Bill Text: NY S01214 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended


Bill Title: Limits, in cities having a population of one million or more, the annual increase in real property taxes.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-06-20 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S01214 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-S01214-Amended.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         1214--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                     January 6, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by Sens. LANZA, GOLDEN, AVELLA, FELDER, SAVINO -- read twice
          and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee
          on Cities -- recommitted to the Committee on Cities in accordance with
          Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN  ACT  to  amend the general municipal law and the municipal home rule
          law, in relation to establishing limitations upon  real  property  tax
          levies in cities 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. The general municipal  law  is  amended  by  adding  a  new
     2  section 3-e to read as follows:
     3    §  3-e.  Limitation  upon  real property tax levies by cities having a
     4  population of one million or more.  1. Unless otherwise provided by law,
     5  the amount of real property taxes that may be levied by or on behalf  of
     6  any city having a population of one million or more shall not exceed the
     7  tax levy limitation established pursuant to this section.
     8    2. When used in this section:
     9    (a) "Allowable levy growth factor" shall be the lesser of: (i) one and
    10  two  one-hundredths;  or  (ii) the sum of one plus the inflation factor;
    11  provided, however, that in no case shall the levy growth factor be  less
    12  than one.
    13    (b)  "Approved capital expenditures" means the expenditures associated
    14  with capital projects that have been approved by the qualified voters of
    15  the local government.
    16    (c) "Available carryover" means the sum of the amount by which the tax
    17  levy for the prior fiscal year was below the tax  levy  limit  for  such
    18  fiscal  year,  if  any, but no more than one and one-half percent of the
    19  tax levy limit for such fiscal year.
    20    (d) "Capital tax levy" means the tax levy necessary to support capital
    21  expenditures, if any.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00383-02-8

        S. 1214--A                          2
     1    (e) "Coming fiscal year" means the fiscal year of the local government
     2  for which a tax levy limitation shall be  determined  pursuant  to  this
     3  section.
     4    (f)  "Inflation  factor" means the quotient of: (i) the average of the
     5  national consumer price indexes determined by the United States  depart-
     6  ment of labor for the twelve-month period ending six months prior to the
     7  start  of  the  coming  fiscal  year  minus  the average of the national
     8  consumer price indexes determined by the  United  States  department  of
     9  labor  for  the twelve-month period ending six months prior to the start
    10  of the prior fiscal year, divided by: (ii) the average of  the  national
    11  consumer  price  indexes  determined  by the United States department of
    12  labor for the twelve-month period ending six months prior to  the  start
    13  of the prior fiscal year, with the result expressed as a decimal to four
    14  places.
    15    (g) "Local government" means a city having a population of one million
    16  or more.
    17    (h)  "Prior fiscal year" means the fiscal year of the local government
    18  immediately preceding the coming fiscal year.
    19    (i) "Tax levy limitation" means the amount of taxes a local government
    20  is authorized to levy pursuant to this section, provided, however,  that
    21  the  tax  levy  limit  shall not include the local government's approved
    22  capital tax levy, if any.
    23    3. (a) Beginning with the fiscal year  that  begins  in  two  thousand
    24  nineteen,  no  local government shall adopt a budget that requires a tax
    25  levy that is greater than the tax levy limitation for the coming  fiscal
    26  year.
    27    (b)  The state comptroller shall calculate the tax levy limitation for
    28  each local government by the one hundred  twentieth  day  preceding  the
    29  commencement  of  each  local government's fiscal year, and shall notify
    30  each local government of the tax levy limitation so determined.
    31    (c) The tax levy limitation applicable to the coming fiscal year shall
    32  be determined as follows:
    33    (i) Ascertain the total amount of taxes levied for  the  prior  fiscal
    34  year.
    35    (ii)  Add  any  payments  in lieu of taxes that were receivable in the
    36  prior fiscal year.
    37    (iii) Subtract the approved capital tax  levy  for  the  prior  fiscal
    38  year, if any.
    39    (iv)  Subtract  the levy attributable to a large legal settlement of a
    40  tort action excluded from the levy limitation in the prior fiscal  year,
    41  if any.
    42    (v) Multiply the result by the allowable levy growth factor.
    43    (vi)  Subtract  any payments in lieu of taxes receivable in the coming
    44  fiscal year.
    45    (vii) Add the available carryover, if any.
    46    (d) In the event the city council of a local government has approved a
    47  legal settlement of a tort action against  the  government,  the  annual
    48  costs  of  which  exceed ten percent of the property taxes levied by the
    49  local government in the prior fiscal year, the state  comptroller,  upon
    50  application  by the local government, may adjust the tax levy limitation
    51  for the coming fiscal year  applicable  to  such  local  government,  by
    52  adding the annual costs of such settlement to the tax levy limitation.
    53    (e)  The state comptroller shall determine the portion of the tax levy
    54  of each local  government  that  is  attributable  to  any  increase  or
    55  decrease  over  the prior year in the cost of the local government share
    56  of direct cash assistance to persons eligible for the  federal-state-lo-

        S. 1214--A                          3
     1  cal  temporary  assistance  to needy families program or the state-local
     2  safety net assistance program and shall adjust the tax  levy  limitation
     3  for such local government to reflect such change.
     4    4. A local government may adopt a budget that requires a tax levy that
     5  is  greater than the tax levy limitation for the coming fiscal year only
     6  if the city council of such local government first  enacts,  by  a  two-
     7  thirds  vote of the total voting power of such city council, a local law
     8  to override such limitation for such coming fiscal year only.
     9    5. In the event a local government's  actual  tax  levy  for  a  given
    10  fiscal  year  exceeds the maximum allowable levy as established pursuant
    11  to this section due to clerical or technical errors, the  local  govern-
    12  ment  shall place the excess amount of the levy in reserve in accordance
    13  with such requirements as the state comptroller may prescribe, and shall
    14  use such funds and any interest earned thereon to offset  the  tax  levy
    15  for the ensuing fiscal year.
    16    §  2. Paragraphs j and k of subdivision 2 of section 23 of the munici-
    17  pal home rule law are relettered paragraphs k and l, and a new paragraph
    18  j is added to read as follows:
    19    j.  Overrides the tax levy limitation applicable for the coming fiscal
    20  year in accordance with section three-e of the general municipal law.
    21    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first  apply  to
    22  the  levy  of taxes by local governments for the fiscal year that begins
    23  in 2019.
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