S 8653: Creates a vacant property classification for vacant and blighted properties; allows for cities with a population of one million or more to levy an additional real property tax on vacant and blighted properties with funds raised from such taxes being used to address homelessness.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8653  IN SENATE January 7, 2026 ___________ Introduced by Sen. CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government AN ACT to amend the real property tax law, in relation to creating a vacant property classification The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph class four of subdivision 1 of section 1802 of 2 the real property tax law, as separately amended by chapters 123 and 529 3 of the laws of 1990, is amended and a new paragraph class five is added 4 to read as follows: 5 Class four: all other real property which is not designated as class 6 one, class two, [or] class three[.], or class five; 7 Class five: (a) all real property which has remained vacant for a 8 period of ninety days or longer during a tax year and is not under 9 construction or rehabilitation; and (b) all vacant lots and blighted 10 properties in areas zoned for commercial and manufacturing or industrial 11 purposes. The following shall not be considered class five: (a) lots 12 designated as community gardens; (b) real property with active 13 construction; (c) real property which has an active building permit 14 application pending; (d) real property owned by a not-for-profit corpo- 15 ration or a non-profit organization; and (e) real property which has a 16 substantially completed application for the New York city department of 17 city planning. For the purposes of this class, the term "vacant lots" 18 shall mean all parcels of land upon which no permanent improvements have 19 been constructed or placed. For the purposes of this class, the term 20 "blighted properties" shall mean properties for which the assessed value 21 of improvements is fifteen percent or less of the land value. 22 § 2. Section 1802 of the real property tax law is amended by adding a 23 new subdivision 4 to read as follows: 24 4. Any real property classified as class five shall be redesignated 25 upon such property no longer qualifying as class five. 26 § 3. The real property tax law is amended by adding a new section 27 1805-c to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD14105-01-5 
 S. 8653 2 1 § 1805-c. Assessment of class five real property in a city having a 2 population of one million or more. 1. Notwithstanding any provision of 3 any general, special or local law to the contrary, each city having a 4 population of one million or more is hereby authorized and empowered to, 5 for the two thousand twenty-seven real property tax year, impose an 6 additional three and a half percent tax against the market value of 7 class five real property. For all subsequent real property tax years, 8 each city having a population of one million or more is hereby author- 9 ized and empowered to set such additional tax rate. 10 2. Each city having a population of one million or more shall estab- 11 lish a homelessness improvement fund into which all additional real 12 property taxes collected under this section shall be deposited. Each 13 homelessness improvement fund shall only be used to address homelessness 14 within such city. 15 3. Any city having a population of one million or more is hereby 16 authorized and empowered to adopt and amend local laws in accordance 17 with this section. 18 § 4. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 19 have become a law.