CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A group of wounded Corpus Christi combat veterans are working to revive legislation that would grant full property tax exemptions to all Purple Heart recipients in Texas, regardless of their VA disability rating.
The Military Order of the Purple Heart (MOPH) Chapter 598 says the current system fails to fully honor the sacrifice of veterans who were wounded in combat but do not meet the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ 100% disability threshold.
“This is not a request for special treatment,” said Skyler Barker, commander of MOPH 598. “It’s about fairness, justice, and keeping faith with those who have already given more than most can imagine.”
“To illustrate, the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities assigns 40% for a below-the-knee amputation and 60% for an above-the-knee amputation,” said Ryan Morse, adjunct for MOPH 598. “Even with such permanent loss, a veteran may not receive the full exemption unless rated at 100%.”
Barker said the effort is a revival of a measure first pursued in 2017, when House Bill 1591 failed to advance. “That bill died in calendars,” Barker said, adding that the previous measure lacked a strong push behind it. “We’re trying to revive that, bring it back and put some assets behind it.”
The group has launched a statewide survey to gather input from Purple Heart recipients, veterans, family members and civilians. Barker said the survey, which launched in September, is intended both to identify Purple Heart recipients and to supply lawmakers with constituent voices and stories. There are 25 questions. Barker estimated the survey requires about 10–20 minutes to complete, depending on how much a respondent writes in the long-form questions.
Click here to take the survey.
As of early October, Barker said the survey had about 101 responses. An internal tally presented during the interview showed roughly 56% of respondents reported a 100% VA disability rating, leaving about 44% who do not receive the state’s full property tax exemption.
The Purple Heart recipients stressed that the VA rating system can produce results that feel arbitrary to combat veterans. It’s important to note that all members of MOPH 598 interviewed by KRIS 6 News qualify for the property tax exemption due to their VA disability rating. However, they believe it’s important to fight for those who don’t have the same benefit.
“I personally know a veteran who’s missing a limb and is only rated at 70%. A disproportionate amount of our Vietnam veterans who were drafted to go to war, and because they went there, shed blood for our country and came back with Purple Hearts and not paperwork they fall underneath that 100 percent threshold.” Barker said.
“Right now, what we're trying to do is to make this a new priority and it is picking up steam. And so if it becomes a priority for Texans, it will become a priority for our legislators.” said Steven Pierce, a member of MOPH 598 and a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel.
Pierce, a Purple Heart recipient wounded during the Iraq War, described the medal’s personal meaning. Pierce said he received the medal after being wounded by shrapnel and losing a soldier in the same fight.
“I wear the Purple Heart as kind of a badge of honor to honor him,” Pierce said, “Those of us who make it home have a duty to remember those who didn’t, and to fight for the ones who did.”
Pierce said he was initially rated at 30% by the VA after earning his Purple Heart and his first separation from the military and that it took years and additional service before achieving a higher rating late in his career.
“It’s an easy way to say to Texans ‘thank you for your service’ without regard to what the VA says your rating is, but actually related to the fact that you’ve been injured in combat,” he said.
Members of MOPH say a statewide exemption for Purple Heart recipients could provide meaningful financial relief. Pierce pointed to rising housing and repair costs, noting that even an extra few hundred dollars a month could help veterans afford mortgage payments or make needed repairs.
MOPH 598 plans to submit the survey results to lawmakers by the end of 2025 and hope to pursue a reintroduction of the measure in the 2027 legislative session. The group is urging Purple Heart recipients and Texans to take the survey and contact their representatives.
“We’re just trying to bridge that gap,” Barker said. “Those of us who went to combat and, beyond any reasonable doubt, shed blood for this country, we deserve that equal recognition.”
More Veterans In Focus stories are available here, along with resources for local veterans.
Contact Veterans In Focus reporter Michelle Hofmann at michelle.lorenzo@kristv.com
