Brown County (Nebraska) Veterans Service Office (also serving Keya Paha and Rock Counties)

The office. The Brown County Veterans Service Office is at 148 W. 4th Street, Suite 3, Ainsworth, NE 69210 (mail PO Box 25), phone (402) 387-0233, fax (402) 387-0918, [email protected], open Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., closed noon to 1:00 (the State's directory, updated October 26, 2026). The Veterans Service Officer is Jacob (Jake) Graff. The county's County Benefits panel lists county veterans aid (see that entry), a bronze grave flag holder (inventoried each year and replaced when damaged), registration of DD-214s, homestead help (the office obtains the VA's letter of eligible veterans and widows for the Assessor each year), grave registration with a Presidential Memorial Certificate for every deceased county veteran, and benefits counselling. Three counties. The State's directory lists Jacob Graff, at the Ainsworth office and number, as the officer for Keya Paha and Rock Counties too. Brown County's filed 2025-2026 budget lists a standing agreement among "Brown, Keya Paha, Rock" for the Veterans Service Officer, "until terminated", and books the other two counties' shares as interlocal revenue for veterans service: $35,801.73 in 2023-2024, $24,031.39 in 2024-2025 and $31,900.00 budgeted for 2025-2026. Rock County's side. Rock County's Veterans Services page lists Jake Graff at the Ainsworth office, (402) 387-0233, [email protected], and Rock County keeps no office of its own; its Board's yearly appointments (January 7, 2025 and January 20, 2026) record that "Rock County is in an Interlocal with Brown & Keya Paha Counties for the Veteran's Service Officer". Rock County's filed 2025-2026 budget lists the agreement among "Brown, Keya Paha, Rock" counties "until terminated" and pays its share from its own Veterans Service budget (0100-803, "Miscellaneous - Shared VSO Brown County"): $24,316.82 in 2023-2024, $16,908.82 in 2024-2025 and $30,000.00 budgeted for 2025-2026. Its Board pays the Brown County Treasurer by the quarter: $5,605.29 for the fourth quarter of 2024-2025 (November 4, 2025), $4,596.49 for the first quarter of 2025-2026 (February 3, 2026) and $10,911.91 for the second and third (May 19, 2026), with $475.94 to Tyler Technologies for "VSO Vetro Spec". On December 30, 2025 Rock County's Board approved the Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs' memorandum of understanding Mr. Graff sent, letting Brown County's officer join the State's VetraSpec license as a user for Rock County (see the Rock County aid entry for Rock County's own fund). Keya Paha County's side. Keya Paha County's Veterans Services page lists Jake Graff at 148 West 4th Street, Ainsworth, (402) 387-0233 (its email, [email protected], is older than the browncountyne.gov address the State's directory gives), and Keya Paha County keeps no office of its own. Its filed 2025-2026 budget lists the agreement among "Brown, Keya Paha & Rock" for the Veterans Service Officer "until terminated" and pays its share from its own Veterans Service budget (0100-803), booked as the official's salary: $11,933.91 in 2023-2024, $7,571.57 in 2024-2025 and $12,000.00 budgeted for 2025-2026. Its Board pays the Brown County Treasurer by the quarter: $2,625.87 (March 11, 2025), $2,658.62 (July 22, 2025), $2,802.65 (October 14, 2025), $2,298.24 (January 27, 2026) and $5,455.96 (June 23, 2026). On January 27, 2026 the Board authorized its chairman to sign the Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs' memorandum of understanding for Keya Paha County (see the Keya Paha County aid entry for Keya Paha County's own fund). The Board's year. Mr. Graff presented his office's budget on June 3, 2025 and sat on the committee the Board formed on April 15, 2025 to draft an employee handbook. On December 16, 2025 the Board raised the Veterans Service Officer's pay to $28.50 an hour, and on January 6, 2026 it approved Resolution 2026-1, the Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs' memorandum of understanding for the claims portal the office uses. The June 3, 2025 claims paid the Brown County Veterans Memorial $423.02 for flags. The money. The office (803) spent $78,407.27 in 2023-2024 and $77,604.91 in 2024-2025, and the 2025-2026 budget adopts $84,220.00, the officer's $58,320.00 salary among it.