Amd S301, add S304-a, Ag & Mkts L; amd SS202 & 481, rpld S582, add S993, RPT L
 
Directs the state board of real property services to promulgate rules and regulations establishing an assessment procedure for the determination of the agricultural assessment value of land use in agricultural production and the structure thereon; requires such value to be used as the basis of all real property taxation of such land; provides for state aid payable to taxing jurisdiction for the difference between the taxes on the full value of agricultural property and the agricultural assessment value thereof.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7485
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 13, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BALL -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law and the real property
tax law, in relation to the assessment of land and structures used in
agricultural production; to amend the real property tax law, in
relation to providing state aid to taxing jurisdictions for the
difference between the full value and the agricultural assessment of
land and structures used in agricultural production; to repeal section
304-a of the agriculture and markets law relating to agricultural
assessment values; and to repeal section 582 of the real property tax
law relating to valuation of agricultural structures
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 301 of the agriculture and markets
2 law, as amended by chapter 797 of the laws of 1992, is amended to read
3 as follows:
4 1. "Agricultural assessment value" means the value [per acre] assigned
5 to land used in agricultural production and the structures thereon for
6 assessment purposes determined pursuant to the [capitalized value of
7 production] procedure [prescribed by] established by the state board of
8 real property services in accordance with section three hundred four-a
9 of this article.
10 § 2. Section 304-a of the agriculture and markets law is REPEALED and
11 a new section 304-a is added to read as follows:
12 § 304-a. Agricultural assessment values. 1. Agricultural assessment
13 values for land used in agricultural production and the structures ther-
14 eon shall be annually calculated and certified in accordance with the
15 procedures established by the office of real property services.
16 2. The office of real property services shall establish rules and
17 regulations, which shall be binding upon all assessing units in the
18 state, for the assessment of land used in agricultural production and
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10649-01-9
A. 7485 2
1 the structures thereon. Such rules and regulations shall provide that
2 the agricultural assessment value of land used in agricultural
3 production and the structures thereon shall be the gross sales value of
4 crops, livestock and livestock products produced on such land, reduced
5 by the five year average of the cost of seed, fertilizer, feed, fuel,
6 oil, grease, repairs, electricity, labor, equipment and machinery. Under
7 no circumstances shall land used in agricultural production and the
8 structures thereon be assessed at the full value thereof, unless such
9 full value is less than the agricultural assessment value established
10 pursuant to this subdivision.
11 § 3. Paragraphs (n), (o), (p) and (q) of subdivision 1 of section 202
12 of the real property tax law, paragraph (n) as relettered by chapter 833
13 of the laws of 1960, paragraph (o) as added by chapter 716 of the laws
14 of 1990, paragraph (p) as added by chapter 166 of the laws of 1991 and
15 paragraph (q) as added by chapter 450 of the laws of 2004, are amended
16 and a new paragraph (r) is added to read as follows:
17 (n) Exercise and perform such other powers and duties as may be
18 conferred or imposed on it by law[.];
19 (o) [monitor] Monitor the quality of local assessment practices by
20 individual assessing units[.];
21 (p) [impose] Impose, collect and receive such charges or fees as may
22 be authorized by statute[.];
23 (q) Promulgate rules and regulations for the ascertainment and report-
24 ing of "assessment record billing owner" information, as defined in
25 section one hundred three of the eminent domain procedure law, for the
26 purposes of the administration of said law[.]; and
27 (r) Promulgate and implement rules and regulations establishing the
28 procedure for the determination of the agricultural assessment value of
29 land used in agricultural production and the structures thereon pursuant
30 to section three hundred four-a of the agriculture and markets law. Such
31 procedure shall be used by all assessing units, and the agricultural
32 assessment value shall be the assessment of land used in agricultural
33 production and the structures thereon for all purposes and for all tax
34 levies by every taxing jurisdiction.
35 § 4. Section 481 of the real property tax law, as added by chapter 774
36 of the laws of 1987, is amended to read as follows:
37 § 481. Taxation of land used for agricultural production and the
38 structures thereon. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chap-
39 ter, land used in agricultural production as that term is defined in
40 section three hundred one of the agriculture and markets law and the
41 structures thereon, shall be assessed and taxed for all purposes in the
42 manner provided by article twenty-five-AA of the agriculture and markets
43 law.
44 § 5. Section 582 of the real property tax law is REPEALED.
45 § 6. The real property tax law is amended by adding a new section 993
46 to read as follows:
47 § 993. Effect of agricultural assessment. 1. Levy of taxes. The amount
48 of taxes to be levied by any municipal corporation or special district
49 shall be determined without regard to the fact that state aid will be
50 payable pursuant to this section. In addition, the tax rate for any
51 municipal corporation or special district shall be determined as if no
52 parcels were subject to an agricultural assessment value pursuant to
53 section three hundred four-a of the agriculture and markets law. Howev-
54 er, the tax rate so determined shall be applied to the agricultural
55 assessment value of each parcel of land used in agricultural production
A. 7485 3
1 and the structures thereon after accounting for all applicable
2 exemptions.
3 2. Tax savings. The tax savings for each parcel of land used in agri-
4 cultural production and the structures thereon subject to an agricul-
5 tural assessment value pursuant to section three hundred four-a of the
6 agriculture and markets law shall be computed by subtracting the agri-
7 cultural assessment value of such parcel from the full value of such
8 parcel. A statement shall then be placed on the tax bill for the parcel
9 in substantially the following form: "Your tax savings this year result-
10 ing from an agricultural assessment is $________."
11 3. State aid. (a) The total tax savings duly provided by each munici-
12 pal corporation and special district pursuant to this section shall be a
13 state charge, which shall be payable as provided in this section.
14 (b) A municipal corporation or special district seeking aid pursuant
15 to this section shall submit an application therefor to the state board.
16 The application shall include such information as the state board shall
17 require.
18 (c) Upon approving an application for state aid pursuant to this
19 section, the state board shall compute the amount payable to the appro-
20 priate municipal corporation or special district. Such aid shall be
21 payable upon the audit and warrant of the state comptroller from vouch-
22 ers certified and approved by the executive director of the office of
23 real property services.
24 (d) The state board may audit an application for state aid pursuant to
25 this section within one year after authorizing payment thereon. If the
26 state board should discover that a municipal corporation or special
27 district has received a greater or lesser amount of such aid than it
28 should have received, the state board shall notify the municipal corpo-
29 ration or special district, and shall cause the next payment of such aid
30 to the municipal corporation or special district to be adjusted accord-
31 ingly.
32 (e) When an improperly granted agricultural assessment value has been
33 revoked, the aid payable to the municipal corporation or special
34 district pursuant to this section shall be reduced by the amount of
35 taxes attributable to the revoked agricultural assessment.
36 4. Installment payments. When real property taxes are payable in
37 installments pursuant to law, the tax savings provided by this section
38 shall be applied proportionally against the respective installments.
39 5. Untimely payment of taxes. (a) When taxes on property subject to
40 an agricultural assessment pursuant to section three hundred four-a of
41 the agriculture and markets law are not paid in a timely manner, inter-
42 est, penalties and any other applicable charges shall be imposed only
43 against the balance due after the tax savings provided by this section
44 have been deducted from the taxes owed.
45 (b) When a county, city or town is required by any provision of this
46 chapter to make a payment to a municipal corporation or special district
47 on account of unpaid taxes, the tax savings provided by this section
48 shall be deducted from the amount so payable.
49 6. Inconsistent laws superseded. The provisions of this section shall
50 apply to all municipal corporations and special districts, notwithstand-
51 ing any provision of law to the contrary.
52 § 7. This act shall take effect immediately, except that sections one,
53 two, four, five and six of this act shall take effect on the first of
54 January next succeeding the date on which this act shall have become a
55 law and shall apply to tax rolls completed on or after such date.