§ 554 — Correction of errors on tax rolls

§ 554. Correction of errors on tax rolls. 1. The appropriate tax\nlevying body may correct a clerical error, an unlawful entry, or an\nerror in essential fact other than an error in essential fact as defined\nin paragraph (d) of subdivision three of section five hundred fifty of\nthis title in accordance with the provisions of this section.\n 2. Whenever it appears to an owner of real property, or any person who\nwould be entitled to file a complaint pursuant to section five hundred\ntwenty-four of this chapter, that a clerical error, an unlawful entry or\nerror in essential fact described in subdivision one of this section is\npresent on the tax roll in regard to his real property, such owner or\nother person, may, at any time prior to the expiration of the warrant,\nfile an application in duplicate with the county director of real\nproperty tax services for the correction of such error.\n 3. The application for correction of a clerical error, an unlawful\nentry or error in essential fact pursuant to this section shall be on a\nform and shall contain such information as prescribed by the\ncommissioner, including any available proof that such error occurred,\nand shall be available in the offices of all collecting officers and in\nthe office of the county director. For an error in essential fact, the\napplication for correction shall include a copy of the property record\ncard, field book, or other final work product upon which the incorrect\nassessment was based and a copy of any existing municipal record which\nsubstantiates the occurrence of the error. For an unlawful entry as\ndefined in paragraph (a) of subdivision seven of section five hundred\nfifty of this title, the application for correction shall include a\nstatement by the assessor or by a majority of a board of assessors\nsubstantiating that the assessor or assessors have obtained proof that\nthe parcel which is the subject of the application should have been\ngranted tax exempt status; the failure to include such statement shall\nrender the application null and void and shall bar the tax levying body\nfrom ordering correction of the tax roll pursuant to this section.\n 4. (a) The county director, within ten days of the receipt of an\napplication filed pursuant to this section, shall investigate the\ncircumstances of the claimed clerical error, unlawful entry or error in\nessential fact to determine whether the error exists, and on such\ninvestigation he may require and shall receive from any officer,\nemployee, department, board, bureau, office or other instrumentality of\nthe appropriate municipal corporation such facilities, assistance and\ndata as will enable him to properly consummate his studies and\ninvestigations hereunder.\n (b) Upon completion of such investigation the county director shall\nimmediately transmit a written report of such investigation and his or\nher recommendation for action thereon, together with both copies of the\napplication, to the tax levying body. If the same alleged error also\nappears on a current assessment roll, the county director shall also\nfile a copy of such report and recommendation with the appropriate\nassessor and board of assessment review who shall consider the same to\nbe the equivalent of a petition for correction filed with such board\npursuant to section five hundred fifty-three of this title.\n 5. The tax levying body, at a regular or special meeting, upon the\npresentation of an application filed pursuant to this section and the\nwritten report described by subdivision four of this section, shall:\n (a) examine the application and report to determine whether the\nclaimed clerical error, unlawful entry or error in essential fact\nexists;\n (b) reject an application where it is determined that the claimed\nclerical error, unlawful entry or error in essential fact does not exist\nby making a notation on the application and the copy thereof that the\napplication is rejected and the reasons for the rejection;\n (c) approve an application where it is determined that the claimed\nclerical error, unlawful entry or error in essential fact does exist by\nmaking a notation on the application and the copy thereof that the\napplication is approved and by entering thereon the correct extension of\ntaxes;\n (d) make an order setting forth the corrected taxes and directing the\nofficer having jurisdiction of the tax roll to correct such roll;\n (e) transmit immediately to the officer having jurisdiction of the tax\nroll the order and all applications that have been approved;\n (f) mail an application that has been rejected to the applicant;\n (g) mail a notice of approval of an application that has been approved\nto the applicant;\n (h) file with the records of the tax levying body the copies of all\napplications.\n 6. The officer having jurisdiction of the tax roll, upon receipt of\nthe order described in subdivision five of this section, shall\nimmediately correct the tax roll as directed by the order and shall\ncollect the corrected taxes as determined by the tax levying body. The\norder and approved applications shall be annexed to the tax roll and\nwarrant, or filed therewith in accordance with section fifteen hundred\neighty-four of this chapter, by the officer having jurisdiction of the\nroll and shall become a part thereof.\n 7. (a) An applicant who files his application with the county director\nwithin the period when taxes may be paid without interest, may, if his\napplication is approved, pay the corrected tax as determined by the tax\nlevying body without interest if payment is made within eight days of\nthe date on which the notice of approval is mailed pursuant to paragraph\n(g) of subdivision five of this section.\n (b) An applicant other than one described in paragraph (a) of this\nsubdivision shall pay interest as prescribed by law on the corrected\ntax; provided, however, that no additional interest shall be imposed if\nthe corrected amount of the tax is paid within eight days of the date on\nwhich the notice of approval is mailed pursuant to paragraph (g) of\nsubdivision five of this section, unless such eight day period would end\nafter the expiration of the warrant, in which case the period for paying\nthe corrected tax without additional interest shall end upon the\nexpiration of the warrant.\n 8. The powers and duties imposed by this section upon the county\ndirector of real property tax services shall be performed by such\nofficer for tax levies for county, city, town, special district and\nschool district purposes except that (a) in the case of counties having\nthe power to assess real property for tax purposes such powers and\nduties shall be performed by the chief assessing officer or the chairman\nof the county board of assessors and, (b) in the case of villages, for\nvillage tax purposes, such powers and duties shall be performed by the\nvillage assessor or the chairman of the village board of assessors;\nprovided, however, that if the village has enacted a local law as\nprovided in subdivision three of section fourteen hundred two of this\nchapter, the county director shall perform the powers and duties imposed\nupon such officer by this section on behalf of such village.\n 9. (a) A tax levying body may, by resolution, delegate to an official\nwho is empowered to authorize payment of bills without prior audit by\nsuch body or, in the event there is no official so empowered, to an\nofficial responsible for the payment of bills upon audit of the\nappropriate municipal corporation so designated by it, the authority to\nperform the duties of such tax levying body, as provided in this\nsection. Such resolution shall only be in effect during the calendar\nyear in which it is adopted and shall designate that such delegation of\nauthority is applicable only where the recommended correction is\ntwenty-five hundred dollars or less, or such other sum not to exceed\ntwenty-five hundred dollars.\n (b) Where such resolution is adopted and the recommended correction\ndoes not exceed the amount specified in the designating resolution, the\ncounty director shall transmit the written report of the investigation\nand recommendation, together with both copies of the application, to the\nofficial designated by the tax levying body. Upon receipt of the written\nreport, the designated official shall follow the procedure which the tax\nlevying body would follow in making corrections, provided, however,\nwhere the designated official denies the correction, in whole or in\npart, such official shall transmit to the tax levying body for its\nreview and disposition pursuant to subdivision five of this section the\nwritten report of the investigation and recommendation of the county\ndirector, together with both copies of the application and the reasons\nthat the designated official denied the correction. Where the\nrecommendation of the county director is to deny the application or the\ncorrection requested is an amount in excess of the amount authorized in\nthe enabling resolution, the county director shall transmit the written\nreport of the investigation and recommendation, together with both\ncopies of the application, to the tax levying body.\n (c) On or before the fifteenth day of each month, the designated\nofficial shall submit a report to the tax levying body of the\ncorrections processed by such official during the preceding month. Such\nreport shall indicate the name of each recipient, the location of the\nproperty and the amount of the correction.\n