BILL NUMBER: S8653
SPONSOR: CLEARE
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the real property tax law, in relation to creating a
vacant property classification
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Creates a new vacant property classification in New York City, to both
raise revenue and address homelessness.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Creates a new vacant property classification in New York City (Class 5),
to both raise revenue and address homelessness.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York City faces daunting fiscal challenges. Still, a robust program
of raising revenue on vacant land is an equitable and efficient step in
the right direction. Over 27,000 vacant parcels in the five boroughs,
comprising nearly 24 square miles of land area. Over two-thirds of this
vacant land is classified as "small residential" (Class 1). Class 1 has
enjoyed very favorable tax treatment that was intended to provide prop-
erty tax relief to small homeowners.
Vacant lots tend to be concentrated in some of the City's poorest areas.
For example, in Community Districts, mainly in Brooklyn and the Bronx,
over 6% of Class 1 parcels are vacant, compared with a city-wide figure
of 3.4%. In Bronx Community Districts 3 and 4, the Class 1 vacancy rate
is over 10%.
New York City's property tax system, as mandated by the 1981 state law,
has evolved into a mass of complexities and inconsistencies; the need
for reform is widely acknowledged. This proposal would suggest a sensi-
ble way by creating a new tax class on vacant land, Class 5.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Net positive for City Government.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:;
This act shall take effect thirty days after enactment.

Statutes affected:
S8653: 1802 real property tax law, 1802(1) real property tax law