Senator Lavalle Fights for Property Tax Relief Plan –

Initiative Calls for Return of STAR Rebate Check

             Senator Kenneth P. LaValle today announced that he is taking the lead in sponsoring a Senate Republican initiative to provide a property tax rebate that will benefit every middle-class taxpayer.  The “Homeowner Protection and Property Tax Rebate Act” is a multi-level plan that would offer immediate relief for millions of people across the state.

            The first part of the desperately needed Senate Republican property tax relief plan is to restore STAR rebate checks.  “The last time people received a check was fall 2008 and yet people are still looking for STAR checks,” said Senator LaValle.  “People used this money to help them get through any real property tax increases they experienced.          

            “Homeowners from Montauk Point to Niagara Falls are struggling to pay their real property taxes, despite the many efforts to bring about relief and stability,” said Senator LaValle.   “Real property relief must be a priority during this year’s budget negotiations — not tomorrow, not next year, not two years from now, but today!”

            The Senate Republican plan provides a methodology to pay for the rebate plan over two years.  However, Senator LaValle noted, the public budget conference committee process must begin in order to negotiate spending reductions and other savings.   

            “We should think of this plan as an economic stimulus plan,” said Senator LaValle.  “If people were able to spend less money on property taxes, they would be able to put more dollars into the economy, which would help create jobs and restore our economic vitality.”          

            The “Homeowner Protection and Property Tax Rebate Act” also includes the expansion of the original Circuit Breaker law, which Senator LaValle sponsored in 1977, provides a property tax cap to ensure that schools hold the line on spending, a property tax freeze for senior citizens age 70 and older, and school mandate relief.  “I urge my colleagues in the Senate and Assembly to set a budget schedule so we can begin public negotiations and adopt a budget that will include much-needed property tax relief,” concluded Senator LaValle.