Bill Text: NY S08146 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Authorizes municipalities in a pilot emergency repair program to add unpaid emergency repair charges and housing code violation penalties, costs and fines to such municipalities' annual tax levy.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-06-01 - referred to local governments [S08146 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S08146-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8146--A IN SENATE January 26, 2022 ___________ Introduced by Sens. SKOUFIS, HINCHEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the state finance law and the real property tax law, in relation to authorizing certain municipalities in a pilot emergency repair program to add unpaid emergency repair charges and housing code violation penalties, costs and fines to such municipalities' annual tax levy in accordance with applicable law; and providing for the repeal of certain provisions upon the expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 3 of section 54-g of the state finance law, as 2 added by chapter 707 of the laws of 1981, is amended to read as follows: 3 3. The secretary of state, with assistance from the division of hous- 4 ing and community renewal, shall establish a pilot program with partic- 5 ipating municipalities for an emergency repair program. The secretary of 6 state shall only select municipalities designated as a city for such 7 pilot program. The emergency repair program shall require a municipality 8 awarded participation to enact a local law to enable the municipality to 9 repair immediately hazardous code violations in buildings where the 10 owner has not undertaken such repairs in a reasonable time. The munici- 11 pality shall bill the owner for such repair costs and in the event 12 payment is not received within thirty days, the secretary shall reim- 13 burse the municipality for such repairs. Any subsequent recovery of 14 monies due from the owner for such repairs shall be forwarded to the 15 state. The secretary of state in conjunction with the division of hous- 16 ing and community renewal shall file a report annually to evaluate the 17 effectiveness of the emergency repair pilot program with the legislature 18 and the governor. Such report shall include recommendations as to wheth- 19 er the program shall be continued or modified in any way and the reasons 20 therefor. 21 4. The terms used in this section shall have the meanings ascribed to 22 them in section fifty-four of this article. 23 § 2. The real property tax law is amended by adding a new section 903 24 to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD14417-05-2S. 8146--A 2 1 § 903. Collection of unpaid housing code violation penalties; levy. 1. 2 Authorization. In addition to and not in limitation of any power other- 3 wise granted by law, municipalities participating in the emergency 4 repair program pursuant to section fifty-four-g of the state finance 5 law, are hereby authorized to collect any unpaid emergency repair charg- 6 es, housing, building and fire code violation penalties, costs and fines 7 through placement by the municipality's commissioner of finance, treas- 8 urer, or other public official charged with the duties of overseeing tax 9 collections on the municipality's annual tax levy in accordance with the 10 provisions of this section. 11 2. Eligibility. In order to be eligible for placement on the munici- 12 pality's annual tax levy such unpaid emergency repair charges, code 13 violation penalties, costs and fines shall have been adjudicated and 14 imposed through a judgment in a court of competent jurisdiction on an 15 owner of real property within the municipality and recorded by the coun- 16 ty clerk, as certified by the municipal counsel to the commissioner of 17 finance, treasurer or other public official charged with the duties of 18 overseeing tax collections and have remained unpaid for one year after 19 the final adjudication and exhaustion of all appeals relating to the 20 imposition of the fines for a code violation preceding the placement on 21 the municipality's tax levy. 22 3. Minimum amount owed. To qualify for placement on the tax levy the 23 amount owed for unpaid emergency repair charges and/or the code 24 violations shall be at least five percent of the amount of the tax 25 assessed value of the property. 26 4. Levy. Such unpaid emergency repair charges and/or code violation 27 penalty, cost or fine as set forth in a copy of the judgment certified 28 by the municipal counsel to the commissioner of finance, treasurer or 29 other public official charged with the duties of overseeing tax 30 collections shall be set down in the annual tax levy under the heading 31 uncollected fines and penalties and in accordance with this section 32 shall be levied, enforced and collected in the same manner, by the same 33 proceedings, at the same time, under the same penalties and having the 34 same lien upon the property assessed as the general municipal tax and as 35 a part thereof. 36 5. Notice. The municipality shall notify all owners or known inter- 37 ested parties of record of the placement of the unpaid emergency repair 38 charges and/or code violations on the municipal tax levy as uncollected 39 fines and penalties within thirty days of placement, pursuant to section 40 three hundred eight of the civil practice law and rules. The notice 41 shall include the date or dates of such violations, the description of 42 the violations, the amount owed, a statement detailing the foreclosure 43 process that will occur if the violations remain unpaid, the process to 44 claim any surplus funds and the contact information for the municipal 45 office in charge of receiving payments. 46 6. Tax year. Any unpaid emergency repair charges and/or code 47 violations shall be placed on the tax roll the municipality is currently 48 in and shall not be placed on a list, roll or levy of delinquent taxes. 49 7. Owner occupied. Notwithstanding any other applicable provisions of 50 law, nothing in this section shall be applied to a residential dwelling 51 that is owner-occupied or is the primary residence of a homeowner. 52 8. Tenants. Prior to the placement of any property with unpaid emer- 53 gency repair charges and/or code violations on the tax levy, the munici- 54 pality shall develop a program to assist tenants residing in a dwelling 55 at risk for tax foreclosure due to unpaid emergency repair charges 56 and/or code violations. Such program shall include housing counselingS. 8146--A 3 1 assistance or other support in relocating the tenants to suitable hous- 2 ing prior to the tax foreclosure. 3 9. Payment plan. Nothing in this section shall preclude an owner from 4 entering into a payment plan with a municipality for past amounts due 5 for emergency repair charges and/or code violations. 6 10. Curing code violations. (a) If all of the violations for which the 7 penalties, fees and costs have been assessed are cured, removed or 8 corrected prior to the expiration of the period for redemption pursuant 9 to section eleven hundred ten of this chapter, the property shall be 10 removed from the levy and auction and the balance of the amount owed 11 shall be placed as a lien on the property pursuant to applicable laws 12 for debt collection and an action for foreclosure of the property shall 13 not be maintained for the amount owed. 14 (b) The determination of whether or not the code violations have been 15 cured shall be made by the local municipal enforcing officer in charge 16 of ensuring compliance with applicable housing, building, and fire codes 17 such as a code enforcement officer or through a certification by the 18 owner filed with the code enforcement officer. An appeal of this deter- 19 mination may be made to the municipality's zoning board of appeals or 20 other local administrative body as provided for in local law. The final 21 determination made by the administrative body shall be reviewable pursu- 22 ant to article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules. 23 (c) This section shall not be applicable to any cause of action 24 brought for money due based on the curing of emergency repair charges 25 and/or code violations under any form for receivership or a mechanics 26 lien. 27 11. Payment prior to auction. (a) If the balance owed for emergency 28 repair charges and/or code violations placed on the tax levy is paid 29 prior to the expiration of the period for redemption pursuant to section 30 eleven hundred ten of this chapter and there is no balance due for 31 unpaid real property taxes, the property may not be auctioned, and the 32 property shall be removed from the tax levy. 33 (b) The owner shall have the right to pay the full balance prior to 34 the expiration of the period for redemption pursuant to section eleven 35 hundred ten of this chapter in order to redeem the property. 36 12. Surplus. Any surplus funds remaining after the sale of a property 37 at a tax foreclosure for unpaid code violations shall be returned to the 38 former owner of the property in a manner provided under local law. This 39 provision shall not apply to a sale of a property at a tax foreclosure 40 due to unpaid taxes. If a property has: (a) unpaid taxes; and (b) unpaid 41 emergency repair charges and/or unpaid code violations on the same tax 42 levy and is auctioned at a tax foreclosure, the amount of the surplus 43 funds returned to the former owner shall be proportionate to the amount 44 of unpaid emergency repair charges and/or code violations owed in the 45 total amount of debt owed to the municipality. For the purpose of this 46 section, "surplus funds" shall mean the balance of money received after 47 auction of a property at a tax foreclosure sale minus the amount owed 48 for emergency repair charges, code violations and the costs and attor- 49 neys fees incurred in the collection of the fees by the municipalities. 50 13. Balance due. If after an auction a balance is due for emergency 51 repair charges and/or code violations, the municipality may proceed with 52 any action against the former owner pursuant to applicable laws. 53 14. Exclusions. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any 54 municipality that sells their tax liens in a tax lien sale. 55 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, 56 section one of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed May 1, 2026.
