§ 466-N — Ocean rescue squad members; certain municipalities

§ 466-n. Ocean rescue squad members; certain municipalities. 1. (a)\nReal property owned by an enrolled member of an ocean rescue squad, or\nsuch enrolled member and spouse, residing in a town with a population\nbetween twenty-eight thousand three hundred seventy and twenty-eight\nthousand four hundred according to the two thousand twenty census shall\nbe exempt from taxation to the extent of up to ten percent of the\nassessed value of such property for city, village, town, part town,\nspecial district, school district, fire district or county purposes,\nexclusive of special assessments, provided that the governing body of a\ncity, village, town, school district, fire district or county, after a\npublic hearing, adopts a local law, ordinance or resolution providing\ntherefor.\n (b) For the purposes of this section, an ocean rescue squad shall mean\nan entity that has been deemed as an emergency rescue squad and first\naid squad by resolution of the governing body of each municipality\npursuant to state law or special act of the legislature.\n 2. Such exemption shall not be granted to an enrolled member of an\nocean rescue squad residing in such town unless:\n (a) the applicant resides in the city, town or village which is served\nby such ocean rescue squad;\n (b) the property is the primary residence of the applicant;\n (c) the property is used exclusively for residential purposes;\nprovided however, that in the event any portion of such property is not\nused exclusively for the applicant's residence but is used for other\npurposes, such portion shall be subject to taxation and the remaining\nportion only shall be entitled to the exemption provided by this\nsection; and\n (d) the applicant has been certified by the authority having\njurisdiction for the ocean rescue squad, as determined by the governing\nbody of a city, village, town, school district, fire district or county;\nprovided, however, that such governing body shall establish a minimum\nservice requirement for each applicant between two years of service and\nfive years of service. It shall be the duty and responsibility of the\ngoverning body of each municipality to determine the procedure for\ncertification.\n 3. Any enrolled member of an ocean rescue squad who accrues more than\ntwenty years of active service and is so certified by the authority\nhaving jurisdiction for such ocean rescue squad, shall be granted the\nten percent exemption as authorized by this section for the remainder of\ntheir life as long as their primary residence is located within such\napplicable town provided that the governing body of each municipality\nafter a public hearing, adopts a local law, ordinance or resolution\nproviding therefor.\n 4. Any local law or ordinance adopted pursuant to this section may be\nseparately amended, or a local law, ordinance or resolution may be\nseparately adopted to continue an exemption or reinstate a pre-existing\nexemption claimed under such statutes by an enrolled member of an ocean\nrescue squad, to such deceased enrolled member's un-remarried spouse if\nsuch member is killed in the line of duty; provided, however, that:\n (a) such un-remarried spouse is certified by the authority having\njurisdiction for the applicable ocean rescue squad as an un-remarried\nspouse of an enrolled member of an ocean rescue squad who was killed in\nthe line of duty;\n (b) such deceased member had been an enrolled member for at least five\nyears; and\n (c) such deceased member had been receiving the exemption prior to\ntheir death.\n 5. Any local law or ordinance adopted pursuant to this section may be\nseparately amended, or a local law, ordinance or resolution may be\nseparately adopted to continue an exemption or reinstate a pre-existing\nexemption to an un-remarried spouse of a deceased enrolled member of an\nocean rescue squad; provided, however, that:\n (a) such un-remarried spouse is certified by the authority having\njurisdiction for the applicable ocean rescue squad as an un-remarried\nspouse of a deceased enrolled member of such incorporated ocean rescue\nsquad;\n (b) such deceased member had been an enrolled member for at least\ntwenty years; and\n (c) such deceased member and un-remarried spouse had been receiving\nthe exemption for such property prior to the death of such member.\n 6. Application for such exemption shall be filed with the assessor or\nother agency, department or office designated by the municipality,\nschool district and/or fire district offering such exemption on or\nbefore the taxable status date on a form as prescribed by the\ncommissioner.\n 7. No applicant who is an ocean rescue squad member who by reason of\nsuch status is receiving any benefit under the provisions of this\narticle on the effective date of this section shall suffer any\ndiminution of such benefit because of the provisions of this section.\n