NY Real Prop Tax L § 485 (2021)
2021 New York Laws RPT - Real Property Tax Article 4 - Exemptions Title 2 - Private Property 485 - Nuclear Powered Electric Generating Facilities.

§  485.  Nuclear  powered  electric  generating facilities. 1. Nuclear powered electric generating facilities shall be  exempt  from  taxation, special ad valorem levies and special assessments to the extent provided in  section  four  hundred ninety of this article upon the adoption of a local law granting such exemption by the legislative body of the county, city, town or village  in  which  such  a  facility  is  located  or  by resolution  following  a  public  hearing  of  the governing body of the school district in  which  such  facility  or  facilities  are  located, provided  the  taxing  district  may  only exempt the facility from real property taxes imposed by the taxing district  granting  the  exemption. The local law or resolution shall state the date on which such exemption shall commence. A copy of such local law or resolution shall be filed no later than thirty days after the adoption thereof with the clerk of each municipal  corporation  in  which  the  facility is located and with the commissioner. For purposes of this  section,  nuclear  powered  electric generating  facility  shall  mean  a facility that generates or formerly generated  electricity  using  nuclear  power  for  sale,  directly   or indirectly, to the public, including the land upon which the facility is located,  any  equipment  used in such generation, and equipment leading from the facility to the interconnection with the electric  transmission system, but shall not include any equipment in the electric transmission system.   2. (a) If a taxing district and an owner of a nuclear powered electric generating facility have not signed an agreement for payments in lieu of taxes  by  the  date  specified in the resolution or local law, or if an owner and a taxing district agree to cancel such  an  agreement,  or  if such  an  agreement  does  not  apply to an assessment roll upon which a facility is wholly exempt from taxation pursuant to  this  section,  the owner  of  such  facility  shall  be obliged to make payments in lieu of taxes in the base amount, or in the base amount as adjusted pursuant  to the provisions of paragraph (c) of this subdivision.  (b)  The base amount shall be the taxes levied against the facility on the last assessment roll on which the facility was assessed  as  taxable real  property,  or  in  the  case of a special district, the special ad valorem levies or special assessments levied against or charged  to  the facility  on  that  assessment  roll. However, if no taxes or special ad valorem levies were or will be levied against the  facility  within  one year  of  the  effective date of the local law or resolution authorizing the exemption, the base amount shall be the taxes or special ad  valorem levies  that  would  have  been  levied  against  the  facility  on  the assessment roll based on the first taxable status date occurring  on  or before  the effective date of the local law or resolution, assuming that the facility had been taxable on that  assessment  roll,  and  that  the applicable  tax  rate  had  been determined accordingly. For purposes of this section, the assessment roll which is used to  determine  the  base amount  pursuant  to  this  paragraph  shall be referred to as the "base assessment roll."  (c) The base amount for payments on the current assessment roll  shall be adjusted as follows:  (i) by the percentage change between the assessment of the facility on the  current  roll  and  on  the  base assessment roll, adjusted for any change in level of assessment as defined in section  twelve  hundred  of this chapter;  (ii)  in the case of a municipal corporation, by the percentage change between the total amount  of  taxes  levied  against  all  taxable  real property  on  the  current  roll and on the base assessment roll by that municipal corporation;  (iii) in the case of a special  district,  by  the  percentage  change between  the  total  amount  of  special  ad  valorem levies and special assessments imposed against all taxable real  property  on  the  current roll and on the base assessment roll by that special district; and  (iv)  if  the  municipal  corporation  also contains a nuclear powered electric generating facility which had been wholly exempt from  taxation on  the  base assessment roll pursuant to section one thousand twelve of the public authorities law but which is  no  longer  eligible  for  that exemption  due  to  a  change  in  ownership,  the  base amount shall be adjusted to reflect the fact that the formerly exempt  facility  is  now either  subject  to taxation or liable to make payments in lieu of taxes pursuant to this section, as the case may be.  (d) In the event the facility was not taxable on  a  prior  assessment roll, and no exemption is then in effect, the assessor of each assessing unit   in  which  the  facility  is  located  is  hereby  authorized  to immediately subject the facility to taxation in the manner prescribed by section five hundred twenty of this chapter.  (e) For assessment rolls with taxable status dates on or after January first, two thousand thirty-one, or such earlier year as may be specified in the local law or resolution authorizing the exemption, the  exemption provided  by  this  section  shall no longer apply and any agreement for payments in lieu of taxes for any facility theretofore  exempt  pursuant to  this  section  shall no longer be in effect. Upon the request of the assessor of an assessing unit  containing  a  nuclear  powered  electric generating   facility,   the  commissioner  shall  provide  an  advisory appraisal of such facility for use on the municipal assessment roll with a  taxable  status  date  on  or  after  January  first,  two   thousand thirty-one.  (f)  Nothing  herein shall be deemed to prevent the owner of a nuclear powered electric generating facility from seeking judicial review of  an assessment  pursuant to article seven of this chapter. Any determination of the proper assessment of a facility as a result of such a  proceeding shall  be reflected in any payment in lieu of taxes including the refund of such payments, as provided in the judgment and order of the court.   3. The owner of a nuclear powered electric generating  facility  shall enter  into  an  agreement  with  each  taxing district which grants the facility the exemption providing for payments in lieu  of  taxes  to  be made  for  no longer than the period during which the facility is exempt pursuant to this section. Any such agreement  must  be  filed  with  the commissioner  and  the  clerk of each municipal corporation in which the facility is located within thirty days of being executed. Nothing herein shall be deemed to invalidate any existing  agreement  for  payments  in lieu of taxes.   4.  Any  agreement  for  payments  in  lieu  of taxes pursuant to this section may be negotiated at any time. Before an agreement for  payments in  lieu of taxes is executed by a taxing district, such taxing district must hold a public hearing on the proposed agreement.   5. Any payments in lieu of taxes to be made to a taxing district under this section shall be credited to the  amount  to  be  raised  in  taxes before determining the tax rates for each taxing district.   6.  When  a  school district receives payments in lieu of taxes from a nuclear powered  electric  generating  facility,  any  actual  valuation computed for such school district pursuant to paragraph c of subdivision one of section thirty-six hundred two of the education law shall include the  actual  valuation  equivalent  of  those payments. The commissioner shall determine such actual valuation equivalent by dividing the payment made, as reported to such commissioner by the commissioner of education, by the school tax rate that was applied to real property on that  year's  assessment  roll  or,  if  applicable,  the  special  apportionment rate determined pursuant to  section  twelve  hundred  twenty-seven  of  this chapter  and  dividing  such result by the final state equalization rate for  that roll. The actual valuation equivalent shall be reported to the state comptroller and the commissioner of education, and shall  be  used by  the  commissioner  of  education  in  the determination of any state average that uses real  property  taxes  levied  against  and/or  actual valuation  based  upon  the  corresponding  assessment roll. Each school district receiving  payments  in  lieu  of  taxes  for  nuclear  powered electric  generating  facilities shall annually report those payments to the commissioner of education, with a copy to  the  commissioner,  as  a condition  to  receiving  any aid pursuant to section thirty-six hundred two of the education law.   7. Payments in lieu of taxes made pursuant to  this  section  are  not taxes  and  shall not be apportioned to any part of a taxing district in the apportionment of taxes.   8. Facilities exempt from taxation pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall not be deemed taxable real property for  purposes  of  any equalization  rate,  product,  study  or survey conducted or established pursuant to article twelve of this chapter or  any  other  provision  of law.   9.  Any  payments in lieu of taxes made pursuant to this section shall be paid prior to the expiration of the warrant  for  collection  of  the taxes  in  lieu  of  which  such  payments  are  to  be  made and of the interest-free period prescribed by  law,  and  the  agreement  shall  so provide.  If  payments  are  not  made within such period, they shall be subject to the same interest and  penalties  as  unpaid  taxes.  If  the payments remain unpaid, the official to whom the payments are to be made shall  present a statement to that effect to the appropriate tax levying body on or before a date specified by such body for that  purpose.  Such body  shall  levy  against  the  facility  the  amount contained in such statement, together with all applicable interest and penalties,  at  the same  time  and in the same manner as taxes. The amounts so levied shall be collected and enforced in the same manner and at the same time as may be provided  by  law  for  the  collection  and  enforcement  of  taxes, notwithstanding  the  fact  that the facility is otherwise wholly exempt from taxation.   10.  When  restrictions  have  been  imposed  upon   changing   future assessments  of  a facility pursuant to the provisions of either section seven hundred twenty-seven of this chapter or a formal agreement between the parties, and the facility becomes exempt pursuant to  this  section, such  restrictions  shall apply to future assessments of the facility to the same extent as if it had not become exempt pursuant to this section.   11. The provisions of this  section  shall  not  be  applicable  in  a special assessing unit.