Exempts water system property owned by a private water-works corporation located in counties with a population of one million or more that are special assessing units from being included as special franchise property.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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3175
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 24, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sens. CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK, RHOADS -- read twice and
ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
Local Government
AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to the definition
of special franchise property
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 17 of section 102 of the real property tax law,
2 as amended by chapter 569 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 17. "Special franchise" means the franchise, right, authority or
5 permission to construct, maintain or operate in, under, above, upon or
6 through any public street, highway, water or other public place mains,
7 pipes, tanks, conduits, wires or transformers, with their appurtenances,
8 for conducting water, steam, light, power, electricity, gas or other
9 substance. For purposes of assessment and taxation a special franchise
10 shall include the value of the tangible property situated in, under,
11 above, upon or through any public street, highway, water or other public
12 place in connection therewith. The term special franchise shall not
13 include central office equipment or station equipment (except public
14 telephone terminal equipment) which first appears on assessment rolls
15 prepared on the basis of taxable status dates occurring on or after
16 October first, nineteen hundred ninety-five and which is owned by a
17 telephone company as defined in paragraph (d) of subdivision twelve of
18 this section, or owned by a telephone corporation as defined in subdivi-
19 sion seventeen of section two of the public service law and certified by
20 the public service commission under section ninety-nine of such law, nor
21 shall it include property of a municipal corporation, public benefit
22 corporation or special district, nor shall it include a crossing less
23 than two hundred fifty feet in length of a public street, highway, water
24 or other public place outside a city or village, unless such crossing be
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04780-01-5
S. 3175 2
1 the continuation of an occupancy of another public street, highway,
2 water or other public place. The term "special franchise" shall also
3 not include any water system property owned by a private water-works
4 corporation, as such terms are defined in section two of the public
5 service law, located in counties with a population of one million or
6 more that are special assessing units.
7 § 2. For purposes of this act, any tax relief realized by a private
8 water-works corporation shall be used to reduce current water rates and
9 offset future water rate increases.
10 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
