NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A2082
SPONSOR: Rosenthal
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the real property tax law, in relation to pension income
and tax abatement for rent-controlled and rent regulated property occu-
pied by senior citizens or persons with disabilities
 
PURPOSE:
This bill requires that no increases in a household member's pension or
Social Security benefits may be• considered income for the purpose of
determining eligibility for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption
(SCRIE) or Disability Rent Increase Exemption (DRIB) following such
household's initial application for either program.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends paragraph c of subdivision 1 of section 467-b of the
real property tax law.
Section two sets forth the effective date. •
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, Social Security and pension benefit increases are not consid-
ered to be income as long as they are less than the Consumer Price Index
(CPI), United States City average, for the year in question. In recent
years, the CPI has been so low that even negligible pension and Social
Security increases are countable and can render tenants ineligible for
SCRIE or DRIE. The bill would also simplify application processing by
local governments. Rather than requiring administering agencies to
cross-check potentially decades of benefit increases against the year's
CPI, the agencies would be able to use the annual pension or Social
Security benefit income when a household initially applies for determi-
nation of eligibility for all subsequent applications.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023-24: A.1079 - Referred to Aging; S.707 - Referred to Aging
2021-22: A.3206 - Referred to Aging
2019-20: A.1312 - Referred to Aging
2017-18: A.4774 - Referred to Aging
2015-16: A.861 - Referred to Aging
2013-14: A.8642 - Referred to Aging
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2082
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 15, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Aging
AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to pension income
and tax abatement for rent-controlled and rent regulated property
occupied by senior citizens or persons with disabilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Clause (B) of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph c of subdivi-
2 sion 1 of section 467-b of the real property tax law, as amended by
3 chapter 276 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
4 (B) provided, however, that income may be calculated as the income
5 from all sources after deduction of all income and social security taxes
6 and includes social security and retirement benefits, supplemental secu-
7 rity income and additional state payments, public assistance benefits,
8 interest, dividends, net rental income, salary or earnings, and net
9 income from self-employment, but shall not include gifts or inheritanc-
10 es, payments made to individuals because of their status as victims of
11 Nazi persecution, as defined in federal P.L. 103-286, or increases in
12 benefits accorded pursuant to the social security act or a public or
13 private pension paid to any member of the household [which increase, in
14 any given year, does not exceed the consumer price index (all items
15 United States city average)] for such year which take effect after the
16 date of eligibility of head of the household receiving benefits here-
17 under whether received by the head of the household or any other member
18 of the household, when the following conditions are met:
19 (1) a rent increase exemption order was granted to the head of house-
20 hold prior to July first, two thousand twenty-four;
21 (2) such rent increase exemption order is either renewed after each
22 benefit period or granted pursuant to paragraph (d) of subdivision two
23 of this section to account for a temporary increase in income;
24 (3) income calculated as described in this subparagraph would yield a
25 lower amount than income calculated as described in subparagraph (i) of
26 this paragraph; and
27 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05818-01-5