Relates to assessments for certain real property tax exemptions to include years where there is sufficient data to determine an applicant's eligibility for exemptions.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10411
SPONSOR: Rules (Bichotte Hermelyn) PURPOSE:
This purpose of this legislation is to make clarifications to the appli-
cable income tax year for purposes of determining SCRIE and DRIE eligi-
bility.
SUMMARY:
Sections one through four of this bill would amend sections 459-c,
467, 467-b, and 467-c of the Real Property Tax law, respectively, to
clarify that the most recently available income tax year shall be used
to determine an applicants income eligibility for the SCRIE and DRIE
program.
Section five of this bill would make these amendments effective imme-
diately and retroactive to May 3, 2023-the effective date of Chapter 276
of the laws of 2023.
JUSTIFICATION:
This legislation would clarify how tax return data is used to determine
eligibility for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption
(SCRIE) program, Disability Rent Increase Exemption (DRIE) program,
Senior Citizen Homeowners' Exemption (SCHE) program, and Disability
Homeowners' Exemption (DHE) program. Specifically, this legislation
provides flexibility in determining the appropriate income year, or
other time period, for evaluating an applicant's eligibility for bene-
fits under such programs. This legislation responds to two sets of
changes made during fiscal year 2024: first, the State Budget in Part K
of Chapter 59 of the Laws of 2023, added a new means of calculating
income for these programs; and second, the State Legislature enacted
Chapter 276 of the Laws of 2023, in order to ensure that current recipi-
ents of these benefits would not lose or suffer a reduction in benefits
due to this new means of calculating income. Together, these amendments
were intended to reduce the necessary submissions and review that
impacts the application and benefit approval process. Unfortunately,
municipalities have not consistently received access to relevant data in
a timely manner to realize these benefits. By allowing municipalities to
use data from the most recent year, or other time period, for which it
is sufficiently available, this bill would provide municipalities with
the ability to realize the intended benefits of Chapters 59 and 276 of
the Laws of 2023 in years in which the municipality does not receive
such data in a timely manner. Ultimately, this bill will allow munici-
palities to use data it has available to it to determine income eligi-
bility, reducing the burden on individual taxpayers.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to have been
in full force and effect on and after May 3, 2023.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10411
IN ASSEMBLY
May 24, 2024
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A.
Bichotte Hermelyn) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Aging
AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to the appropri-
ate tax year for assessing income requirements for certain real prop-
erty tax exemptions in a city with a population of one million or more
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Clause 1 of subparagraph (v) of paragraph (a) of subdivi-
2 sion 5 of section 459-c of the real property tax law, as added by chap-
3 ter 276 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
4 (1) except as provided in clause two of this subparagraph, the term
5 "income" as used in this section shall mean the "adjusted gross income"
6 for federal income tax purposes as reported on the applicant's federal
7 or state income tax return for the most recent income tax year [imme-
8 diately preceding the date of application] or years for which data is
9 sufficiently available to determine the applicant's eligibility for
10 exemptions pursuant to this section, subject to any subsequent amend-
11 ments or revisions, minus any distributions, to the extent included in
12 federal adjusted gross income, received from an individual retirement
13 account and an individual retirement annuity; provided that if no such
14 return was filed for such income tax year, the applicant's income shall
15 be determined based on the amounts that would have so been reported if
16 such a return had been filed; and
17 § 2. Clause 1 of subparagraph (v) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of
18 section 467 of the real property tax law, as added by chapter 276 of the
19 laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
20 (1) Except as provided in clause two of this subparagraph, the term
21 "income" as used in this section shall mean the "adjusted gross income"
22 for federal income tax purposes as reported on the applicant's federal
23 or state income tax return for the most recent income tax year [imme-
24 diately preceding the date of application] or years for which data is
25 sufficiently available to determine the applicant's eligibility for
26 exemptions pursuant to this section, subject to any subsequent amend-
27 ments or revisions, minus any distributions, to the extent included in
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15770-01-4
A. 10411 2
1 federal adjusted gross income, received from an individual retirement
2 account and an individual retirement annuity; provided that if no such
3 return was filed for such income tax year, the applicant's income shall
4 be determined based on the amounts that would have so been reported if
5 such a return had been filed; and
6 § 3. Clause (A) of subparagraph (ii) of paragraph c of subdivision 1
7 of section 467-b of the real property tax law, as amended by chapter 276
8 of the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
9 (A) the sum of the adjusted gross incomes reported on the federal
10 income tax returns of the applicant and all other members of the appli-
11 cant's household for the most recent income tax year [immediately
12 preceding the date of application] or years for which data is suffi-
13 ciently available to determine the applicant's eligibility for
14 exemptions pursuant to this section, subject to any subsequent amend-
15 ments or revisions, less any distributions, to the extent included in
16 each such adjusted gross income, received from an individual retirement
17 account or retirement annuity; provided that if no such income tax
18 return was filed by any member of the applicant's household for such
19 income tax year, the income of such applicant or member of the appli-
20 cant's household shall be determined as if such a return had been filed;
21 § 4. Clause (i) of subparagraph 2 of paragraph f of subdivision 1 of
22 section 467-c of the real property tax law, as amended by chapter 276 of
23 the laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows:
24 (i) the sum of the adjusted gross incomes reported on the federal
25 income tax returns of the applicant and all other members of the appli-
26 cant's household for the most recent income tax year [immediately
27 preceding the date of application] or years for which data is suffi-
28 ciently available to determine the applicant's eligibility for
29 exemptions pursuant to this section, subject to any subsequent amend-
30 ments or revisions, less any distributions, to the extent included in
31 each such adjusted gross income, received from an individual retirement
32 account or retirement annuity; provided that if no such income tax
33 return was filed by any member of the applicant's household for such
34 income tax year, the income of such applicant or member of the appli-
35 cant's household shall be determined as if such a return had been filed;
36 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to
37 have been in full force and effect on and after May 3, 2023.
