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A08439 Summary:

BILL NOA08439
 
SAME ASSAME AS S04362
 
SPONSORBrabenec
 
COSPNSRManktelow, Giglio JA, Giglio JM, Mikulin, Salka, Gallahan
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add §461, RPT L
 
Establishes a real property tax exemption for persons sixty years of age or over with an annual household income not exceeding $100,000; directs the state to reimburse municipalities for lost revenues.
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A08439 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          8439
 
                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    November 17, 2021
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. BRABENEC -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Aging
 
        AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to establishing a
          real property tax exemption for certain persons sixty years of age and
          over
 
          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 461 to read as follows:
     3    § 461. Persons sixty years of age and over. 1. (a) Real property owned
     4  by  one  or more persons, each of whom is sixty years of age or over, or
     5  real property owned by husband and wife, one of whom is sixty  years  of
     6  age  or  over  with an annual household income not exceeding one hundred
     7  thousand dollars, shall be exempt from taxation by any municipal  corpo-
     8  ration in which located to the extent provided pursuant to paragraph (b)
     9  of this subdivision.
    10    (b)  The  exemption  provided  by  this  section  shall be one hundred
    11  percent of the assessed valuation for assessment rolls prepared  on  the
    12  basis  of  taxable  status  dates occurring during the year two thousand
    13  twenty-one and thereafter.
    14    (c) The real property tax exemption on real property owned by  husband
    15  and wife, one of whom is sixty years of age or over, once granted, shall
    16  not  be  rescinded  by  any  municipal corporation solely because of the
    17  death of the older spouse so long as the surviving spouse  is  at  least
    18  sixty years of age.
    19     2.  Exemption  from taxation for school purposes shall not be granted
    20  in the case of real property where a child resides if such child attends
    21  a public school of elementary or secondary education.
    22    3. No exemption shall be granted:
    23    (a) unless the owner shall have held an exemption under  this  section
    24  for  his  or  her previous residence or unless the title of the property
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06633-02-1

        A. 8439                             2
 
     1  shall have been vested in the owner or one of the owners of the property
     2  for at least twelve consecutive months  prior  to  the  date  of  making
     3  application  for  exemption, provided, however, that in the event of the
     4  death  of  either  a husband or wife in whose name title of the property
     5  shall have been vested at the time of  death  and  then  becomes  vested
     6  solely  in  the  survivor  by  virtue  of  devise by or descent from the
     7  deceased husband or wife, the time of ownership of the property  by  the
     8  deceased husband or wife shall be deemed also a time of ownership by the
     9  survivor  and such ownership shall be deemed continuous for the purposes
    10  of computing such period of twelve consecutive months. In the event of a
    11  transfer by either a husband or wife to the other spouse of all or  part
    12  of  the  title to the property, the time of ownership of the property by
    13  the transferor spouse shall be deemed also a time of  ownership  by  the
    14  transferee  spouse and such ownership shall be deemed continuous for the
    15  purposes of computing such period of twelve  consecutive  months.  Where
    16  property  of  the  owner or owners has been acquired to replace property
    17  formerly owned by such owner or owners and taken by  eminent  domain  or
    18  other involuntary proceeding, except a tax sale, the period of ownership
    19  of the former property shall be combined with the period of ownership of
    20  the  property for which application is made for exemption and such peri-
    21  ods of ownership shall be deemed to be consecutive for purposes of  this
    22  section.  Where a residence is sold and replaced with another within one
    23  year and both residences are within the state, the period  of  ownership
    24  of  both  properties  shall  be  deemed  consecutive for purposes of the
    25  exemption from taxation by a municipality. Where  the  owner  or  owners
    26  transfer  title  to property which as of the date of transfer was exempt
    27  from taxation under the provisions of this section, the reacquisition of
    28  title by such owner or owners within nine months of the date of transfer
    29  shall be deemed to satisfy the requirement of this  paragraph  that  the
    30  title  of the property shall have been vested in the owner or one of the
    31  owners for such period of twelve  consecutive  months.  Where,  upon  or
    32  subsequent  to  the death of an owner or owners, title to property which
    33  as of the date of  such  death  was  exempt  from  taxation  under  such
    34  provisions,  becomes  vested,  by  virtue  of devise or descent from the
    35  deceased owner or owners, or by transfer by any other means within  nine
    36  months  after such death, solely in a person or persons who, at the time
    37  of such death, maintained such property  as  a  primary  residence,  the
    38  requirement  of this paragraph that the title of the property shall have
    39  been vested in the owner or one of the owners for such period of  twelve
    40  consecutive months shall be deemed satisfied;
    41    (b)  unless the property is used exclusively for residential purposes,
    42  provided, however, that in the event any portion of such property is not
    43  so used exclusively for residential  purposes  but  is  used  for  other
    44  purposes,  such  portion  shall be subject to taxation and the remaining
    45  portion only shall  be  entitled  to  the  exemption  provided  by  this
    46  section;
    47    (c) unless the real property is the legal residence of and is occupied
    48  in  whole or in part by the owner or by all of the owners of the proper-
    49  ty: except where, (i) an  owner  is  absent  from  the  residence  while
    50  receiving  health-related  care  as an inpatient of a residential health
    51  care facility, as defined in section twenty-eight  hundred  one  of  the
    52  public  health  law,  provided  that  any income accruing to that person
    53  shall only be income only to the extent that it exceeds the amount  paid
    54  by  such  owner,  spouse,  or  co-owner  for  care  in the facility, and
    55  provided further, that during such  confinement  such  property  is  not
    56  occupied  by  other  than the spouse or co-owner of such owner; or, (ii)

        A. 8439                             3
 
     1  the real property is owned by a husband and/or wife,  or  an  ex-husband
     2  and/or  an  ex-wife,  and  either  is  absent  from the residence due to
     3  divorce, legal separation or abandonment and  all  other  provisions  of
     4  this  section  are  met  provided that where an exemption was previously
     5  granted when both resided on the property, then the person remaining  on
     6  the real property shall be seventy years of age or over.
     7    4. (a) For the purposes of this section, title to that portion of real
     8  property  owned  by  a  cooperative  apartment  corporation  in  which a
     9  tenant-stockholder of such corporation resides and which is  represented
    10  by his share or shares of stock in such corporation as determined by its
    11  or their proportional relationship to the total outstanding stock of the
    12  corporation, including that owned by the corporation, shall be deemed to
    13  be vested in such tenant-stockholder.
    14    (b) That proportion of the assessment of such real property owned by a
    15  cooperative apartment corporation determined by the relationship of such
    16  real  property  vested  in such tenant-stockholder to such entire parcel
    17  and the buildings thereon owned by  such  cooperative  apartment  corpo-
    18  ration  in  which  such  tenant-stockholder  resides shall be subject to
    19  exemption from taxation pursuant to this section and  any  exemption  so
    20  granted  shall  be  credited by the appropriate taxing authority against
    21  the assessed valuation of such real  property;  the  reduction  in  real
    22  property  taxes  realized  thereby  shall be credited by the cooperative
    23  apartment corporation against the amount of such taxes otherwise payable
    24  by or chargeable to such tenant-stockholder.
    25    5. Every municipal corporation in which such real property is  located
    26  shall  notify,  or  cause to be notified, each person owning residential
    27  real property in such municipal corporation of the  provisions  of  this
    28  section.  The  provisions  of this subdivision may be met by a notice or
    29  legend sent on or with each tax bill to such persons reading "You may be
    30  eligible for tax exemptions for persons sixty years  of  age  and  over.
    31  Such  persons  have  until month.........., day.......,   year......, to
    32  apply for such exemptions.  For information please call  or  write....",
    33  followed  by  the  name,  telephone number and/or address of a person or
    34  department  selected  by  the  municipal  corporation  to  explain   the
    35  provisions of this section. Each cooperative apartment corporation shall
    36  notify  each  tenant-stockholder thereof in residence of such provisions
    37  as set forth in this subdivision.   Failure to notify, or  cause  to  be
    38  notified  any  person  who is in fact, eligible to receive the exemption
    39  provided by this section or the failure of such person  to  receive  the
    40  same  shall  not  prevent  the  levy,  collection and enforcement of the
    41  payment of the taxes on property owned by such person.
    42    6. Application for such exemption shall be made by the owner,  or  all
    43  of  the owners of the property, on forms prescribed by the commission to
    44  be furnished by the appropriate assessing authority  and  shall  furnish
    45  the  information and be executed in the manner required or prescribed in
    46  such forms, and shall be filed in such assessor's office  on  or  before
    47  the appropriate taxable status date. Notwithstanding any other provision
    48  of  law, any person otherwise qualifying under this section shall not be
    49  denied the exemption under this section if he or she becomes sixty years
    50  of age after the appropriate taxable status date and on or before Decem-
    51  ber thirty-first of the same year.
    52    7. An application for such exemption may be filed  with  the  assessor
    53  after  the  appropriate  taxable status date but not later than the last
    54  date on which a petition with respect to complaints of assessment may be
    55  filed, where failure to file a timely application resulted from:  (a)  a
    56  death  of  the  applicant's spouse, child, parent, brother or sister; or

        A. 8439                             4
 
     1  (b) an illness of the applicant or of  the  applicant's  spouse,  child,
     2  parent,  brother  or  sister, which actually prevents the applicant from
     3  filing on a timely basis, as certified  by  a  licensed  physician.  The
     4  assessor  shall approve or deny such application as if it had been filed
     5  on or before the taxable status date.
     6    8. Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  this  section  or  any  other
     7  provision of law, a county with an annual taxable status date of January
     8  first  or  January  second and with a population of one million or more,
     9  may, at its option and by amendment or adoption of a local law or  ordi-
    10  nance,  authorize  its assessor to accept applications for the exemption
    11  from real property taxes authorized pursuant to this section on  a  date
    12  later  than such county's statutory deadline date for receiving applica-
    13  tions for such exemption. Any application filed later than such statuto-
    14  ry deadline date which is in compliance with such local law or ordinance
    15  amended or adopted pursuant to this  subdivision  and  which  meets  all
    16  other  necessary  requirements  for granting the exemption authorized by
    17  this section shall be deemed to have been timely  filed  prior  to  such
    18  statutory deadline date, and any individual or individuals for whom such
    19  an  application has been filed shall be granted such exemption and shall
    20  receive such exemption on the assessment rolls prepared for such  county
    21  on  the  basis of the taxable status date immediately preceding the date
    22  such application was filed.
    23    9. Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  this  section  or  any  other
    24  provision  of law, in a city having a population of one million or more,
    25  applications for the exemption authorized pursuant to this section shall
    26  be considered timely filed if they are filed on or before the  fifteenth
    27  day of March of the appropriate year.
    28    10. (a) The exemption granted pursuant to this section shall remain in
    29  effect until discontinued in the manner provided in this section.
    30    (b)  The  assessor shall discontinue any exemption granted pursuant to
    31  this section if it appears that: (i) the property may not be the primary
    32  residence of the owner or owners who applied  for  the  exemption,  (ii)
    33  title  to  the  property  has been transferred to a new owner or owners,
    34  (iii) the owners fail to satisfy the income  limitations,  or  (iv)  the
    35  property otherwise may no longer be eligible for the exemption.
    36    (c)  Upon  determining  that  an  exemption  granted  pursuant to this
    37  section should be discontinued, the assessor  shall  mail  a  notice  so
    38  stating  to  the  owner  or owners thereof at the time and in the manner
    39  provided by section five hundred ten of  this  chapter.  Such  owner  or
    40  owners  shall  be entitled to seek administrative and judicial review of
    41  such action in the manner provided by law,  provided,  that  the  burden
    42  shall  be  on  such  owner  or  owners  to establish eligibility for the
    43  exemption.
    44    11.  Any conviction of having made any wilful false statement  in  the
    45  application  for  such  exemption,  shall be punishable by a fine of not
    46  more than one hundred dollars and  shall  disqualify  the  applicant  or
    47  applicants from further exemption for a period of five years.
    48    12.  Notwithstanding  any  other provision of law to the contrary, the
    49  provisions of this section shall apply  to  real  property  in  which  a
    50  person  or  persons  hold  a legal life estate or which is held in trust
    51  solely for the benefit of a person or persons if such person or  persons
    52  would  otherwise be eligible for a real property tax exemption, pursuant
    53  to subdivision one of this section, were  such  person  or  persons  the
    54  owner or owners of such real property.
    55    §  2. The state shall reimburse municipalities for all revenue lost as
    56  a result of real property tax exemptions granted pursuant to section 461

        A. 8439                             5
 
     1  of the real property tax law as added by this act. The comptroller shall
     2  provide an application procedure and promulgate  rules  and  regulations
     3  for the processing of claims by municipalities.
     4    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
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