Property tax relief bill wins senate approval

Legislation will help senior citizens, Golden says

June 4, 2015 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

State Sen. Marty Golden says New York State should be doing a lot more to help senior citizens keep their homes. Eagle file photo by Paula Katinas

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Senior citizens who qualify would be eligible for a break on their property taxes if a bill recently passed by the New York State Senate eventually becomes law.

The bill, sponsored by state Sen. Marty Golden (R-C-Bay Ridge-Southwest Brooklyn) and co-sponsored by state Sen. Simcha Felder (D-Borough park-Midwood) and state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Queens), was passed with bipartisan support in the state Senate on May 28 and has been sent to the state Assembly.

“It will help a lot more of our seniors afford to stay in their homes,” Golden told the Brooklyn Eagle.

The legislation would amend the state’s tax laws to allow for an increase the income eligibility levels for partial property tax exemptions for seniors, meaning that older adults whose incomes were previously considered too high to take part in the exemption program could become eligible.

It would be the first upward adjustment in income eligibility levels since 1994, according to Golden’s Office.

Under state law, local governments across the state have the option to provide a partial property tax exemption to senior citizens based on their income.

The Golden bill would give local governments the option to gradually increase the income requirements for senior citizens under a process that would start in 2017. The partial exemption could range from 5 percent of the property’s assessed value to 45 percent of the property’s assessed value and would use a sliding scale based on the property owner’s income to determine the exemption amount.

According to the website of the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, senior citizens must be 65 years of age or older and meet certain income requirements in order to qualify for exemptions.

Under the current system, a local government assesses the value of a property and then bases the property tax on the assessment.

That’s a problem, according to Golden, who said assessments are hurting senior citizens in the pocketbook.

“The property tax rates haven’t really gone up. But the assessments keep going up year after year,” he said.

Many seniors have a draconian choice: pay their property taxes or buy food, Golden said.

“No one who has played a role in shaping our great state and nation should have to choose between life’s necessities and paying bills,” he said.

The least the state could do is allow more seniors to become eligible for help, Golden said.

Felder said he supported the legislation because he wants to ease the tax burden on senior citizens. “Our senior citizens play such a vital role in our communities,” he said. “It is only right that we help ease their financial burdens by expanding eligibility for tax exemptions.”

The bill also earned the support of Brooklyn lawmakers like state Sen. Diane Savino (D-Coney Island-Bensonhurst-Staten Island) and state Sen. Daniel Squadron (D-Brooklyn Heights-North Brooklyn) both of whom voted in favor of it.

Golden told the Eagle that he thinks the bill’s chances for passage in the Assembly are good. “I think it will pass,” he said.