Senator Young Introduces Bill Advocating For Local Homeowners, Directs State Agency To Fix Late Payments

ALBANY – Frustrated by the slow disbursement of STAR Personal Income Tax credits by the State Department of Taxation and Finance, Senator Catharine Young (R,C,I- 57th District) has introduced legislation to spur action and ensure that the failures are not repeated in the future.

As part of reforms enacted in last year’s state budget, the STAR exemption has been converted into a refundable Personal Income Tax credit (STAR PIT credit) for new homeowners.  The STAR PIT credit is supposed to be pre-paid to homeowners as a rebate check by September 30 of each applicable year. However, many local homeowners have contacted Senator Young because they did not receive their checks in a timely fashion. 

“The STAR exemption is wildly popular with homeowners and school districts, because it provides financial relief to homeowners, without further burdening other taxpayers. The new STAR PIT Credit is supposed to be pre-paid to homeowners. Unfortunately, numerous taxpayers have had their checks arrive late, or the amount has been reduced. Many of the frustrated taxpayers have contacted my office because the state agency has only told them only to ‘keep trying back,’ when questioned about a timeframe for checks to be mailed out,” said Senator Young.

Legislation sponsored by Senator Young would require the State Department of Taxation and Finance to postmark all STAR PIT credit checks in advance of September 15, to ensure that taxpayers can receive the funds and still have adequate time to pay their school tax bills. The legislation also specifies that if the advance checks are not post-marked by September 15, the state must reimburse taxpayers for interest and penalties imposed by the school district for late payment. Finally, taxpayers whose checks do not arrive by the tax deadline would receive interest for each day the check is late.

“The state needs to make sure homeowners are receiving their full benefits in a timely fashion. Taxpayers should not be penalized because they are receiving the STAR PIT credit, instead of the exemption. Hardworking homeowners deserve this relief, and they should not bear the additional tax burden while the state sits on its hands,” Senator Young said.