Assemblyman Al Stirpe (D-Cicero) announced that legislation he sponsored to study the issue of double library taxation across the state and develop recommendations to protect taxpayers from this financial burden has passed the Assembly (A.9448-A).

“I know budgets are tight for many families right now, which is why I’m fighting tooth and nail to help them keep their hard-earned money where it belongs – in their pockets,” Stirpe said. “For far too long, Central New Yorkers living in overlapping library districts have been forced to pay higher taxes through no fault of their own. It’s past time we protect taxpayers from bearing the brunt of this problem and find a solution that works for our communities. I’ll continue pushing to get this commonsense measure over the finish line, without impacting our public libraries, and provide residents with the relief they need.”

Library districts are determined by three types of boundaries: municipal, school district and special/legislative. Residents living in areas where a municipality’s boundary overlaps with a school district’s boundary pay twice for the same library service merely because of their address. This forces many individuals to unfairly pay taxes for more than one library and further empties hardworking taxpayers’ wallets.

Stirpe’s legislation requires the state Department of Taxation and Finance to study the frequency of double library taxation statewide. The report must include the estimated number of residents paying taxes for more than one public or association library, as well as the projected economic impact that prohibiting double library taxation would have on libraries. Further, the report should include possible solutions that allow this practice to be dissolved without hurting local libraries.