Florida Veterans Affairs: Where Florida Veterans Get State and Federal Help

The Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs, headed by the governor and cabinet, helps veterans and their families file benefit claims free of charge and runs the State Veterans' Homes (section 292.05; Article IV, section 11).

Article IV, section 11 of the Florida Constitution requires the Legislature to provide for the department by general law and names the governor and cabinet as its head, language added in 1988 and amended in 2018 (Article IV, section 11). Section 292.05 of the Florida Statutes sets its first duty: assistance to all former, present and future members of the Armed Forces and their spouses and dependents in preparing claims for compensation, hospitalization, career training and other benefits under federal or state law, with all such services rendered without charge to the claimant (section 292.05).

The same Florida statute makes the department study the needs of the state's veterans, surveying existing programs, needs in areas such as social services, education and employment, and the money available, and requires an annual written report to the Governor, the Cabinet and the Legislature by December 31 of each year, covering expenses and the cases handled by the department and by county and city veteran service officers (section 292.05).

FDVA's website states that it is headquartered in Largo, Florida, and that the 2026 Florida Veterans' Benefits Guide is now available (Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs).

The Census Bureau's ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates count 1,327,071 civilian veterans in Florida, 7.4 percent of the civilian population 18 and over, while FDVA's own website says the state has nearly 1.4 million veterans (ACS 2020-2024 DP02, Florida; FDVA).

Sources by row: Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 DP02 for the first two rows; FDVA for the last two.

Neither source reconciles the two Florida totals. The ACS figure is a five-year survey estimate of civilian veterans 18 and over, with a stated margin of error, while the FDVA home page gives a rounded statewide figure and states no date or method for it (ACS DP02; FDVA).

Locally, help comes from county and city veteran service officers, whom Florida counties and cities may employ under section 292.11 of the Florida Statutes, and from FDVA staff placed inside the VA regional office (section 292.11; VA St. Petersburg Regional Benefit Office).

Under section 292.11 a board of county commissioners may employ a county veteran service officer, provide the office space and supplies and pay the costs, and a city governing body may do the same. The officer must be a veteran or the surviving spouse of one, and must hold a 2-year degree, or a high school degree or equivalency diploma and 4 years of administrative experience. FDVA certifies which applicants meet its qualifications, the county or city then hires from that list, and every officer must attend FDVA's training program and pass its test (section 292.11).

The county or city, not the state, sets the officer's duties, pay and terms of employment in Florida, by action of the board of county commissioners or the city's governing body. Once hired, the officer is subject to rules FDVA prescribes, and county or city money spent on the office counts by law as spending for a county or municipal purpose (section 292.11).

The VA's St. Petersburg Regional Benefit Office is at 9500 Bay Pines Blvd., St. Petersburg, FL 33744, open 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and lists FDVA on its 2nd floor in Room 214 (VA St. Petersburg Regional Benefit Office).

The VA says the Florida office helps with disability compensation, education benefits, life insurance, pensions and home loans. The page lists services that can be visited with or without an appointment, and it encourages visitors seeking the Public Contact Team to schedule a virtual or in-person appointment through its VERA self-service portal. For anything the office cannot answer, the VA benefits hotline is 800-827-1000 (TTY: 711), 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday (VA St. Petersburg office).

The VA page carries a parking note for the Bay Pines campus: parking is free, the visitor lot is near the east campus entrance at Bay Pines Boulevard and 95th Street North, and Google Maps may route drivers to the employee lot on the west side instead. A Bay Pines VA Voluntary Services shuttle runs between the VA Medical Center and the Regional Office during business hours, and local riders can plan trips on the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (VA St. Petersburg office).

FDVA operates eight skilled nursing facilities and one assisted living facility, the nine State Veterans' Homes in a count of the rows on its list (FDVA State Veterans' Homes).

Source for every row: FDVA State Veterans' Homes.

FDVA lists the basic admission requirements for every Florida home as an honorable discharge, state residency before admission, and certification of need for assisted living or skilled nursing care as determined by a VA physician; eligible spouses may also be admitted. All the facilities are licensed by the Agency for Health Care Administration and inspected annually by AHCA and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Support for the State Homes for Veterans Trust Fund can be given as a $1 contribution when renewing a driver license (FDVA State Veterans' Homes).

FDVA also reported on July 31, 2025 that a proposed 120-bed Collier County State Veterans' Nursing Home appeared funded on the fiscal 2025 VA State Home Construction Grants Priority List, with federal funding of more than $74 million for design and construction, state matching funds from Collier County, and groundbreaking that would be scheduled for later in 2026 (FDVA State Veterans' Homes).

Florida's Department of Revenue lists a $5,000 assessment reduction for a 10 percent or greater disability, a total homestead exemption for total and permanent service-related disability, a discount for disabled veterans 65 or older and a deployment exemption (DOR PT-109).

Source for every row: Florida Department of Revenue, Property Tax Benefits for Active Duty Military and Veterans (PT-109).

Applications go to the county property appraiser where the property is, and DOR notes a timing rule: eligible Florida veterans may apply before they receive the documentation from the federal government or the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and once the appraiser receives it, the exemption takes effect from the date of the original application. A denied application can be taken to the county value adjustment board (DOR PT-109).

Last verified: October 18, 2026, by re-fetching the FDVA home and State Veterans' Homes pages, Article IV of the Florida Constitution, sections 292.05 and 292.11, ACS 2020-2024 table DP02 for Florida, the VA St. Petersburg office page and DOR guide PT-109.