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We can’t discuss a ‘Tale of Two Cities’ without acknowledging that our property tax system creates an inequitable system where many of us pay the burden of those who legally and systematically pay far less than their property is comparatively worth. This will be a great undertaking and despite being talked about for too long, no action has been taken to begin.

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Updates

February 21, 2018

Island lawmakers propose property tax reforms to fix system

Weeks after Mayor Bill de Blasio promised to establish a commission to come up with a property tax reform plan, Staten Island lawmakers rolled out several…

February 18, 2018

Opinion: With property tax, take from the middle and give to rich

The chances are that if you’ve spent enough time sipping coffee on Staten Island, or in any other outer-borough diner, you certainly overheard this…

October 26, 2017

Borelli, Malliotakis Call for Property Tax Reform

Council Member Joseph Borelli and Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis held a Thursday morning news conference on the steps of New York City Hall, where they called for reform and the overhaul of a property tax system that is famous for its inequities and which unjustly penalizes many outer-borough homeowners…

December 14, 2016

Borelli, Matteo Call for Mayor to Convene NYC Property Tax Reform Commission

In a letter written to New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Council Member Joseph C. Borelli and Minority Leader Steven Matteo addressed three major concerns they and their constituents have regarding the overall fairness of property tax assessments on Class One properties throughout the city…

March 13, 2016

Borelli, Matteo threaten court action over ‘property tax inequality’

Staten Island officials are threatening to go to court over apparent property tax inequalities. But first Councilman Joseph Borelli and Minority Leader Steven Matteo are asking the NYC Independent Budget Office (IBO) to help them determine if neighborhoods on Staten Island are really being treated unfairly by the city’s property tax formula…

PETITION OVERVIEW

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-1241 days Ends on 04/20/21

About this Petition

New York City continues to be the most expensive city to live in the country – driven largely by the widening gap between income and the cost of housing. Property tax revenue has risen a staggering 60 percent since 2011 and is on target to eclipse $26 billion in Fiscal Year 2018, which ends in June. Meanwhile, median wages grew just over 13 percent during the same time frame, from Fiscal Year 2010 to 2017, according to New York State Department of Labor statistics.

To help alleviate this problem, Matteo, Borelli and Oddo are advocating the following measures:

Empanel a Property Reform Commission

For years, political leaders, government watchdog groups and public policy think tanks have acknowledged New York City's property tax system is flawed, inequitable and inconsistent. Properties with similar market values pay vastly different tax bills, both within tax classes and among tax classes; the methods of assessing property values are opaque, convoluted and seemingly unrelated to real world sale prices; and middle-class and working-class homeowners pay considerably higher property taxes relative to owners of high-priced, luxury co-ops or condominiums.

To tackle this problem, Matteo and Borelli asked the Mayor to empanel a bipartisan property tax reform commission comprised of various stakeholders in December 2016. The commission would exam the inequities and irregularities in the manner in which property values are assessed and taxes are levied, provide a comprehensive analysis of the property tax system and recommend potential changes to it. It would require at least a year to finish its work and make final recommendations. That would be followed by public hearings. Any proposed changes to the property tax system the city decides to adopt would have to be drafted into legislation; approved by both the City Council and the State Legislature and their respective legislative committees; then signed into law by the Mayor and The Governor before they ultimately take effect.

Issue a Rebate

The lawmakers are asking Mayor de Blasio to reinstate the property tax rebate. New York City homeowners received a $400 property tax rebate check between 2004 and 2009, when former Mayor Michael Bloomberg cancelled it, citing a financial crisis. The estimated cost of this rebate is between $250-$300 million.

The rebate would first require the New York State Legislature pass enabling legislation, which is currently being sponsored by State Senator Andrew Lanza of Staten Island and Assemblyman Michael Benedetto of the Bronx. Ultimately the rebate would need to be agreed upon during the city’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget negotiations, voted on by the Council and then signed into law by the Mayor.

Freeze Property Tax Bills for Eligible Seniors

Most seniors throughout the five boroughs live on fixed incomes and struggle to make ends meet. One of the most important factors in their ability to remain in the city is a predictable annual budget. Dramatically escalating real estate markets may result in their homes being valuable but, ironically, the accompanying rising assessed valuation (AV) makes them less able - or unable - to afford to stay in them.

The lawmakers are proposing the city study and implement a property tax "freeze" for senior citizens who are Class 1 homeowners and who meet specific criteria that would include age, income, residency in New York City and time period of home ownership.

Under this program, eligible homeowners would have their property taxes frozen at a particular base year level. Until title passes to a new owner or an heir, either all subsequent tax bills would contain a deduction equal to the difference between what is owed for the current tax year and the base year. Current year property taxes would have to be paid in full, but the homeowner would subsequently apply for and receive a reimbursement equal to the difference between what is owed for the current tax year and the base year.

Reset Assessment Cap When Property Changes Ownership

New York State Real Property Tax Law (RPTL) 1805 limits the amount a property's assessed value can increase to 6% per year or 20% over five years. While this helps keep homes affordable for many families by essentially limiting how much a property tax bill can jump year-to-year, it has also created an enormous disparity in property tax liability between Class 1 properties (mostly single and two-family homes). In areas of the city that have seen explosive growth in real estate values in the last two decades - such as Park Slope, Brooklyn - owners of multi-million-dollar homes often pay significantly lower property taxes than owners of modestly valued homes in other areas, such as Staten Island or Queens. Buyers of these multi-million homes also receive the benefit of these artificially deflated tax bills.

Staten Island elected officials are proposing "resetting" the assessment cap when a property is sold. Thus, the assessment of a newly-purchased home would be calculated based on the present market value from the new sale price. Accomplishing this would require amending RPTL 1805, which they're requesting through a resolution in the New York City Council.

In addition to providing elusive property tax equity for Class 1 properties in NYC, this change is projected to provide over $100 million in new city revenue without raising taxes, and without harming the property tax protections of families who remain in their homes.

Demand real Property Tax Reform: End the "de Blasio Loophole"!

Sign the Petition!