2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 18-A - Industrial Development › Title 1 - Agencies, Organization and Powers › 874 - Tax Exemptions.

§  874.  Tax exemptions. (1) It is hereby determined that the creation
of the agency and the carrying out of its corporate purposes is  in  all
respects for the benefit of the people of the state of New York and is a
public  purpose,  and  the  agency  shall  be  regarded  as performing a
governmental function in the exercise of the powers conferred upon it by
this title and shall be required to pay no taxes or assessments upon any
of the property acquired by it or under its jurisdiction or  control  or
supervision  or upon its activities. Provided, however, if the agency is
located within a transportation district referenced in paragraph (a)  of
subdivision  two  of  section two hundred fifty-three of the tax law, it
shall not be exempt from the additional tax on  each  mortgage  of  real
property situated within the state imposed by such paragraph.
(2)  Any  bonds  or notes issued pursuant to this title, together with
the income therefrom, as well as the property of the  agency,  shall  be
exempt from taxation, except for transfer and estate taxes.
(3) Payments in lieu of taxes received by the agency shall be remitted
to each affected tax jurisdiction within thirty days of receipt.
(4)  (a)  The  agency  shall establish a uniform tax exemption policy,
with input from affected tax jurisdictions, which shall be applicable to
the provision of financial assistance pursuant to section eight  hundred
fifty-nine-a  of  this  chapter  and  shall  provide  guidelines for the
claiming of real property, mortgage recording, and sales tax exemptions.
Such guidelines  shall  include,  but  not  be  limited  to:  period  of
exemption;   percentage  of  exemption;  types  of  projects  for  which
exemptions can be claimed; procedures for payments in lieu of taxes  and
instances  in  which  real  property appraisals are to be performed as a
part of an application for tax exemption; in addition, agencies shall in
adopting such policy consider such issues as:  the  extent  to  which  a
project  will  create  or  retain  permanent,  private  sector jobs; the
estimated value of any tax exemptions to be provided;  whether  affected
tax  jurisdictions  shall  be  reimbursed  by  the project occupant if a
project does not  fulfill  the  purposes  for  which  an  exemption  was
provided;  the  impact  of  a  proposed project on existing and proposed
businesses and economic development projects in the vicinity; the amount
of private sector investment generated or likely to be generated by  the
proposed  project;  the  demonstrated  public  support  for the proposed
project; the likelihood of  accomplishing  the  proposed  project  in  a
timely fashion; the effect of the proposed project upon the environment;
the  extent  to  which  the  project will utilize, to the fullest extent
practicable and economically  feasible,  resource  conservation,  energy
efficiency,  green  technologies,  and  alternative and renewable energy
measures; the extent to which the  proposed  project  will  require  the
provision   of  additional  services,  including,  but  not  limited  to
additional educational, transportation,  police,  emergency  medical  or
fire services; and the extent to which the proposed project will provide
additional sources of revenue for municipalities and school districts.
(b)  The  agency  shall  establish  a procedure for deviation from the
uniform tax exemption policy required pursuant to this subdivision.  The
agency  shall  set  forth in writing the reasons for deviation from such
policy, and shall further  notify  by  certified  mail,  return  receipt
requested  or  an  electronic  correspondence  with  a read-receipt, the
affected local taxing jurisdictions of the proposed deviation from  such
policy  and  the  reasons  therefor.  When  the  affected  local  taxing
jurisdiction is a school district, the agency shall notify by  certified
mail,  return  receipt  requested or an electronic correspondence with a
read-receipt, the district clerk and  district  superintendent  of  each
affected school district.
(5) Payments in lieu of taxes which are delinquent under the agreement
or  which an agency fails to remit pursuant to subdivision three of this
section, shall be subject to a late payment penalty of five  percent  of
the  amount due which shall be paid by the project occupant (where taxes
are  delinquent  because  of the occupant's failure to make the required
payment) or the  agency  (because  of  the  agency's  failure  to  remit
pursuant  to  subdivision  three  of  this  section) to the affected tax
jurisdiction at the time the payment in lieu of taxes is paid. For  each
month,  or part thereof, that the payment in lieu of taxes is delinquent
beyond the first month, interest shall accrue to  and  be  paid  to  the
affected  tax  jurisdiction  on the total amount due plus a late payment
penalty in the amount of one percent per  month  until  the  payment  is
made.
(6)  An  affected tax jurisdiction which has not received a payment in
lieu of taxes due to it under an agreement may commence legal action  in
any  court  of competent jurisdiction directly against any person, firm,
corporation, organization or agency which is obligated to make  payments
in  lieu of taxes under an agreement and has failed to do so. In such an
action, the affected tax jurisdiction shall be entitled to  recover  the
amount  due,  the  late  payment  penalty, interest, expenses, costs and
disbursements together with the reasonable attorneys' fees necessary  to
prosecute such action. Nothing herein shall be construed as providing an
affected  tax  jurisdiction  with  the  right to sue and recover from an
agency which has not received payments in lieu of taxes from  a  project
occupant.
(7) Any refinancing of a project shall be subject to the provisions of
section  eight  hundred  fifty-nine-a of this chapter, except where such
refinancing was previously approved pursuant to such section.
(8) Agents of an agency and project operators shall  annually  file  a
statement  with  the state department of taxation and finance, on a form
and in such a manner as is prescribed by the  commissioner  of  taxation
and finance, of the value of all sales and use tax exemptions claimed by
such  agents  or  agents of such agents or project operators, including,
but not limited to, consultants or  subcontractors  of  such  agents  or
project operators, under the authority granted pursuant to this section.
The  penalty  for failure to file such statement shall be the removal of
authority to act as an agent of an agency or a project operator.
(9) (a) Within thirty days of the date that the  agency  designates  a
project  operator  or  other  person  to  act as agent of the agency for
purposes of providing financial assistance consisting of any  sales  and
compensating  use  tax exemption to such person, the agency shall file a
statement with the department of taxation and finance relating  thereto,
on  a  form  and  in such manner as is prescribed by the commissioner of
taxation and finance, identifying  each  such  agent  so  named  by  the
agency,  setting  forth  the taxpayer identification number of each such
agent, giving a  brief  description  of  the  property  and/or  services
intended  to be exempted from such taxes as a result of such appointment
as agent, indicating the agency's rough estimate of  the  value  of  the
property  and/or  services  to  which such appointment as agent relates,
indicating the date when such designation as agent became effective  and
indicating the date upon which such designation as agent shall cease.
(b)  Within  thirty  days  of  the  date that the agency's designation
described in  paragraph  (a)  of  this  subdivision  has  been  amended,
terminated,  been  revoked,  or  become  invalid  or ineffective for any
reason, the agency  shall  file  a  statement  with  the  department  of
taxation  and  finance relating thereto, on a form and in such manner as
is prescribed by the commissioner of taxation and  finance,  identifying
each  such  agent so named by the agency in the original designation and

setting forth the taxpayer identification number and  other  identifying
information  of  each  such  agent,  the  date  as of which the original
designation was amended,  terminated,  revoked,  or  became  invalid  or
ineffective  and  the  reason  therefor,  together  with  a  copy of the
original designation.
(10)  Each  agency  shall  develop  policies  for  the  suspension  or
discontinuance  of  financial assistance, or for the modification of any
payment in lieu of tax agreement to  require  increased  payments  under
circumstances  as  specified  in the policy, which may include but shall
not be limited  to  events  of  material  violation  of  the  terms  and
conditions of a project agreement.
(11)  Each  agency  shall  develop policies for the return of all or a
part of the financial assistance provided for the project, including all
or part of the amount of any tax exemptions, as specified in the policy,
which may include but shall not be limited to material shortfalls in job
creation and retention projections or material violations of  the  terms
and  conditions  of project agreements. All such returned amounts of tax
exemptions shall  be  redistributed  to  the  appropriate  affected  tax
jurisdiction,   unless   agreed   to   otherwise  by  any  local  taxing
jurisdiction.
(12) Each agency shall at least annually assess the progress  of  each
project  for  which  bonds or notes remain outstanding or straight-lease
transactions have not terminated, or which continue to receive financial
assistance or are otherwise active, toward achieving the investment, job
retention or creation, or other objectives of the project  indicated  in
the  project  application.  Such  assessments shall be provided to board
members.