The city and property tax reform advocates have agreed to begin court-supervised settlement negotiations that could reshape how New York City taxes real estate, according to The City Reporter. Talks between the Mamdani administration and the coalition Tax Equity Now New York, known as TENNY, are slated to start in October and will be overseen by the court, per TENNY.
TENNY filed a lawsuit in 2017 aiming to get the courts to force property tax reform. The City Reporter has described the city’s property tax system as byzantine and unequal, a problem for generations of mayors. Under the settlement agreement reached last month, the city and TENNY will negotiate the structure and implementation of state property tax law.
The Mamdani administration has already waded into property tax politics once this year. The mayor floated raising property taxes to help close the city’s budget gap, then dropped the idea after significant public backlash, according to The City Reporter.
A separate provision in the state budget is also pushing the system toward change. A new tax on luxury second homes in New York City, included in this year’s state budget, requires the city Department of Finance to develop a new method for assessing condos and coops, a move The City Reporter reported could lead to broader reforms.
The specific terms of the settlement have not been disclosed, and the exact date negotiations will begin in October has not been announced.
Featured image: Courtesy nyc.gov
