Senate Bill S7679

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

    S. 7679                                                  A. 9909

                      S E N A T E - A S S E M B L Y

                              May 28, 2014
                               ___________

IN SENATE -- Introduced by Sen. LAVALLE -- read twice and ordered print-
  ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Govern-
  ment

IN  ASSEMBLY  -- Introduced by M. of A. THIELE -- read once and referred
  to the Committee on Libraries and Education Technology

AN ACT making  certain  findings  and  determinations  with  respect  to
  certain  payments  to the Hampton Bays Public Library from the Town of
  Southampton, county of Suffolk, from its community  preservation  fund
  in  relation  to  the  limit  upon  real  property tax levies by local
  governments

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1. Legislative findings. The Hampton Bays public library is a
free association library organized pursuant to the laws of the state  of
New  York.  Revenues for the library are raised by a property tax levied
upon the residents of the Hampton Bays union free  school  district.  As
such  the  Hampton  Bays public library is considered a local government
pursuant to section 3-c of the  general  municipal  law,  limiting  real
property tax levies by local governments. Further, pursuant to section 2
of  chapter  330 of the laws of 2011, the Hampton Bays public library is
also eligible for payments from  the  town  of  Southampton,  county  of
Suffolk,  from  its community preservation fund.  Such payments are made
to mitigate the impact of lost property tax revenues from  lands  wholly
exempt  from  taxation  as a result of their acquisition by the federal,
state or local government for the preservation of community character as
defined in subdivision 4 of section 64-e of the town law.  Such payments
are considered to be payments in lieu of taxes pursuant to  section  3-c
of  the  general  municipal  law.  Such  payments in lieu of taxes are a
factor in the calculation of the tax levy limit pursuant to said law.
  In 2014, the Hampton Bays public library was  entitled  to  a  payment
from the town of Southampton pursuant to section 2 of chapter 330 of the
laws of 2011 in the amount of $36,281. However, due to an administrative
error,  said  payment was not made in 2014. The town of Southampton will

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD15385-01-4

S. 7679                             2                            A. 9909

be making both the 2014 payment and the 2015 payment to the Hampton Bays
public library as part of the town budget for 2015.
  Without state legislation, the 2014 payment and 2015 payment will both
be  attributed  to  2015, the coming fiscal year, as part of the Hampton
Bays public library's calculation of its tax levy  limit  for  the  2015
library  budget.  The impact will be to set an artificially low tax levy
limit for the Hampton Bays public library for 2015. Specifically,  with-
out  state  legislation,  the Hampton Bays public library will require a
sixty percent supermajority for library budget adoption because the  tax
levy  limit will be exceeded. The tax levy limit will be exceeded solely
because of the 2014 payment being made in 2015. It will also make  resi-
dents  of  the  Hampton Bays union free school district ineligible for a
tax rebate from the state of New York with regard to any increase in the
library tax levy.
  It is the intent of this  act  to  permit  the  Hampton  Bays  library
district  to  include the payment in the amount of $36,281 for 2014 from
the town of Southampton, as a payment in lieu of taxes as a payment  for
the  prior fiscal year and not the coming fiscal year in the calculation
of its tax levy limit for 2015.
  S 2. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the payment
in the amount of $36,281 for the year 2014 from the town of Southampton,
county of Suffolk, from its community preservation fund to mitigate  the
impact of lost property tax revenues from lands wholly exempt from taxa-
tion  as  a  result  of their acquisition by the federal, state or local
government for the preservation of community  character  as  defined  in
subdivision  4  of  section  64-e  of the town law shall be added to the
prior fiscal year and not subtracted for the coming fiscal year for  the
purposes of calculating its tax levy limit for the year 2015.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.