BILL NUMBER: S4951A

SPONSOR: SEPULVEDA
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the surrogate's court procedure act,
in relation to raising the value of a small estate

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill would raise the statutorily defined gross value limit of
estates considered "small estates" to $50,000 or less exclusive of prop-
erty required to be set off under EPTL 5-3.1 (a).

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends Subdivision 1 of the section 1301 of the Surrogate's
Court procedure act by changing the gross value monetary amount of
estates considered "small estates" to $50,000 or less exclusive of prop-
erty required to be set off under EPTL 5-3.1 (a).

Section 2: The effective date of this bill.

              

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In New York, it can be prohibitively expensive to administer a low-value
estate, with attorney costs and court fees often costing thousands of
dollars. Under NYS law, those administering "small estates" - estates
with a gross value of $50,000 or less - have the ability to avoid these
relative substantial monetary costs through a $1 "do-it-yourself"
program (no lawyer, no fees, etc.) available through the court. However,
this estate gross value cap was set nearly two decades ago and is no
longer reflective of contemporary real estate and assets values of lower
and middle-class people in New York; other states have subsequently
raised their caps. By raising the cap to $50,000, this bill would both
allow more lower and middle class New Yorkers access to this important
program and put New York in line with contemporary state practices on
this issue, such as California where a small estate is $150,000.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to actions and
proceedings commended on or after such effective date.