Veterans who have served their country honorably can apply for a reduction in taxes if they are willing to work for it.

Veterans who have served their country honorably can apply for a reduction in taxes if they are willing to work for it.

Veterans can qualify for up to $600 off their property tax bills if they volunteers their services to the town for up to 75 hours through Sept. 30.

The state-approved Valor Act, a new Veteran’s Work-off Program for Carver veterans, was approved at Town Meeting last year. The savings will be reflected in the tax bills that go out Jan. 1, 2015.

Director of Assessing Ellen Blanchard believes that veterans should have this type of program available to them for all they have done for their country.

“They are volunteering their services in exchange for a reduction in their property taxes,” she said. “It’s a nice benefit we can offer our veterans.”

The new program was approved at Town Meeting last year. While one veteran signed up soon after Town Meeting, a total of 10 spots are open to eligible veterans this year. Blanchard said she hopes the number of veterans can increase after this first year.

Possible jobs include working at the DPW garage washing town vehicles and office cleaning. Blanchard said veterans can work on all sorts of projects.

The program is open to any veteran with a DD-214 whose condition of service is other than dishonorable. A CORI check is required. A veteran, as defined by the state, must have served a minimum of 90 days on active duty, not counting active duty for training.

Veterans who were dishonorably discharged do not qualify. Veterans who are employees of the town are not eligible. Only one veteran per household can participate in the program. Veterans with qualified handicaps as determined by the Americans With Disabilities Act can designate a family to do the work.

The deadline to apply to participate in the program is Friday, Jan. 31. To sign up, or for more information, contact the assessors office at 508-866-3410. Applications are available at Town Hall and on the assessor’s page on the town’s website at carverma.org.

Follow Kathryn Gallerani on Twitter, @kgallreporter.