NY Real Prop Tax L § 102 (2021)
2021 New York Laws RPT - Real Property Tax Article 1 - Short Title; Definitions 102 - Definitions.

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