S1952-2013 - NY Senate Open Legislation - Decreases the allowable base percentage change in agriculture assessment value from ten percent to two percent of the preceding year

Decreases the allowable base percentage change in agriculture assessment value from ten percent to two percent of the preceding year.

Sponsor: RITCHIE / Co-sponsor(s): AVELLA, BONACIC, DEFRANCISCO, GALLIVAN, GIPSON, GRIFFO, MARCHIONE, MAZIARZ, RANZENHOFER, SEWARD, VALESKY, YOUNG
Law Section: Agriculture and Markets Law / Law: Amd S304-a, Ag & Mkts L

S1952-2013 Actions

Feb 28, 2013: ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
Feb 27, 2013: 2ND REPORT CAL.
Feb 12, 2013: 1ST REPORT CAL.75
Jan 9, 2013: REFERRED TO AGRICULTURE

S1952-2013 Meetings

Agriculture: Feb 12, 2013

S1952-2013 Calendars

S1952-2013 Votes

VOTE: COMMITTEE VOTE: - Agriculture - Feb 12, 2013

Ayes (11): Ritchie, Gallivan, O'Mara, Ranzenhofer, Seward, Valesky, Young, Gipson, Montgomery, Serrano, Tkaczyk

S1952-2013 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S1952

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in
relation to agricultural assessment values

PURPOSE:  This bill amends the agriculture and markets law in relation
to agricultural assessments by reducing the cap on the amount of change
that may occur in the value of the base agricultural assessment value
from ten percent to two percent of the value of the preceding year.

SUMMARY:

Section one amends the agriculture and markets law, section 304-a (g) by
reducing the cap in the amount of change in the base agricultural
assessment value for any given year from ten percent to two percent of
the base agricultural assessment value of the preceding year.

Section two provides the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:  Farmers have been seeing alarming increases in their
property taxes for farmland because of increases in their farmland
assessments or "agricultural assessments". New York established its
agricultural assessment program to keep rising property assessments,
particularly in high pressure development areas, from forcing farmers
out of business and eroding acres of open, working green space from the
State's landscape.

Agricultural assessments have been increasing because the 'base rate"
per farm acre utilized in the assessment formula - or the starting point
for assessing farm land - has been rising. Even under a 2% property tax
cap, farmland property taxes can still see significant increases even
when the local municipal tax rate stays low. While the tax rate may not
increase, the higher assessed values will be the factor that drives
farmland property taxes higher until they reach unsustainable levels.

Currently, there is a 20% cap in place which is mitigating extreme and
forceful increases in base rate values, but this is only a minor moder-
ation. Agricultural assessments have and are projected to continue to
increase above the 10% cap for the foreseeable future and will force
many farm families to reconsider their ability to operate in New York
State.

As a land-intensive business, New York has one of the highest property
tax burdens in the nation which puts the State at a distinct disadvan-
tage with other states. The average property tax per farm acre of $26.21
is far higher than the national average of $6.75 per farm acre and even
higher than California which is $25.18 per farm acre. A 2% tax cap on
annual agricultural assessment increases will keep New York's family
farms on their land and maintain the nutritious, high quality local food
network that the State's consumers expect.

HISTORY:  S6609 of 2012 - passed Senate

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to State.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  Immediately.

S1952-2013 Text

 S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 
                                          1952
 2013-2014 Regular Sessions
 I N  SENATE
 (PREFILED)
 January 9, 2013
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  RITCHIE,  DeFRANCISCO, GALLIVAN, GRIFFO, MAZIARZ,
 RANZENHOFER, SEWARD, VALESKY, YOUNG -- read twice and ordered printed,
 and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Agriculture
 

AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to agricul
 tural assessment values
 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

Section  1. Paragraph g of subdivision 4 of section 304-a of the agri
 culture and markets law, as added by chapter 68 of the laws of 2007,  is
 amended to read as follows:

 g.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contra
 ry, in no event shall the change in  the  base  agricultural  assessment
 value  for  any given year exceed [ten] TWO percent of the base agricul
 tural assessment value of the preceding year.
 

S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
 [ ] is old law to be omitted.
 LBD04924-01-3

S1952-2013: Decreases the allowable base percentage change in agriculture assessment value from ten percent to two percent of the preceding year