Transcript Nassau County Department of Assessment

Nassau County
Department of Assessment
Unfair School Property Tax System
Is It Time for an Income Tax?
Presented By
Harvey B. Levinson
Chairman, Board of Assessors
July 2007
1
Great Ideas – Three Stages
All great ideas go through three stages:
• Stage One – They are ridiculed
• Stage Two – They are strongly opposed
• Stage Three – They are considered to be
self-evident
2
Ability to Pay
“The assessed value of a home is not
an indicator of a family’s ability to pay
school taxes.
We have to explore
alternatives to providing school district
funding to help families on Long Island
who find themselves ‘house rich and
cash poor’ and struggle to pay their
property taxes.”
Harvey B. Levinson
Chairman, Nassau County Board of Assessors
3
Levittown & Hicksville
COUNTY-WIDE PROPERTY TAXES *
Homes valued at $375,000
$1,152.85
Levittown
$1,152.82
Hicksville
* Excluding Sewer Taxes
Homes with the same value pay the same taxes, but only for the
Nassau County portion of the taxes, which is approximately 15%
of the total property tax bill.
4
SCHOOL BUDGET LEVIES 2006-2007
• Total raised by School Budget Levies in
the 2006-2007 year is $3.47 billion
• Presently, two-thirds of the levy is paid
by residential homeowners, and onethird is paid by commercial tax base
• In 2006-2007, New York State gave
Nassau County over $357 million in
STAR reimbursements
5
School Tax Disparity
Homes with the same
Market Value pay widely
different school taxes
• The following slides illustrate examples of
the disparity between districts
• Tax rates on all parcels are per $100 of
Assessed Value
6
Levittown and Island Trees
2006-2007 SCHOOL TAX Bill Comparison
Home Value $400,000, Includes Basic STAR Exemption
$6,000
$5,000
Levittown
$5,958
Island Trees
$4,453
$4,000
$3,000
$2,000
$1,000
$-
Tax Rate
$735
Tax Rate
$553
Levittown pays $1,505 more!
7
Baldwin, Oceanside and Long Beach
2006-2007 School Tax Bill Comparison
Home Value $450,000, Includes Basic STAR Exemption
$ 7, 000
$ 6, 000
$ 5, 000
Baldwin
$6,228
$ 4, 000
Oceanside
$4,950
$ 3, 000
$ 2, 000
$ 1, 000
Tax Rate
$667
Tax Rate
$525
Long Beach
$3,320
Tax Rate
$360
$-
Baldwin pays $1,278 more than Oceanside
and $2,908 more than Long Beach!
8
Westbury and Carle Place
2006-2007 SCHOOL TAX Bill Comparison
Home Value $500,000, Includes Basic STAR Exemption
$7,000
$6,000
Westbury
$6,982
$5,000
Carle Place
$4,946
$4,000
$3,000
$2,000
$1,000
$-
Tax Rate
$673
Tax Rate
$466
Westbury pays $2,036 more!
9
Hewlett-Woodmere and Lawrence
2006-2007 SCHOOL TAX Bill Comparison
Home Value $1,000,000, Includes Basic STAR Exemption
$16,000
$14,000
$12,000
$10,000
HewlettWoodmere
$15,463
Lawrence
$8,838
$8,000
$6,000
$4,000
$2,000
Tax Rate
$667
Tax Rate
$382
$-
Hewlett-Woodmere pays $6,625 more!
10
Roslyn, Port Washington & Manhasset
2006-2007 SCHOOL TAX Bill Comparison
Home Value $1,100,000, Includes Basic STAR Exemption
$16,000
$14,000
$12,000
Roslyn
$14,381
Port
Washington
$10,826 Manhasset
$10,000
$8,000
$7,864
$6,000
$4,000
$2,000
Tax Rate
$558
Tax Rate
$421
Tax Rate
$307
$-
Roslyn pays $3,555 more than Port Washington
and $6,517 more than Manhasset!
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$6,787
$6,654
$6,510
$6,447
$6,273
$5,729
$5,459
$5,433
Text
Suffolk County – Town of Huntington
Average Home Value $577,000
School and Library Tax
(includes Basic STAR)
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School District Income Tax Proposal




Eliminate the residential portion of the school property tax and replace
it with a modest income tax to be paid by the owners of one, two and
three-family homes, condominiums and co-ops, as well as renters.
County and town budgets would continue to be funded by the property
tax.
All commercial and utility property, traditional apartment buildings (4 or
more units), and non-residents would continue to pay property taxes.
Each school district would have the same income tax rate.
Establish a “floor and ceiling” cap on the residential income levels to
be taxed.
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School District Income Tax Proposal
(cont.)
• Since the residential portion of the school property tax would be
eliminated, the total State authorization for STAR would be
reclassified and used as in income tax supplement. School
districts where revenue raised through the income tax would not be
enough to fund its budgetary needs would receive additional State
aid and STAR money credits.

School districts where income tax revenue raised exceeds budgetary
needs can be placed in a special reserve account so that all income tax
revenue raised in a school district stays within the school district.

Share the commercial property tax base throughout the County with all
school districts.
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Advantages of a Residential
School District Income Tax

Homeowners will be able to make improvements to their homes without
increasing their share of school taxes.

Residential property tax certiorari will all but be eliminated – reducing
the amount of debt incurred by the County due to successful
assessment challenges.

Millions of dollars will be saved in the cost of administering the STAR
program and defending assessments.

Homeowners will be less inclined to illegally rent out rooms to pay their
property taxes.

Homeowners will pay school taxes based on their ability to pay.
END
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