Budget & Taxes (Property Tax)

This bill amends the state constitution to allow lawmakers to change or remove tax exemptions for private colleges and universities. Currently, exemptions for properties used by educational institutions are protected, but this bill specifically removes that protection for private higher education. The key provision changes constitutional language to state that exemptions for private college real estate "may be altered or repealed." This would directly affect private colleges and universities that currently receive property tax breaks on their buildings and land. The bill is a constitutional amendment requiring Senate approval and a future legislative session before taking effect.

Subjects to taxation the possessory interest of a private individual or corporation which uses real property owned by the United States or the state, except for real property owned by public authorities, for business purposes; excludes private property where the use is for a concession available to the general public located on property, such as parks, available for the use of the general public.

This bill amends New York's real property tax law to require all Palisades Interstate Park state lands in Ulster County to be taxed for all purposes, expanding the existing requirement that already applied to lands in Rockland and Sullivan counties. It specifically affects landowners and local governments in Ulster County (including towns like Gardiner, Rochester, Shawangunk, and Wawarsing) and the listed towns in Orange County. The key change adds Ulster County to the list of areas where these park lands must be subject to property taxation, removing their previous exemption. This is a direct policy change to the tax treatment of these specific lands, not a procedural or commemorative measure.