NYSAC Testifies on Property Tax Cap

On Tuesday, NYSAC President William Ryan and Executive Director Stephen Acquario testified before several NYS Assembly Committees at a public hearing on the proposed property tax cap. The committees holding the hearing included: Ways and Means, Education, Real Property Taxation, Local Governments, and Cities.

The testimony highlighted the fact that the property tax cap proposal fails to recognize that county property taxes are driven by decisions at the State level. In fact, 9 State mandates consume 90 percent of the county property tax levy statewide. Without that significant mandate relief, a well-intentioned property tax cap will have unintended but severe consequences in terms of economic growth and human services in the State. 

The testimony also identified technical challenges with the legislation that should be worked out before it is adopted by both houses of the State Legislature. These technical challenges include:

·         the requirement that the State Comptroller define each local government’s levy and allowable growth, a process that usually takes place on a two year lag;

·         the removal of voter approved capital projects or expenditures from the cap, since counties do not hold referendums on capital plans;

·         the treatment of PILOT (Payment In Lieu of Taxes) agreements, that are a primary economic tool for counties;

·         the lack of accommodating natural growth in residential property developments or the economic base of a community;

·         the inability to lower taxes; and

·         the lack of consensus on the process of overriding the cap.

NYSAC stressed that counties want to be partners with the State in lowering property taxes and ending New York State’s reputation as one of the highest-taxed states in the Nation, but that it must be done in a way that does not continue or strengthen the unsustainable nature of the State-county relationship.

 Dutchess County Legislator the Honorable  James R. Doxsey District 1 is pressing NYSAC members to Repeal the Stock Transfer Tax Amendment. 

  James Doxsey says:  ” While I can not stress enough the importance of implementing a Repeal of the Stock Transfer Tax Legislation that Governor Carey changed in 1979, this SIMPLE Act will produce approximately 16 BILLION Dollars to offset our Defecit in New York alone. Enacting this Simple piece of Legislation will relieve the burdens placed on New Yorker Taxpayers for a multitude of years to come “.

 ” Nobody properly understands this Amendment that Governor Carey has done. Simply give back to New York State the NICKEL ($.05)  as it was written in 1905. It’s that simple ” !