NY Real Prop Tax L § 545 (2021)
2021 New York Laws RPT - Real Property Tax Article 5 - Assessment Procedure Title 2 - Assessment and Taxation of Certain State Lands 545 - State Aid; State-Owned Lands.

§  545.  State  aid;  state-owned  lands.  1. Whenever the state or an agency of the state acquires real property which  becomes  exempt  as  a result of such acquisition and which constitutes two per cent or more of the  total taxable assessed valuation of the latest preceding assessment roll or there is a reduction in assessments on taxable state lands,  the commissioner  shall  establish  a  "transition assessment" which will in effect prevent any loss of taxable assessed valuation on the  assessment roll  for the first year affected by such occurrence or occurrences. For each succeeding year, the  commissioner  shall  establish  a  transition assessment  which  will  in  effect  limit  to two per cent of the total taxable assessed valuation on the latest preceding assessment  roll  the loss  in  taxable  assessed  valuation  on such roll as a result of such occurrence or occurrences, and (i) further acquisitions by the state  or an  agency  of  the  state, or (ii) further reductions in assessments on taxable state lands, or (iii) both (i) and (ii).   2.  In  the  first  year  of  such  occurrence  or  occurrences,   the commissioner shall establish a transition assessment.   3.  In  establishing  transition assessments pursuant to this section, the commissioner shall: a. In determining whether real property acquired by the state or an agency of the state constitutes two per cent or  more of  the  total  taxable  assessed  valuation  of  the  latest  preceding assessment roll, the assessed valuation of the property  acquired  shall be  determined  from  the  second  assessment  roll  preceding the first assessment roll affected by the acquisition;   b. In making computations and determinations pursuant to this section, take into account increases or decreases in level of assessment  on  the assessment rolls involved;   c. In establishing a transition assessment for a town assessment roll, indicate  the amount of the transition assessment which is applicable to that portion of the town located outside of any  village  and  also  the amount  of  the transition assessment upon which state aid shall be paid for county purposes;   d. Round all transition assessments to the nearest ten dollars.   4. The transition assessments as  established  and  certified  by  the commissioner shall be entered by the assessor or other appropriate local official  on  the assessment roll and shall be, and shall be treated for all purposes as, taxable assessed valuation on such roll.   5. The  commissioner  shall  certify  to  the  state  comptroller  all transition  assessments  which  it establishes and the state comptroller shall pay as state aid the amounts, equivalent to the taxes,  levied  on such  assessments,  in  the  manner  prescribed  by section five hundred forty-four of this chapter out of moneys appropriated by the legislature for the payment of taxes on state-owned lands.   6. In making transition assessments pursuant to this section:  (a) for property acquired by a state public authority or by the  state for   the   purposes  of  a  state  public  authority,  such  transition assessments shall be reduced to take into account any payments  in  lieu of  taxes made pursuant to law by such state public authority to the tax district, so that the  total  of  state  aid  paid  on  each  transition assessment and the payment in lieu of taxes received by the tax district would  be  in  effect  equal to the state aid payable on such transition assessment computed without regard to this subdivision; and  (b) for state lands in which interests have been granted by the  state to  others which interests and improvements made to lands in which those interests have been granted are taxable pursuant to subdivision  two  of section  five  hundred  sixty-four  of  this  article,  such  transition assessments shall be reduced by the  taxable  assessed  value  of  those interests and improvements.  (c)   The  assessor  in  each  assessing  unit  for  which  transition assessments are made pursuant to this section shall annually  report  to the  commissioner  the  total  taxable  assessed  value of interests and improvements subject to taxation pursuant to subdivision two of  section five  hundred sixty-four of this article. This report shall be filed not later than ten days  after  the  completion  and  filing  of  the  final assessment roll each year.   7.  Definitions. As used in this section: a. "Agency of the state", in the case of public authorities, includes state  public  authorities  but excludes all other public authorities.   b.  "Assessment roll", in the case of a city or town, means the entire city or town assessment roll; in the case of a village, means the entire village assessment roll, except in the  case  of  a  village  which  has enacted a local law as provided in subdivision three of section fourteen hundred  two  of this chapter, may also mean that part of the assessment roll of the town or county upon which village taxes were or  are  to  be levied;  in  the  case  of  a  county,  means  the  entire  city or town assessment roll affected by the occurrence or occurrences  described  in subdivision  one  of  this  section; in the case of a school district or special district, means that portion of the city or town assessment roll used for the levy of school or special district taxes which is  affected by the occurrence.   c.  "First year" means a year following a year for which no transition assessment was established.   d. "Lands" or "state lands" as used in  this  section,  shall  include lands  acquired  by  the  state or an agency of the state for highway or parkway purposes.   e.  "Latest  preceding  assessment  roll"  means  the  last  preceding assessment roll finally completed, verified and filed prior to the final completion of the assessment roll for which the transition assessment is being  established,  but  shall  not  mean  or  include  a  supplemental assessment roll completed, verified and filed  as  provided  in  section thirteen hundred thirty-five of this chapter.   f.  "Reduction  in assessments on state lands" means a loss in taxable assessed valuation on an assessment roll as a result of the approval  by the  commissioner  of  assessed valuations on state lands which in total amount to less than the total taxable assessed valuations on such  lands in the preceding year, whether or not such lands were owned by the state in the preceding year.   g.  "State  public  authority"  means  a public benefit corporation as defined in section sixty-six  of  the  general  construction  law  whose membership  is  required  by  law to consist entirely of members who are appointed by the governor or other state officer or who serve as members as ex officio state officers.   h. "Tax district" means a county, city, town, village, school district or special district.