STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5850 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE March 3, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance AN ACT to amend the real property tax law and the tax law, in relation to the definition of income in relation to the enhanced STAR exemption The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (b) of subdivision 4 of 2 section 425 of the real property tax law, as amended by section 1 of 3 part B of chapter 59 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows: 4 (ii) The term "income" as used herein shall mean the "adjusted gross 5 income" for federal income tax purposes as reported on the applicant's 6 federal or state income tax return for the applicable income tax year, 7 subject to any subsequent amendments or revisions, reduced by distrib- 8 utions, to the extent included in federal adjusted gross income, 9 received from an individual retirement account and an individual retire- 10 ment annuity, and distribution from a thrift savings plan established 11 prior to January first, nineteen hundred eighty-four; provided that if 12 no such return was filed for the applicable income tax year, "income" 13 shall mean the adjusted gross income that would have been so reported if 14 such a return had been filed. Provided further, that effective with 15 exemption applications for final assessment rolls to be completed in two 16 thousand nineteen, where an income-eligibility determination is wholly 17 or partly based upon the income of one or more individuals who did not 18 file a return for the applicable income tax year, then in order for the 19 application to be considered complete, each such individual must file a 20 statement with the department showing the source or sources of [his or 21 her] the individual's income for that income tax year, and the amount or 22 amounts thereof, that would have been reported on such a return if one 23 had been filed. Such statement shall be filed at such time, and in such 24 form and manner, as may be prescribed by the department, and shall be 25 subject to the secrecy provisions of the tax law to the same extent that EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00253-01-5
S. 5850 2 1 a personal income tax return would be. The department shall make such 2 forms and instructions available for the filing of such statements. The 3 local assessor shall upon the request of a taxpayer assist such taxpayer 4 in the filing of the statement with the department. 5 § 2. Subparagraph (B) of paragraph 1 of subsection (eee) of section 6 606 of the tax law, as amended by section 10 of part B of chapter 59 of 7 the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows: 8 (B) "Affiliated income" shall mean for purposes of the basic STAR 9 credit, the combined income of all of the owners of the parcel who 10 resided primarily thereon as of December thirty-first of the taxable 11 year, and of any owners' spouses residing primarily thereon as of such 12 date, and for purposes of the enhanced STAR credit, the combined income 13 of all of the owners of the parcel as of December thirty-first of the 14 taxable year, and of any owners' spouses residing primarily thereon as 15 of such date; provided that for both purposes the income to be so 16 combined shall be the "adjusted gross income" for the taxable year as 17 reported for federal income tax purposes, or that would be reported as 18 adjusted gross income if a federal income tax return were required to be 19 filed, reduced by distributions, to the extent included in federal 20 adjusted gross income, received from an individual retirement account 21 and an individual retirement annuity, and distribution from a thrift 22 savings plan established prior to January first, nineteen hundred eight- 23 y-four. For taxable years beginning on and after January first, two 24 thousand nineteen, where an income-eligibility determination is wholly 25 or partly based upon the income of one or more individuals who did not 26 file a return pursuant to section six hundred fifty-one of this article 27 for the applicable income tax year, then in order to be eligible for the 28 credit authorized by this subsection, each such individual must file a 29 statement with the department showing the source or sources of [his or 30 her] the individiual's income for that income tax year, and the amount 31 or amounts thereof, that would have been reported on such a return if 32 one had been filed. Such statement shall be filed at such time, and in 33 such form and manner, as may be prescribed by the department, and shall 34 be subject to the provisions of section six hundred ninety-seven of this 35 article to the same extent that a return would be. The department shall 36 make such forms and instructions available for the filing of such state- 37 ments. The local assessor shall upon the request of a taxpayer assist 38 such taxpayer in the filing of the statement with the department. 39 Provided further, that if the qualified taxpayer was an owner of the 40 property during the taxable year but did not own it on December thirty- 41 first of the taxable year, then the determination as to whether the 42 income of an individual should be included in "affiliated income" shall 43 be based upon the ownership and/or residency status of that individual 44 as of the first day of the month during which the qualified taxpayer 45 ceased to be an owner of the property, rather than as of December thir- 46 ty-first of the taxable year. 47 § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 48 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.