§ 83 — Collection, levy and liens

§ 83. Collection, levy and liens.--1. Collection procedures.--The\ntaxes imposed by the named parts shall be collected by the director of\nfinance, and he may establish the mode or time for the collection of any\namount due him thereunder if not otherwise specified. The director of\nfinance shall, upon request, give a receipt for any sum collected\nthereunder. The director of finance may authorize banks or trust\ncompanies which are depositaries or financial agents of the city to\nreceive and give a receipt for any tax imposed under the named parts in\nsuch manner, at such times, and under such conditions as the director of\nfinance may prescribe; and the director of finance shall prescribe the\nmanner, times and conditions under which the receipt of such tax by such\nbanks and trust companies is to be treated as payment of such tax to the\ndirector of finance.\n 2. Notice and demand for tax.--The director of finance shall as soon\nas practicable give notice to each taxpayer liable for any amount of\ntax, addition to tax, penalty or interest, which has been assessed but\nremains unpaid, stating the amount and demanding payment thereof. Such\nnotice shall be left at the principal office of the taxpayer in the city\nor shall be sent by mail to such taxpayer's last known address. Except\nwhere the director of finance determines that collection would be\njeopardized by delay, if any tax is assessed prior to the last date\n(including any date fixed by extension) prescribed for payment of such\ntax, payment of such tax shall not be demanded until after such date.\n 3. Issuance of warrant after notice and demand.--If any corporation or\nother person liable under the named parts for the payment of any tax,\naddition to tax, penalty or interest neglects or refuses to pay the same\nwithin ten days after notice and demand therefor is given to such\ncorporation or other person under subdivision two, the director of\nfinance may within six years after the date of such assessment issue a\nwarrant under his official seal directed to the sheriff of any county of\nthe state, or to any officer or employee of the department of finance,\ncommanding him to levy upon and sell the real and personal property of\nsuch corporation or other person for the payment of the amount assessed,\nwith the cost of executing the warrant, and to return such warrant to\nthe director of finance and pay to him the money collected by virtue\nthereof within sixty days after the receipt of the warrant. If the\ndirector of finance finds that the collection of the tax or other amount\nis in jeopardy, notice and demand for immediate payment of such tax may\nbe made by the director of finance and upon failure or refusal to pay\nsuch tax or other amount the director of finance may issue a warrant\nwithout regard to the ten-day period provided in this subdivision.\n 4. Copy of warrant to be filed and lien to be created.--Any sheriff or\nofficer or employee who receives a warrant under subdivision three shall\nwithin five days thereafter file a copy with the clerk of the\nappropriate county. The clerk shall thereupon enter in the judgment\ndocket, in the column for judgment debtors, the name of the taxpayer\nmentioned in the warrant, and in appropriate columns the tax or other\namounts for which the warrant is issued and the date when such copy is\nfiled; and such amount shall thereupon be a binding lien upon the real,\npersonal and other property of the taxpayer.\n 5. Judgment.--When a warrant has been filed with the county clerk the\ndirector of finance shall, on behalf of the city, be deemed to have\nobtained judgment against the taxpayer for the tax or other amounts.\n 6. Execution.--The sheriff or officer or employee shall thereupon\nproceed upon the judgment in all respects, with like effect, and in the\nsame manner prescribed by law in respect to executions issued against\nproperty upon judgments of a court of record, and a sheriff shall be\nentitled to the same fees for his services in executing the warrant, to\nbe collected in the same manner. An officer or employee of the\ndepartment of finance may proceed in any county or counties of this\nstate and shall have all the powers of execution conferred by law upon\nsheriffs, but shall be entitled to no fee or compensation in excess of\nactual expenses paid in connection with the execution of the warrant.\n 7. Foreign corporations.--Where a notice and demand under subdivision\ntwo shall have been given to a foreign corporation or other person who\nis not then a resident, and it appears to the director of finance that\nit is not practicable to find in the state property of such foreign\ncorporation or nonresident person sufficient to pay the entire balance\nof tax or other amount owing by such foreign corporation or nonresident\nperson, the director of finance may, in accordance with subdivision\nthree, issue a warrant directed to an officer or employee of the\ndepartment of finance, a copy of which warrant shall be mailed by\ncertified or registered mail to such foreign corporation or nonresident\nperson at its last known address, subject to the rules for mailing\nprovided in subdivision one of section seventy-two. Such warrant shall\ncommand the officer or employee to proceed in New York county, and he\nshall, within five days after receipt of the warrant, file the warrant\nand obtain a judgment in accordance with this section. Thereupon the\ndirector of finance may authorize the institution of any action or\nproceeding to collect or enforce the judgment in any place and by any\nprocedure that a civil judgment of the supreme court of the state of New\nYork could be collected or enforced. The director of finance may also,\nin his discretion, designate agents or retain counsel for the purpose of\ncollecting, outside the state, any unpaid taxes, additions to tax,\npenalties or interest which have been assessed under this part or under\nany of the named parts, against foreign corporations or other\nnon-resident persons, may fix the compensation of such agents and\ncounsel to be paid out of money appropriated or otherwise lawfully\navailable for payment thereof, and may require of them bonds or other\nsecurity for the faithful performance of their duties, in such form and\nin such amount as the director of finance shall deem proper and\nsufficient.\n 8. Action by city for recovery of taxes.--Action may be brought by the\ncorporation counsel at the instance of the director of finance to\nrecover the amount of any unpaid taxes, additions to tax, penalties or\ninterest which have been assessed under this part or under the named\nparts within six years prior to the date the action is commenced.\n 9. Release of lien.--The director of finance, if it finds that the\ninterests of the city will not thereby be jeopardized, and upon such\nconditions as it may require, may release any property from the lien of\nany warrant filed under subdivision four or seven for unpaid taxes,\nadditions to tax, penalties and interest filed pursuant to this section,\nand such release may be recorded in the office of any recording officer\nin which such warrant has been filed.\n 10. Lien from due date of return.--(a) In addition to any other lien\nprovided for in this section, each tax imposed by the named parts shall\nbecome a lien on the date on which the return is required to be filed\n(without regard to any extension of time for filing such return), except\nthat such tax shall become a lien not later than the date the taxpayer\nceases to be subject to the tax imposed by any of the named parts, or to\ndo business in this state in a corporate or organized capacity. Each\nsuch tax shall be a lien and binding upon the real and personal property\nof the taxpayer, or of a transferee liable to pay the same, until the\nsame is paid in full, except that no lien for any additional tax\nassessed pursuant to this part shall be enforceable against property\nwhich prior to the issuance to the taxpayer of a notice of deficiency\nunder section seventy-two had been transferred in good faith to a bona\nfide transferee for value. But the lien of each such tax shall be\nsubject to the lien of any mortgage indebtedness existing against real\nproperty previous to the time when the tax became a lien and where such\nmortgage indebtedness has been incurred in good faith and was not given,\ndirectly or indirectly, to any officer or stockholder of the corporation\nowning such real property, whether as a purchase money mortgage or\notherwise, and shall also be subject to the lien of local taxes and\nassessments, without regard to when the lien for such taxes and\nassessments may have accrued. If the return is filed and the tax shown\non the report to be due is paid on or before the date on which the\nreport is required to be filed, without regard to any extensions of time\nfor filing such report, the lien shall not be enforceable against the\ninterest of any purchaser or mortgagee in property which is thereafter,\nbut prior to the issuance to the taxpayer of a notice of deficiency\nunder section seventy-two transferred to a bona fide purchaser for\nvalue, or mortgaged where the mortgage indebtedness is incurred in good\nfaith and the mortgage is not given, directly or indirectly, to any\nofficer or stockholder of the corporation. In any action to foreclose\nany such mortgage, or to foreclose the lien of local taxes or\nassessments, to which the people of the state, or the city shall have\nbeen made a party defendant by reason of the existence of a lien for any\nsuch tax, or if no such tax was due or was a lien at the time of the\ncommencement of such action and the filing of the notice of pendency\nthereof, but such a tax becomes due or becomes a lien subsequent to the\ntime of the commencement of such action and the filing of the notice of\npendency thereof, such real property shall be sold and conveyed in such\naction free from any such tax lien, and any such tax lien may become a\nlien on any surplus moneys which may result from such sale, to be\ndetermined in the proceedings for the distribution of such surplus\nmoneys. Where title to real property passes from an individual, or from\na corporation owing no tax, to another corporation which is in default\nfor such tax, the lien herein provided shall not be enforceable except\nas to any equity after the prior mortgage or purchase money mortgage\nencumbrance.\n (b) The director of finance may, upon application made to him and the\npayment of a fee of five dollars, release any real property from the\nlien under this subdivision, provided payment be made to the director of\nfinance of such a sum as the director of finance shall deem adequate\nconsideration for such release, or deposit be made of such security or\nsuch bond be filed as the director of finance shall deem proper to\nsecure payment of any such tax. The application for such release shall\ncontain an accurate description of the property to be released together\nwith such information as the director of finance may require. Such\nrelease may be recorded in any office in which conveyances of real\nestate are entitled to be recorded.\n (c) All taxes, additions to tax, penalties and interest which have\nbecome a lien under this subdivision shall, after the expiration of ten\nyears from date they become due and payable, cease to be a lien (1) as\nto real estate in the hands of persons who are owners thereof who would\nbe purchasers in good faith but for such taxes, additions to tax,\npenalties or interest and (2) as to the lien on real estate of mortgages\nheld by persons who would be holders thereof in good faith but for such\ntaxes, additions to tax, penalties or interest, as against such\npurchasers or holders. The limitations herein provided for shall not\napply to any transfer from a corporation to a person or corporation with\nintent to avoid payment of any taxes, or where with like intent the\ntransfer is made to a grantee corporation, or any subsequent grantee\ncorporation, controlled by such grantor or which has any community of\ninterest with it, either through stock ownership or otherwise.\n