N.Y. RPT Law § 102 — New York Code / Act RPT / Article 1 / Section 102
Definitions
Status: in_force

§ 102. Definitions. When used in this chapter, unless otherwise\nexpressly stated or unless the context otherwise requires:\n  1. "Assessing unit" means: (a) a city, town, or county with the power\nto assess real property, unless the city, town or county is part of a\nconsolidated assessing unit;\n  (b) a consolidated assessing unit; or\n  (c) a village as provided in section fourteen hundred two of this\nchapter.\n  2. "Assessment" means a determination made by assessors of (1) the\nvaluation of real property, including the valuation of exempt real\nproperty and (2) whether or not real property is subject to taxation or\nspecial ad valorem levies.\n  3. "Assessors" mean an elected or appointed officer or body of\nofficers charged by law with the duty of assessing real property in an\nassessing unit for the purposes of taxation or special ad valorem\nlevies, for county, city, town, village, school district or special\ndistrict purposes.\n  4. "Board of assessment review" means the body of officers as\nconstituted by subdivision one of section five hundred twenty-three of\nthis chapter and, in the case of villages, by subdivision one of section\nfourteen hundred eight of this chapter which is empowered to hear and\ndetermine complaints in relation to assessments.\n  4-a. "Chief executive officer" means (a) in the case of cities, the\nmayor, except in cities having a city manager in which case it shall\nmean the city manager, (b) in the case of villages, the mayor and (c) in\nthe case of towns, the supervisor.\n  5. "Collecting officer" means an elected or appointed officer of any\nmunicipal corporation or special district authorized by law to receive\nand collect taxes, special ad valorem levies or special assessments.\n  5-a. "Commissioner" means the commissioner of taxation and finance.\n  6. "Comptroller" means the state comptroller.\n  6-a. "Consolidated assessing unit" means an assessing unit established\npursuant to article sixteen of this chapter.\n  7. "County equalization agency" means the board of supervisors,\ncommissioners of equalization or other county agency authorized by this\nchapter or any other law to establish county equalization rates.\n  8. "County equalization rate" means the percentage of full value at\nwhich taxable real property in a city or town is assessed as determined\nby a county equalization agency for purposes of apportioning county real\nproperty taxes.\n  9. "County treasurer" means the chief fiscal officer of a county\ncharged by law with performing the duties of treasurer, by whatever name\nknown or called.\n  9-a. "Infant" or "minor" means a person who has not attained the age\nof eighteen years.\n  9-b. "Department" means the department of taxation and finance.\n  10. "Municipal corporation" means a county, city, town, village or\nschool district.\n  11. "Parcel" means a separately assessed lot, parcel, piece or portion\nof real property, except publicly owned bridges and land used for\nstreet, road, highway or parkway purposes. A parcel shall not be\nbisected by a municipal corporation boundary line except that in a\nspecial assessing unit a parcel may be bisected by a school district or\nvillage boundary line.\n  12. "Real property", "property" or "land" mean and include:\n  (a) Land itself, above and under water, including trees and\nundergrowth thereon and mines, minerals, quarries and fossils in and\nunder the same, except mines belonging to the state;\n  (b) Buildings and other articles and structures, substructures and\nsuperstructures erected upon, under or above the land, or affixed\nthereto, including bridges and wharves and piers and the value of the\nright to collect wharfage, cranage or dockage thereon;\n  (c) Surface, underground or elevated railroads, and railroad\nstructures, substructures and superstructures, tracks and the metal\nthereon, branches, switches and other fixtures permitted or authorized\nto be made, laid or placed in, upon, above or under any public or\nprivate street or place;\n  (d) When owned by a telephone company all telephone and telegraph\nlines, wires, poles, supports and inclosures for electrical conductors\nupon, above and underground. For purposes of this paragraph the term\n"real property" shall not include station connections and the term\n"telephone company" shall mean a company subject to regulation by the\npublic service commission which provides, to the general public within\nits local exchange area, non-cellular switched local exchange telephone\nservice at the points of origination and termination of the signal.\n  (e) Mains, pipes and tanks permitted or authorized to be made, laid or\nplaced in, upon, above or under any public or private street or place\nfor conducting steam, heat, water, oil, electricity or any property,\nsubstance or product capable of transportation or conveyance therein or\nthat is protected thereby;\n  (f) Boilers, ventilating apparatus, elevators, plumbing, heating,\nlighting and power generating apparatus, shafting other than\ncounter-shafting and equipment for the distribution of heat, light,\npower, gases and liquids, but shall not include movable machinery or\nequipment consisting of structures or erections to the operation of\nwhich machinery is essential, owned by a corporation taxable under\narticle nine-a of the tax law, used for trade or manufacture and not\nessential for the support of the building, structure or superstructure,\nand removable without material injury thereto;\n  (g) Forms of housing adaptable to motivation by a power connected\nthereto, commonly called "trailers" or "mobile homes", which are or can\nbe used for residential, business, commercial or office purposes, except\nthose (1) located within the boundaries of an assessing unit for less\nthan sixty days, (2) unoccupied and for sale or (3) "recreational\nvehicles" that are four hundred square feet or less in size, self\npropelled or towable by an automobile or light duty truck and used as\ntemporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel or seasonal\nuse. The value of any trailer or mobile home shall be included in the\nassessment of the land on which it is located; provided, however, that\nif either the trailer or mobile home or the land on which it is located\nis entitled to any exemption pursuant to article four of this chapter,\nother than the exemption authorized by section four hundred twenty-five\nof this chapter, such trailer or mobile home shall be separately\nassessed in the name of the owner thereof;\n  (h) Special franchises as defined in subdivision seventeen of this\nsection.\n  (i) When owned by other than a telephone company as such term is\ndefined in paragraph (d) hereof, all lines, wires, poles, supports and\ninclosures for electrical conductors upon, above and underground used in\nconnection with the transmission or switching of electromagnetic voice,\nvideo and data signals between different entities separated by air,\nstreet or other public domain, except that such property shall not\ninclude: (A) station connections; (B) fire and surveillance alarm system\nproperty; (C) such property used in the transmission of news wire\nservices; and (D) such property used in the transmission of news or\nentertainment radio, television or cable television signals for\nimmediate, delayed or ultimate exhibition to the public, whether or not\na fee is charged therefor.\n  (j) Spent fuel pools and dry cask storage systems in which nuclear\nfuel is stored and is pending further or final disposal from a nuclear\npower station following the permanent cessation of power operations of\nsuch station.\n  12-a. "Revaluation", "reassessment" or "update" means a systematic\nreview of the assessments of all locally assessed properties, valued as\nof the valuation date of the assessment roll containing those\nassessments, to attain compliance with the standard of assessment set\nforth in subdivision two of section three hundred five of this chapter.\n  13. "School authorities" mean the board of education, trustees or\ncorresponding officers, whether one or more, of a school district.\n  14. "Special ad valorem levy" means a charge imposed upon benefited\nreal property in the same manner and at the same time as taxes for\nmunicipal purposes to defray the cost, including operation and\nmaintenance, of a special district improvement or service, but not\nincluding any charge imposed by or on behalf of a city or village.\n  15. "Special assessment" means a charge imposed upon benefited real\nproperty in proportion to the benefit received by such property to\ndefray the cost, including operation and maintenance, of a special\ndistrict improvement or service or of a special improvement or service,\nbut does not include a special ad valorem levy.\n  16. "Special district" means a town or county improvement district,\ndistrict corporation or other district established for the purpose of\ncarrying on, performing or financing one or more improvements or\nservices intended to benefit the health, welfare, safety or convenience\nof the inhabitants of such district or to benefit the real property\nwithin such district, and in which real property is subject to special\nad valorem levies or special assessments for the purposes for which such\ndistrict was established.\n  17. "Special franchise" means the franchise, right, authority or\npermission to construct, maintain or operate in, under, above, upon or\nthrough any public street, highway, water or other public place mains,\npipes, tanks, conduits, wires or transformers, with their appurtenances,\nfor conducting water, steam, light, power, electricity, gas or other\nsubstance. For purposes of assessment and taxation a special franchise\nshall include the value of the tangible property situated in, under,\nabove, upon or through any public street, highway, water or other public\nplace in connection therewith. The term special franchise shall not\ninclude central office equipment or station equipment (except public\ntelephone terminal equipment) which first appears on assessment rolls\nprepared on the basis of taxable status dates occurring on or after\nOctober first, nineteen hundred ninety-five and which is owned by a\ntelephone company as defined in paragraph (d) of subdivision twelve of\nthis section, or owned by a telephone corporation as defined in\nsubdivision seventeen of section two of the public service law and\ncertified by the public service commission under section ninety-nine of\nsuch law, nor shall it include property of a municipal corporation,\npublic benefit corporation or special district, nor shall it include a\ncrossing less than two hundred fifty feet in length of a public street,\nhighway, water or other public place outside a city or village, unless\nsuch crossing be the continuation of an occupancy of another public\nstreet, highway, water or other public place.\n  18. "State board" or "board" means the state board of real property\ntax services.\n  19. "State equalization rate" means the percentage of full value at\nwhich taxable real property in a county, city, town or village is\nassessed as determined by the commissioner.\n  20. "Tax" or "taxation" means a charge imposed upon real property by\nor on behalf of a county, city, town, village or school district for\nmunicipal or school district purposes, but does not include a special ad\nvalorem levy or a special assessment. The term "tax" or "taxes" as used\nin articles five, nine, ten and eleven of this chapter shall for levy\nand collection purposes include special ad valorem levies.\n  21. "Tax lien" means an unpaid tax, special ad valorem levy, special\nassessment or other charge imposed upon real property by or on behalf of\na municipal corporation or special district which is an encumbrance on\nreal property, whether or not evidenced by a written instrument.\n