Hamilton County Trustee: Disabled Veteran Tax Relief and County Match

Hamilton County matches the state's disabled veteran property tax relief from its own funds, adding a county payment to the state's, never more than the tax paid. The Trustee's FAQ says the veteran must be rated 100 percent, which leaves out the paraplegia, blindness and loss-of-limbs route that needs no rating, and mentions a combat-related test that applies only to surviving spouses.

Also called: property tax, tax relief, Trustee, county match, 67-5-701(j), 67-5-704, Bonny Oaks, Chattanooga, $175,000.

For: Veteran or service member, survivor.

Where it applies

Written for the jurisdictions listed here.

Hamilton County, TNCounty

Tennessee's disabled veteran property tax relief is a state payment toward the tax on the first $175,000 of a home's value; the Tennessee entry on it sets out the rules. In Hamilton County the Trustee takes the applications, by appointment at the Bonny Oaks office (423-209-7799). The county match. The Trustee's FAQ says "Hamilton County will match state tax relief." Section 67-5-701(j) lets a county appropriate its own money for this, up to the total tax actually paid; see the Tennessee entry on local matching relief. A Hamilton County veteran who qualifies for the state relief therefore gets the county's matching payment on the county tax as well. Taxes owed to a city inside the county, such as Chattanooga, are separate. Where the FAQ narrows the law. It says "Disabled veterans must have disability ratings at 100 percent" and that the disabilities "must meet specific criteria under service connection, be combat - related or the result of being a prisoner of war". Section 67-5-704(b) has three routes for the veteran: paraplegia or permanent paralysis of both legs and the lower body, legal blindness, or loss or loss of use of two or more limbs from a service-connected cause, at any rating; a service-connected permanent and total disability as VA determines it; or one hundred percent permanent total disability from having been a prisoner of war. A combat-related death is one of the surviving spouse's routes, not a test for the veteran. A veteran with a qualifying loss and a lower combined rating should apply. The elderly and disabled relief. The same FAQ gives the income limit for the elderly and disabled homeowner relief as $37,530 for the 2025 tax year, counting veterans' benefits as income; that relief is separate from the disabled veteran relief, which has no income test.

Thresholds

Thresholds for Hamilton County Trustee: Disabled Veteran Tax Relief and County Match
Gate	Rule
Permanent and total, as VA determines it	The state relief, which the county matches. The rating route in 67-5-704(b)(3) asks for service-connected permanent and total disability as determined by VA, which a veteran paid at the total rate through unemployability that VA has found permanent also holds. It is recorded rather than enforced because the paraplegia, blindness and loss-of-limbs route and the prisoner of war route need no rating at all.
Or a named loss, at any rating	Paraplegia or permanent paralysis of both legs and the lower body, legal blindness, or loss or loss of use of two or more limbs from a service-connected cause qualifies whatever the combined rating, as does one hundred percent permanent total disability from having been a prisoner of war. The state entry on disabled veteran property tax relief sets out the routes.

Sources

Hamilton County Trustee, frequently asked questions (tax relief)Official

Updated

Last updated 2026-10-03.

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Disclaimer

VetTOC is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense. Information is for reference only and is not an eligibility determination. Verify with VA, the relevant state or territory, or an accredited VSO.