New York S 8653: Creates a vacant property classification

Bill Text

Bill Search and Legislative Information | New York State Assembly 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

 Skip to main content 

 New York State Assembly

 Speaker Carl E. Heastie

 --> 
 --> 

 --> 

• 
 Assembly Members 

• 
 Legislative Info 

• 
 Public Hearings 

• 
 Speaker's Press 

• 
 Assembly Reports 

• 
 Committees & More 

• Bill Search Home
• Laws
• Legislative Calendar
• Public Hearing Schedule
• Assembly Calendars
• Assembly Committee Agenda 

 Javascript must be enabled to properly view this page. 

 Bill No.: 

• Summary 
• Actions 
• Committee&nbspVotes 
• Floor&nbspVotes 
• Memo 
• Text 
• LFIN 
• Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript 
S08653 Summary:

BILL NOS08653 

&nbsp

SAME ASNo Same As

&nbsp

SPONSORCLEARE

&nbsp

COSPNSR

&nbsp

MLTSPNSR

&nbsp

Amd §1802, add §1805-c, RPT L

&nbsp

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.

Go to top S08653 Actions:

BILL NOS08653 

&nbsp

01/07/2026REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Go to topS08653 Committee&nbspVotes:

Go to topS08653 Floor&nbspVotes:

There are no Assembly votes for this bill in this legislative session.

Go to topS08653 Text:

 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.