“Speak Out” with Assemblywoman Sandy Galef Presents Fall Forum on Ways to Make Real Property Taxation More Equitable

November 20, 2009

Assemblywoman Sandy Galef with Office of Real Property Services Executive Director Lee Kyriacou at her recent fall forum on the importance of reassessment.

On October 7th, 2009 Assemblywoman Sandy Galef hosted Office of Real Property Services Executive Director Lee Kyriacou to discuss the importance of equity in property taxation. Starting on November 25th Galef will begin showing “The Ups and Downs of Real Property Assessment,” airing consecutively in three parts, on her public access show, “Speak Out.”

Galef, who is also the Chairwoman of the Real Property Taxation Committee in the Assembly, and Kyriacou stress the importance of regular reassessments as the only way to ensure that every New Yorker only pays his or her fair share in property taxes. Unfortunately, most municipalities in Westchester County, and some in Putnam, have not reassessed property values in almost forty years, leaving these municipalities with outdated assessments and therefore inequitable property tax rates.

Kyriacou also mentions the wastefulness of some villages in New York who assess, when the towns in which they reside already assess property values. There are over one-hundred villages in New York State that still pay taxes for double-assessing. One of them is in the 90th Assembly District. Kyriacou noted that this was unnecessary as one assessor could provide the assessments for both the town and village, eliminating the double assessments which sometimes conflict with each other although the same property is being assessed.

“I am happy that Mr. Kyriacou was able to come to my district and talk to constituents about why it is so important for local municipalities to reassess their properties. As the executive director of the Office of Real Property Services, he has seen the benefits of reassessment throughout the state,” said Galef. “I hope that constituents and municipalities will strongly consider the need for reassessment after hearing from Mr. Kyriacou.”

Tune in to cable television on the following days and times to learn more.

What's New