For Christina Whitely, the annual property tax break she receives from the City of Greenburgh allows her to live in the family home on Mechanics Avenue that she inherited years ago, cutting her annual tax bill in half – by nearly $ 8,000.
However, the COVID pandemic has created anxiety among Whitely and other older, low-income homeowners who are 65 years or older and earn less than $ 37,400 a year. Typically, they visit their local town halls to extend their annual tax exemption for the senior real estate partial tax exemption.
Whitely isn’t sure she can visit Greenburgh City Hall in 2021 to file her latest income tax returns in order to qualify for the tax exemption.
Whitely, who is legally blind, doesn’t own a car and fears catching the virus if she takes two buses to City Hall via Greenburgh. Like many elderly people, she does not have a computer, so she cannot email the documents.
“I only go to the grocery store,” she said. “It’s not easy these days. Besides, I’m not very tech-savvy. “
City evaluators from across New York State, including those in Ramapo and Greenburgh, have urged Governor Andrew Cuomo to issue an executive order giving local authorities the option to suspend the requirement for its annual renewal in 2021. You would also want an extension for an accompanying law that covers homeowners with disabilities.
Older homeowners like Whitely are eligible for a number of property tax exemption programs that can help them stay in the community in the face of some of the highest property taxes in the country. Whitely also qualifies for the Enhanced STAR Exemption, which cuts her school tax by an additional $ 4,000 per year. Homeowners are not required to submit their tax returns to local appraisers in order to obtain this exemption.
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Greenburgh Assessor Edye McCarthy said she will be sending our renewal notifications in late December warning the seniors that they must have their documents with her by May 1st. She said dozens of Greenburgh seniors come to town hall with the documents.
She fears the pandemic could cause some homeowners to miss the 2021 deadline. She said it was highly unusual for seniors’ income to change significantly from year to year.
“Many of our seniors no longer drive,” she said. “Last year many took a taxi to the town hall, but now I hear that they don’t want to get in a taxi. You don’t want to go out. We need an answer in two weeks. Our seniors keep asking us what is happening. “
Warren Wheeler, executive director of the New York State Assessors Association, sent a letter to Cuomo in late October stating that those homeowners who qualify for these exemptions are among the most at risk for COVID-19.
“It is especially important to protect those at risk of developing serious illnesses from COVID-19,” he wrote. “The best way to protect this population is to limit their interactions with other people as much as possible. Let’s remove the need for these people to come to a local ward office to renew their exemptions. “
Five weeks later, the Cuomo administration continues to review the issue as COVID-19 infections continue their late fall.
“This is an important issue that we are currently looking into,” said Cuomo press secretary Caitlin Girouard in an email.
Older homeowners like Whitely are eligible for a number of property tax exemption programs that can help them stay in the community in the face of some of the highest property taxes in the country. Homeowners are not required to submit their tax returns to local appraisers for an exemption.
If Cuomo does not enact executive regulation, the legislature could introduce a one-year renewal period at the beginning of its session in 2021. State Senator David Carlucci, D-New City, tabled a bill on November 20 to allow the one-year deadline. Carlucci did not stand for re-election, however, and the sick would need a new Senate sponsor as well as one in the State Assembly.
Follow Tax Watch columnist David McKay Wilson on Facebook or Twitter @ davidmckay415.