§ 543 — Assessment of conservation easements

§ 543. Assessment of conservation easements. 1. Upon acquisition of a\nconservation easement subject to taxation pursuant to this title and for\ncommon law easements acquired by the state in the Adirondack or Catskill\nparks and subject to taxation, the commissioner of environmental\nconservation shall determine an allocation factor applicable to each\nparcel subject to such conservation easement. The allocation factor\nshall be the portion of the value of each parcel which the easement\nrepresents, expressed as a percentage. The commissioner shall forthwith\ncertify any such allocation factor to the commissioner and to the fee\nowner. The commissioner shall supply to the commissioner copies of any\nappraisals made in conjunction with the acquisition of the easement for\nuse by the board pursuant to section five hundred forty-two of this\ntitle.\n 2. Such allocation factor shall remain in effect for a period of ten\nyears from the date of acquisition of such easement by the state or, for\npreviously acquired common law easements, from the date such allocation\nfactor was first determined. After such ten year period has elapsed,\nsuch allocation factor shall be subject to review and revision by the\ncommissioner as appropriate, based on significant change in the relative\nvalues of the fee and easement interests.\n 3. After such ten year period has elapsed and in the first year in\nwhich the commissioner independently computes the portion of the value\nof the parcel attributable to a conservation easement or common law\neasement, if such portion is different from the allocation factor\npreviously determined by the commissioner of environmental conservation,\nthe commissioner shall recompute the allocation factor by averaging the\nprevious allocation factor and the portion computed by the commissioner.\nIn any subsequent year, the allocation factor based upon the portion\ncomputed by the commissioner shall supersede any previous allocation\nfactor.\n 4. Whenever a conservation easement is acquired and for common law\neasements acquired by the state on land within the Adirondack or Cats-\nkill parks subject to taxation, the commissioner shall be a person\naggrieved by the assessment of the parcel or parcels burdened by such\neasement for purposes of seeking administrative and/or judicial review\nof such assessments. Notwithstanding the provisions of section seven\nhundred four of this chapter, the commissioner may seek judicial review\nwithin two years of the acquisition of a conservation easement or, for\nsuch state owned common law easements, within two years of the date when\nthe easement became subject to taxation and need not seek administrative\nreview prior to seeking such judicial review. Whenever the commissioner\nseeks administrative or judicial review of the assessment of such\nburdened parcel or parcels, it shall send a copy of the complaint or\npetition to the owner of a burdened parcel within ten days of the filing\nof a complaint or the service of a petition.\n 5. Determination and payment of the state's share of municipal real\nproperty taxes which become a lien after vesting but prior to the next\ntaxable status date shall be made as follows:\n (a) The state is responsible for direct payment to the municipality of\nits proportionate share, determined by multiplying the amount of the tax\nbill by the allocation factor which shall be certified by the\ncommissioner to the assessor and chief fiscal officers of the\nmunicipalities within which the property is situated and to the state\ncomptroller.\n (b) Upon presentation of a certificate issued pursuant to this\nsection, a collecting officer is hereby authorized to accept from the\nunderlying fee owner the taxes due and owing from the fee owner after\ndeducting those taxes for which the state is liable because of its\nacquisition of a conservation easement or common law easement subject to\ntaxation pursuant to this title. Any official having custody of a final\nassessment roll or tax roll is hereby authorized to make such changes on\nthat roll as may be required by the commissioner to incorporate the tax-\nable assessed value attributable to such easement using the allocation\nfactor as certified pursuant to this section.\n (c) The county treasurer shall submit a copy of the certificate issued\npursuant to this section, together with a statement of taxes due, to the\nstate comptroller for payment pursuant to section five hundred\nforty-four of this title.\n 6. Payment of taxes by the owner of a parcel burdened by a\nconservation easement or common law easement made taxable pursuant to\nthis title based upon the assessment of the parcel without consideration\nof that easement shall entitle that owner to a refund pursuant to\nsection five hundred fifty-six of this article, equal to any taxes paid\nby the state upon such easement. Such owner shall present the\ncertificate issued pursuant to this section and proof of payment to the\ntax levying body.\n 7. (a) Whenever the state acquires a conservation easement or a common\nlaw easement made taxable pursuant to this title which burdens a parcel\ncontaining an improvement, the commissioner shall specify whether the\neasement applies to the land, the improvements or both.\n (b) Where a conservation easement created pursuant to title three of\narticle forty-nine of the environmental conservation law or a common law\neasement for conservation purposes has been or is hereinafter acquired\nby the state:\n (i) on a parcel of property which is otherwise fully exempt from\ntaxation, the assessor shall determine the taxable assessment of the\nconservation easement by multiplying the allocation factor by the total\nassessed value of the land, the improvement, or the entire parcel, as\nappropriate;\n (ii) on a parcel of property which is partially exempt from taxation,\nthe assessor shall determine the taxable assessment of the conservation\neasement by multiplying the allocation factor by the total assessed\nvalue of the land, the improvement, or the entire parcel, as\nappropriate;\n (iii) on a parcel which is partially exempt from taxation, the taxable\nassessed value of the burdened parcel shall be calculated through pro\nration of the partial exemption in the same proportions as the\nallocation factor. The owner of the burdened parcel shall be entitled to\nthe pro rated portion of the exemption which is applicable to the\nremainder fee interest.\n (c) No exemption shall be applied to the total assessed value of the\nconservation easement.\n