[Adopted 12-28-1973 by L.L. No. 1-1973]
The within article is authorized by § 467 of the Real Property Tax Law and any related amendments thereto wherein a town, after a public hearing, may enact a local law granting a fifty-percent tax exemption on real property owned by persons 65 years of age or over meeting the statutory qualifications.
A. 
Each applicant for a partial tax exemption for real property of aged persons must file such application each year.
B. 
Each applicant must fill out the application, which can be obtained from the Assessor of the Town of Catskill, Greene County, New York.
C. 
In the event that any of the questions on said application are not completed, the Assessor may deny said application.
D. 
The following is an additional list of information to be furnished the Town Assessor of the Town of Catskill by the applicant:
(1) 
A list of income from all sources, including rents, dividends, interest, retirement benefits, income from self-employment, unemployment benefits and social security. The applicant shall enclose a statement of social security benefits received; said statement can be obtained from the Social Security Administration.
(2) 
A copy of statements of interest earned from savings banks, stocks and bonds.
E. 
The real property must be the legal residence of and must be occupied by all the owners of the property.
F. 
The income of the owner or the combined income of the owners of real property who are 65 years of age or older must not exceed $34,000, and the provisions of Real Property Tax Law § 467, Subdivision 1, Paragraph (b)(1) through (b)(3), known as the “sliding scale option,” are hereby adopted regarding the senior citizen exemptions.
[Amended 4-1-1975; 12-4-1990; 12-6-1994; 3-5-1996; 1-22-1997; 2-3-1998; 2-1-2000; 1-19-2005 by L.L. No. 1-2005; 2-15-2006 by L.L. No. 1-2006; 2-5-2008 by L.L. No. 1-2008; 1-21-2009 by L.L. No. 1-2009; 12-15-2010 by L.L. No. 1-2011; 12-19-2012 by L.L. No. 1-2013; 1-6-2015 by L.L. No. 1-2015; 1-18-2017 by L.L. No. 1-2017; 1-17-2018 by L.L. No. 1-2018; 2-5-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2019; 2-4-2020 by L.L. No. 1-2020; 11-16-2022 by L.L. No. 4-2022]
G. 
An owner's income is to be reported on the basis of the latest preceding income tax year prior to the date of application; such income tax year is generally equivalent to the preceding calendar year.
H. 
Renewal applications for such exemptions may be filed with the assessor after the appropriate taxable status date but not later than the last date on which a petition with respect to complaints of assessment may be filed, where failure to file a timely application resulted from: a) a death of the applicant's spouse, child, parent, brother or sister; or b) an illness of the applicant or of the applicant's spouse, child, parent, brother or sister, which actually prevents the applicant from filing on a timely basis, as certified by a licensed physician. The Assessor shall approve or deny such application as if it had been filed on or before the taxable status date.
[Added 4-16-2014 by L.L. No. 2-2014]
This article shall be deemed an exercise of the powers of the Town of Catskill to provide for a partial tax exemption for real property of aged persons. This article is not intended and shall not be deemed to impair the powers of any other public corporation.