Pursuant to Real Property Tax Law § 485-b, real property
constructed, altered, installed or improved subsequent to the first
day of July 1976 for the purpose of commercial, business or industrial
activity shall be exempt from general town and highway taxation, to
the extent hereinafter provided.
Such real property shall be exempt for a period of one year to the extent of 50% of the increase in assessed value thereof attributable to such construction, alteration, installation or improvement, the cost of which must exceed $10,000 and for an additional period of nine years; provided, however, that the extent of such exemption shall be decreased by 5% each year during such additional period of nine years and such exemption shall be computed with respect to the "exemption base." The exemption base shall be the increase in assessed value as determined in the initial year of such ten-year period, following the filing of an original application, except as provided in Subsection B(2).
In any year in which a change in the level of assessment of 15% or
more is certified for a final assessment roll pursuant to the rules
of the state board, the exemption base shall be multiplied by a fraction,
the numerator of which shall be the total assessed value of the parcel
on such final assessment roll (after accounting for any physical or
quantity changes to the parcel since the immediately preceding assessment
roll), and the denominator of which shall be the total assessed value
of the parcel on the immediately preceding final assessment roll.
The result shall be the new exemption base. The exemption shall thereupon
be recomputed to take into account the new exemption base, notwithstanding
the fact that the assessor receives the certification of the change
in level of assessment after the completion, verification and filing
of the final assessment roll, in the event the assessor does not have
custody of the roll when such certification is received, the assessor
shall certify the recomputed exemption to the local officers having
custody and control of the roll, and such local officers are hereby
directed and authorized to enter the recomputed exemption certified
by the assessor on the roll. The assessor shall give written notice
of such recomputed exemption to the property owner, who may, if he
or she believes that the exemption was recomputed incorrectly, apply
for a correction in the manner provided by Title Three of Alticle
5 of the New York State Real Property Tax Law for the correction of
clerical errors.
The cost of such construction, alteration, installation or improvement
exceeds the sum of $10,000 or such greater amount as may be specified
by local law or resolution;
Such construction, alteration, installation or improvement is
completed as may be evidenced by a certificate of occupancy or other
appropriate documentation as provided by the owner; and
For purposes of this section, the terms "construction," "aeration,"
"installation" and "improvement" shall not include ordinary maintenance
and repairs.
No such exemption shall be granted concurrent with or subsequent
to any other real property tax exemption granted to the same improvements
to real property, except, where during the period of such previous
exemption, payments in lieu of taxes or other payments were made to
the local government in an amount that would have been equal to or
greater than the amount of real property taxes that would have been
paid on such improvements had such property been granted an exemption
pursuant to this section. In such case, an exemption shall be granted
for a number of years equal to the ten-year exemption granted pursuant
to this section less the number of years the property would have been
previously exempt from real property taxes.
Such exemption shall be granted only upon application by the owner
of such real property on a form prescribed by the state board. Such
application shall be filed with the Assessor of the city, town, village,
or county having the power to assess property for taxation on or before
the appropriate taxable status date of such city, town, village or
county and within one year from the date of completion of such construction,
alteration, installation or improvement
If the assessor is satisfied that the applicant is entitled to an exemption pursuant to this section, he or she shall approve the application and such real property shall thereafter be exempt from taxation as set forth in § 182-31 as herein provided commencing with the assessment roll prepared after the taxable status date referred to in Subsection A of this section. The assessed value of any exemption granted pursuant to this section shall be entered by the assessor on the assessment roll with the taxable property, with the amount of the exemption shown in a separate column.
The provisions of this section shall apply to real property used
primarily for the buying, selling, storing or developing goods or
services, the manufacture or assembly of goods or the processing of
raw materials. This section shall not apply to property used primarily
for the furnishing of dwelling space or accommodations to either residents
or transients other than hotels or motels.
In the event that real property granted an exemption pursuant to
this section ceases to be used primarily for eligible purpose, the
exemption granted pursuant to this section shall cease.
In the event that any real property taxes due on real property granted
an exemption pursuant to this section become past due, and continue
unpaid for a period of more than 30 days past the original date due,
the exemption granted pursuant to this section shall cease.