BILL NUMBER: S5560
SPONSOR: MAYER
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the tax law, in relation to extending the period during
which the city of White Plains is authorized to impose an additional
sales and compensating use tax
 
PURPOSE OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to extend, for an additional two years,
White Plains' authority to impose its current tax rate of sales and
compensating use tax.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 extends the authorization of the city of White Plains to main-
tain its current rate of sales and compensating use tax.
Section 2 governs the effectiveness of a sales tax extension adopted by
the local government of White Plains and sets rules for the filing of
the local law, ordinance or resolution adopting the extension.
Section 3 sets the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Since 1993, the state has authorized the city of White Plains to impose
an additional one-half of one percent rate of sales tax to replace
revenue lost through local preemption. Since 2008, the state has
approved an additional one-quarter of one percent rate of sales tax
bringing the city of White Plains sales tax rate to two and a quarter
percent. In 2010, the city asked for and the state enacted legislation
to permit the city of White Plains to impose an additional one-quarter
of one percent rate of sales tax and to require the city to pay the
proceeds of this 2010 rate increase into a contingency and tax stabili-
zation reserve fund under section 6-e of the general municipal law. In
2023 the State removed the requirement to deposit the one-quarter of one
percent portion of the tax levy into the Contingency and Tax Stabiliza-
tion Reserve Fund.
The current sales tax rate of 8.375% in White Plains, of which 2.5% goes
to the city, is equal to that of other municipalities in Westchester
County except for the City of Yonkers which has a higher sales tax rate.
This bill will permit the city of White Plains to continue to impose
each of these additional tax rates through August 31, 2027. Sales and
use taxes are a significant source of revenue for the city. In the
fiscal year ended June 30, 2024, sales and use taxes amounted to $57.5
million (29% of $200.3 million) in total General Fund revenues.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2023: S5622 (Mayer)/A5369 (Paulin), signed, ch. 132
2021: S3501 (Mayer)/A4588(Paulin), signed, ch. 109
2019: S2669 (Mayer)/A5246(Buchwald), signed, ch. 33
2017: S2961 (Latimer)/A2930(Buchwald), signed, ch. 28
2015: S723 (Latimer)/A222 (Buchwald), signed, ch. 17
2013: $3406 (Latimer)/A3883 (Buchwald),signed, ch. 44
2011: S3796 (Oppenheimer)/A6105 (Paulin), signed, ch. 30
2010: S6868A (Oppenheimer)A9965A (Paulin), signed, ch. 74
2009: S1087 (Oppenheimer)/A3129(Bradley), signed, ch. 37
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S5560: 1210 tax law