Relates to base proportions in assessing units in Nassau and Suffolk counties for 2025--2026.
Summary
A08568 amends New York’s real property tax law to place temporary limits on how much a class’s “current base proportion” may increase in certain assessing units in Nassau and Suffolk counties when taxes are levied using the 2025 assessment roll. In a special assessing unit that is not a city, the bill caps any class’s increase at 1 percent over the prior year’s adjusted base proportion or adjusted proportion, and requires the local legislative body to rebalance the remaining classes so the proportions still total 1. In Suffolk County approved assessing units, the bill extends an existing 1 percent cap to the 2025-2026 assessment-roll cycle, while preserving the existing 2 percent cap for earlier listed cycles where applicable.
The bill also creates a new Nassau County provision allowing approved assessing units to adopt, by local law, ordinance, or resolution, a 1 percent cap on class proportion increases for taxes based on the 2025 assessment roll. If adopted locally, Nassau units must likewise adjust the remaining class proportions so the total equals 1. The act takes effect immediately, but its operative effect is tied to taxes levied on the 2025 assessment roll and, in Nassau, to local adoption.
Its practical impact is to constrain how quickly property tax burdens can shift among property classes in the affected Long Island jurisdictions, especially where assessment changes would otherwise cause a larger reallocation. The bill amends sections 1803-a and 1903 of the Real Property Tax Law, affecting the calculation of base proportions used in local property tax apportionment for certain classes of property in Nassau and Suffolk counties.
The general sentiment reflected in the voting history is strongly favorable. The bill advanced unanimously or nearly unanimously through committee and floor votes, including unanimous committee approval in the Real Property Taxation and Rules committees and overwhelming final passage in both chambers. That pattern suggests broad bipartisan support for providing local tax stability and limiting abrupt changes in class shares.
There is little visible opposition in the available record, but the structure of the bill indicates the main policy tension: it protects taxpayers and local budgeting predictability by limiting annual increases in class proportions, while also requiring local governments to make offsetting adjustments among classes. The Nassau provision’s requirement for a local law, ordinance, or resolution also suggests some deference to local control, which may have helped reduce contention.
Impact
The bill amends the Real Property Tax Law to modify how current base proportions are calculated for certain property classes in Nassau and Suffolk counties, limiting annual increases to 1 percent in specified assessing units and tax years. It affects local property tax apportionment formulas, requires rebalancing among classes to keep proportions summing to one, and applies immediately to 2025 assessment-roll-based tax levies, with Nassau adoption contingent on local action.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have enjoyed broad support and little opposition. It passed committee stages with overwhelming or unanimous votes and received near-unanimous final passage in both the Assembly and Senate, indicating a generally favorable view of the measure as a targeted property-tax stabilization bill for Long Island jurisdictions.
Contention
The main substantive issue is how much flexibility local assessing units should have in shifting tax burdens among property classes. Supporters appear to favor the bill’s cap on annual increases to prevent sharp tax swings, while any potential critics would likely be concerned about limiting local discretion and forcing offsetting changes to other classes. The Nassau provision’s requirement for local adoption suggests the bill was designed to address local autonomy concerns and reduce resistance.
Limits the amount of property tax shift between homestead/non-homestead and class share apportionment for local governments within and including Nassau and Suffolk County.
Limits the amount of property tax shift between homestead/non-homestead and class share apportionment for local governments within and including Nassau and Suffolk County.
Limits liability for certain provisions of the labor law for construction accidents in Nassau and Suffolk counties when such accident is elevation-related.
Relates to prevailing wage for those involved in hauling of concrete and asphalt in the counties of Nassau, Putnam, Suffolk, and Westchester, and in the city of New York.
Relates to prevailing wage for those involved in hauling of concrete and asphalt in the counties of Nassau, Putnam, Suffolk, and Westchester, and in the city of New York.