§ 459. Persons who are physically disabled. 1. After a public hearing,
the governing body of a county, city, town or village may adopt a local
law or a school district may adopt a resolution, providing for an
exemption pursuant to the provisions of this section. Such local law or
resolution may provide that an improvement to any real property used
solely for residential purposes as a one, two or three family residence
shall be exempt from taxation and special ad valorem levies to the
extent of any increase in value attributable to such improvement if such
improvement is used for the purpose of facilitating and accommodating
the use and accessibility of such real property by (a) a resident owner
of the real property who is physically disabled, or (b) a member of the
resident owner's household who is physically disabled, if such member
resides in the real property. A local law or resolution adopted
pursuant to this section may provide that the exemption shall apply to
improvements constructed prior to the effective date of such local law
or resolution.

2. To qualify as physically disabled for the purposes of this section,
an individual shall submit to the assessor a certified statement from a
physician licensed to practice in the state on a form prescribed and
made available by the commissioner which states that the individual has
a permanent physical impairment which substantially limits one or more
of such individual's major life activities, except that an individual
who has obtained a certificate from the state commission for the blind
stating that such individual is legally blind may submit such
certificate in lieu of a physician's certified statement.

3. Such exemption shall be granted only upon application by the owner
or all of the owners of the real property on a form prescribed and made
available by the commissioner. The applicant shall furnish such
information as the commissioner shall require. The application shall be
filed together with the appropriate certified statement of physical
disability or certificate of blindness with the assessor of the
appropriate county, city, town, or village on or before the taxable
status date of such county, city, town, or village.

3-a. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other
provision of law, in a city having a population of one million or more,
applications for the exemption authorized pursuant to this section shall
be considered timely filed if they are filed on or before the fifteenth
day of March of the appropriate year.

4. If the assessor is satisfied that the improvement is necessary to
facilitate and accommodate the use and accessibility by a resident who
is physically disabled and that the applicant is entitled to an
exemption pursuant to this section, the assessor shall approve the
application and enter the taxable assessed value of the parcel for which
an exemption has been granted pursuant to this section on the assessment
roll with the taxable property, with the amount of the exemption as
determined pursuant to subdivision one of this section in a separate
column. Once granted, the exemption shall continue on the real property
until the improvement ceases to be necessary to facilitate and
accommodate the use and accessibility of the property by the resident
who is physically disabled.