee:

[email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected];; [email protected]; [email protected];  

Email addresses with Commas for members of the Senate Appropriations Committee:                                                                                                                         

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],                    

Draft Message

Dear Senator,

The military retirement exemption schedule proposed by SB 1444 will incentivize growth for our local communities and the economy by making it appealing for Military retirees to settle in our great state of Arizona to pursue their new careers.

 

However, we have been losing the battle to other states to attract more military retirees.  While the majority of the new Military retirees retire between the ages of 38-45, we are not attracting them.  Instead, our current military retiree population keeps getting older.  We need to do better!

 

The average age of Military retirees is about 38 to the mid-40s. Life expectancy at that age is an additional 35-45 years.  They are highly skilled, well trained, and well educated…but they are not coming to AZ!  Over the last several years we have been beat by Texas, Virginia, North Carolina,, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Maryland, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Washington, New York, Kentucky, Michigan, Utah, Wisconsin, and Indiana to attracting new Military retirees.

 

We have heard much about AZ becoming a more Military friendly state as it relates to jobs and business opportunities.  Unfortunately, our hands seem to continue to be tied to budget concerns. It’s time to flip the script on that thought process. We need to consider the home and car sales taxes, property taxes, other sales taxes, etc. that these new retirees will bring to the state to help offset the cost to implement SB 1444.   This is an investment into AZ’s future work force.  We have lost valuable ground to other states when it comes to legislation that entices Military retiree migration towards AZ and second career job opportunities.  The bottom line is that you cannot attract military retirees without taxation incentives, and/or education incentives, and/or job incentives when other states are doing more.

 

This bill targets Military retirees to retire in or come to Arizona to improve AZ’s economic future as a more Military friendly state.

 

I urge you to support SB 1444 in committee.

 

Respectfully,