Relates to an assessment of real property damaged by the severe storm that occurred on the twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand twelve in a special assessing unit that is not a city.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A7156
SPONSOR: Kaminsky
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the real property tax law, in relation
to an assessment of real property damaged by the severe storm that
occurred on the twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand
twelve in a special assessing unit that is not a city
 
PURPOSE: This legislation provides for the assessment of real proper-
ty in a special assessing unit that is not a city, which was damaged by
Hurricane Sandy.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: The real property tax law is amended by adding
a new section 1805-b to read as follows:
The assessment of real property damaged by the severe storm that
occurred on the twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand
twelve in a special assessing unit that is not a city, notwithstanding
any provision of any general, special or local law to the contrary, any
special assessing unit that is not a city is hereby authorized and
empowered to adopt and amend local laws in accordance with this section
to provide that the assessed value of affected real property, as defined
to the limitations provided. Following the adoption of this act by a
special assessing unit that is not a city, any town, school district or
village which uses the assessment roll of such special assessing unit
that is not a city for the levy of taxes, may also adopt a local law or
resolution to grant the exemption authorized pursuant to this bill.
 
JUSTIFICATION: This bill would provide real property tax relief to
non-city residents who have already repaired or rebuilt properties that
were damaged by Hurricane Sandy or who will repair or rebuild properties
through fiscal year 2020. Even if the repair or rebuilding merely
restores a building to its condition prior to the storm, the assessed
value, and therefore the real property taxes, of some of these proper-
ties will be higher after the rebuilding than it was prior to the storm.
In order to further assist these property owners, this bill authorizes
Nassau County to enact a local law limiting the amount that assessed
values can increase as a result of the repair or rebuilding of proper-
ties severely damaged by Hurricane Sandy.
The amount of increase in assessed value will be limited to the amount
that it would have increased if Hurricane Sandy had not occurred for
affected property which, for purposes of this legislation. In the event
that the repair or rebuilding resulted in an increase in the square
footage of the affected property, the bill provides that the Department
of Finance will adjust the limitation on increases in assessed value by
the percentage that is attributable to the excess square footage of the
property.
As the worst natural disaster ever to hit New York State, Hurricane
Sandy cost forty-four New Yorkers their lives. Many more residents lost
homes or businesses, and entire communities were sent reeling by the
storm's devastating impact. There is a great deal more work to do to
help the hardest-hit communities get back on their feet and we must
continue to be vigilant in marshaling resources to provide relief to
those who need it most.
Unfortunately, the statutory real property tax assessment structure does
not contemplate the unique circumstance that many property owners find
themselves in as a result of Hurricane Sandy: that these property owners
would, in effect, suffer a tax penalty for rebuilding their storm-torn
properties.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7156
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 27, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. KAMINSKY -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Real Property Taxation
AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to an assessment
of real property damaged by the severe storm that occurred on the
twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand twelve in a
special assessing unit that is not a city
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The real property tax law is amended by adding a new
2 section 1805-b to read as follows:
3 § 1805-b. Assessment of real property damaged by the severe storm that
4 occurred on the twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand
5 twelve in a special assessing unit that is not a city. 1. Generally.
6 Notwithstanding any provision of any general, special or local law to
7 the contrary, any special assessing unit that is not a city is hereby
8 authorized and empowered to adopt and amend local laws in accordance
9 with this section to provide that the assessed value of affected real
10 property, as defined in subdivision three of this section, shall be
11 subject to the limitations provided in this section. Following the
12 adoption of this act by a special assessing unit that is not a city, any
13 town, school district or village which uses the assessment roll of such
14 special assessing unit that is not a city for the levy of taxes, may
15 also adopt a local law or resolution to grant the exemption authorized
16 pursuant to this section.
17 2. Definitions. As used in this section:
18 (a) "Actual assessed value" means the assessed value of real property
19 prior to the calculation of any transitional assessed value, and which
20 is not reduced by any exemption from real property taxes.
21 (b) "Aggregate physical increase" means the sum of physical increases
22 for assessment rolls completed from two thousand fourteen through two
23 thousand twenty.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10376-02-5
A. 7156 2
1 (c) "Annual tax" means the amount of real property tax that is imposed
2 on a property for a fiscal year, determined after reduction for any
3 amount from which the property is exempt, or which is abated, pursuant
4 to applicable law.
5 (d) "Annual tax attributable to improvements" means the annual tax,
6 multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is equal to the
7 assessed value attributable to improvements on the property for the
8 fiscal year, and the denominator of which is the total assessed value of
9 the property for such fiscal year.
10 (e) "Assessed value" means the assessed value of real property that
11 was used to determine the annual tax, and which is not reduced by any
12 exemption from real property taxes. For real property classified as
13 class two or class four real property, as defined in subdivision one of
14 section eighteen hundred two of this article to which subdivision three
15 of section eighteen hundred five of this article applies, unless other-
16 wise provided, the assessed value is the lower of the actual assessed
17 value and transitional assessed value.
18 (f) "Assessed value attributable to improvements" means that portion
19 of the assessed value that was used to determine the annual tax attrib-
20 utable to improvements, and which is not reduced by any exemption from
21 real property taxes.
22 (g) "Improvements" means buildings and other articles and structures,
23 substructures and superstructures erected upon, under or above the land,
24 or affixed thereto, including bridges and wharves and piers and the
25 value of the right to collect wharfage, cranage or dockage thereon.
26 (h) "Physical decrease" means the decrease in assessed value from the
27 assessed value on the preceding assessment roll as a result of
28 destruction of property caused by the severe storm that occurred on the
29 twenty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand twelve, such
30 decrease to which subdivision five of section eighteen hundred five of
31 this article applies.
32 (i) "Physical increase" means the increase in assessed value from the
33 assessed value on the preceding assessment roll as a result of an addi-
34 tion to or improvement of existing real property as provided in subdivi-
35 sion five of section eighteen hundred five of this article, for the
36 purpose of reconstruction or repair in connection with the damage caused
37 by the severe storm that occurred on the twenty-ninth and thirtieth of
38 October, two thousand twelve, such increase to which subdivision five of
39 section eighteen hundred five of this article applies subject to the
40 provisions of this section.
41 (j) "Total square footage of the improvements on the property" means,
42 with respect to an assessment roll, the square footage used by the
43 assessor in determining the assessed value attributable to improvements
44 on the real property for such assessment roll.
45 (k) "Transitional assessed value" is the transition assessment calcu-
46 lated pursuant to subdivision three of section eighteen hundred five of
47 this article, and which is not reduced by any exemption from real prop-
48 erty taxes.
49 3. Affected real property. For purposes of this section, "affected
50 real property" means any tax lot that contained, on the applicable taxa-
51 ble status date, class one, class two or class four real property as
52 such class of real property is defined in subdivision one of section
53 eighteen hundred two of this article, as to which:
54 (a) the assessor reduced the assessed value attributable to improve-
55 ments on the property for the assessment roll completed in two thousand
56 thirteen from the assessed value attributable to improvements on the
A. 7156 3
1 property for the assessment roll completed in two thousand twelve as a
2 result of damage caused by the severe storm that occurred on the twen-
3 ty-ninth and thirtieth of October, two thousand twelve; and
4 (b) the assessor increased the assessed value attributable to improve-
5 ments on the property by means of a physical increase for an assessment
6 roll completed from two thousand fourteen through two thousand twenty.
7 4. Limitation on increases of assessed value. Notwithstanding subdivi-
8 sion five of section eighteen hundred five of this article and any other
9 provision to the contrary, increases in the assessed value of affected
10 real property shall be limited in the manner specified in this subdivi-
11 sion.
12 (a) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this subdivision, for
13 affected real property for which the assessed values on the assessment
14 rolls completed in two thousand fourteen and two thousand fifteen do not
15 reflect a physical increase, the amount of the aggregate physical
16 increase shall not exceed the amount of the physical decrease reflected
17 in the assessed value on the assessment roll completed in two thousand
18 thirteen. Any increase in assessed value from the preceding year in
19 excess of the physical increase reflected in the current assessed value,
20 such physical increase limited as provided in the preceding sentence,
21 shall be subject to the limitations on increases provided in subdivi-
22 sions one, two and three of section eighteen hundred five of this arti-
23 cle. In no event shall the assessed value of the affected real property
24 appearing on an assessment roll completed for any given year from two
25 thousand fifteen to two thousand twenty exceed what the assessed value
26 would have been that year but for any physical decreases or physical
27 increases reflected in the assessed values on the assessment rolls
28 completed from two thousand thirteen to two thousand twenty.
29 (b) For affected real property for which the assessed value on the
30 assessment roll completed in two thousand fourteen or two thousand
31 fifteen reflects a physical increase, the assessed value as it appeared
32 on the assessment roll completed in two thousand fifteen shall be recal-
33 culated as if the limitation in paragraph (a) of this subdivision had
34 been in effect for the assessment rolls completed in two thousand four-
35 teen and two thousand fifteen. The recalculation of the assessed value
36 that appeared on the assessment roll completed in two thousand fifteen
37 shall not affect the amount of taxes that were due and payable for the
38 fiscal year beginning on the first of July, two thousand fourteen. The
39 assessed value on the assessment rolls completed for each of the years
40 from two thousand sixteen to two thousand twenty shall be subject to the
41 limitation on increases provided in paragraph (a) of this subdivision.
42 Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, the assessor is author-
43 ized to correct as provided in this paragraph the assessed value of
44 affected real property appearing on the assessment roll completed in two
45 thousand fifteen. Such correction shall be made no later than ninety
46 days after the effective date of a local law adopted in accordance with
47 this section.
48 (c) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision, in the
49 event that the total square footage of the improvements on the affected
50 real property appearing on any assessment roll completed from two thou-
51 sand fourteen to two thousand twenty exceeds the total square footage of
52 the improvements on the property appearing on the assessment roll
53 completed in two thousand twelve, the amount of the aggregate physical
54 increase shall not exceed the amount computed by multiplying the sum of
55 the physical increases as calculated subject to this subdivision by a
56 fraction, the numerator of which is equal to the amount of the total
A. 7156 4
1 square footage of the improvements on the property for the current
2 assessment roll, and the denominator of which is equal to the amount of
3 the total square footage of the improvements on the property for the
4 assessment roll completed in two thousand twelve. For purposes of this
5 paragraph, if improvements on the property located below grade were not
6 included in the total square footage of the improvements on the property
7 for the assessment roll completed in two thousand twelve, such improve-
8 ments shall not be included in the total square footage for subsequent
9 assessment rolls if the improvements were moved above grade or other
10 building elevations were constructed on the property to prevent or miti-
11 gate flooding as part of reconstruction or repair in connection with the
12 damage caused by the severe storm that occurred on the twenty-ninth and
13 thirtieth of October, two thousand twelve.
14 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.