§ 556 — Refunds and credits of taxes

§ 556. Refunds and credits of taxes. 1. (a) Pursuant to the provisions\nof this section, an appropriate tax levying body may refund to any\nperson the amount of any tax paid by him or her, or portion thereof, as\nthe case may be, or may provide a credit against an outstanding tax (i)\nwhere such tax was attributable to a clerical error or an unlawful entry\nand application for refund or credit is made within three years from the\nannexation of the warrant for such tax, or (ii) where such tax was\nattributable to an error in essential fact, other than an error in\nessential fact as defined in paragraph (d) of subdivision three of\nsection five hundred fifty of this title, and such application for\nrefund or credit is made within three years from the annexation of the\nwarrant for such tax.\n (b) For each year for which a refund or credit is granted pursuant to\nthe provisions of this section by reason of the existence of an unlawful\nentry as defined by paragraph (b) of subdivision seven of section five\nhundred fifty of this title, the assessor of the assessing unit in which\nthe subject real property is actually located, but has been omitted from\nthe assessment and tax rolls of such assessing unit, or a school\ndistrict or special districts located therein, shall have the authority\nto enter such real property on the current assessment roll in accordance\nwith the provisions of section five hundred fifty-one of this title,\nnotwithstanding any time limitation contained in such section.\n 2. (a) Whenever it appears to a person who has paid a tax that such\ntax, or a portion thereof, was attributable to an unlawful entry, a\nclerical error, or an error in essential fact, as described in\nsubdivision one of this section, such person may file an application in\nduplicate, including any available proof of the error, with the\nappropriate county director of real property tax services for a refund\nof such tax, or portion thereof, as the case may be.\n (b) Whenever it appears to a person who is an owner of a parcel which\nis subject to an outstanding tax, that such tax, or a portion thereof,\nwas attributable to an unlawful entry, a clerical error, or an error in\nessential fact, as described in subdivision one of this section, such\nperson may file an application in duplicate, including any available\nproof of the error, with the appropriate county director of real\nproperty tax services for a credit of such tax, or portion thereof.\n (c) For an error in essential fact, the application for correction\nshall include a copy of the property record card, field book, or other\nfinal work product upon which the incorrect assessment was based and a\ncopy of any existing municipal record which substantiates the occurrence\nof the error. For an unlawful entry as defined in paragraph (a) of\nsubdivision seven of section five hundred fifty of this title, the\napplication for correction shall include a statement by the assessor or\nby a majority of a board of assessors substantiating that the assessor\nor assessors have obtained proof that the parcel which is the subject of\nthe application should have been granted tax exempt status; the failure\nto include such statement shall render the application null and void and\nshall bar the tax levying body from directing a refund or credit of\ntaxes pursuant to this section.\n 3. The application for a refund or credit pursuant to this section\nshall be on a form and shall contain such information as prescribed by\nthe commissioner and shall be available in the offices of all collecting\nofficers and in the office of the county director.\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 unlawful entry, clerical error 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 appropriate assessor\nand board of assessment review who shall consider the same to be the\nequivalent of a petition for correction filed with such board pursuant\nto 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 in subdivision four of this section, shall:\n (a) examine the application and report to determine whether the\nclaimed unlawful entry, clerical error or error in essential fact\nexists;\n (b) reject an application where it is determined that the claimed\nunlawful entry, clerical error or error in essential fact does not exist\nby making a notation on the application and the duplicate copy thereof\nthat the application is rejected and the reasons for the rejection;\n (c) approve an application where it is determined that the claimed\nunlawful entry, clerical error or error in essential fact does exist by\nmaking a notation on the application and the duplicate copy thereof that\nthe application is approved and by entering thereon the amount of the\nrefund to be paid or outstanding tax to be credited;\n (d) mail an application that has been rejected to the applicant;\n (e) mail an application that has been approved to the applicant.\n 6. (a) The amount of any tax refunded or credited pursuant to this\nsection shall be a charge upon each municipal corporation or special\ndistrict to the extent of any such municipal corporation or special\ndistrict taxes that were so refunded. Amounts so charged to cities,\ntowns and special districts shall be included in the next ensuing tax\nlevy.\n (b) In raising the amount of a refund or credit pursuant to this\nsection of a relevied school tax the appropriate tax levying body shall\ncharge back against the school district which levied such tax the amount\nof the refund or credit which shall not exceed the amount paid by the\ncounty treasurer to such school district upon the return of such tax.\nThe amount so charged against such school district shall be deducted by\nthe county treasurer and withheld from any moneys which shall become\npayable by him to such school district by reason of taxes which shall\nthereafter be returned to him by such school district. No such charge\nshall be made by the county legislative body against a school district\nunless ten days' notice thereof by mail has been given to the school\nauthorities thereof. Notice that such deduction will be made shall\nthereafter be given by the county treasurer in writing to such school\nauthorities on or before the first day of May prior to the making of\nsuch deduction.\n 7. The powers and duties imposed by this section upon the county\ndirector of real property tax services shall be performed by such\nofficer for taxes levied 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 8. (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 refund or credit 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 refund or\ncredit does not exceed the amount specified in the designating\nresolution, the county director shall transmit the written report of the\ninvestigation and recommendation, together with both copies of the\napplication, to the official designated by the tax levying body. Upon\nreceipt of the written report, the designated official shall follow the\nprocedure which the tax levying body would follow in making refunds,\nprovided, however, where the designated official denies the refund or\ncredit, in whole or in part, such official shall transmit to the tax\nlevying body for its review and disposition pursuant to subdivision five\nof this section the written report of the investigation and\nrecommendation of the county director, together with both copies of the\napplication and the reasons that the designated official denied the\nrefund or credit. Where the recommendation of the county director is to\ndeny the application or the refund or credit requested is in an amount\nin excess of the amount authorized in the enabling resolution, the\ncounty director shall transmit the written report of the investigation\nand recommendation, together with both copies of the application, to the\ntax 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 refunds or\ncredits 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 refund or credit.\n (d) In no case shall the total sum of such refunds or credits approved\nby the designated official exceed the amount appropriated therefor by\nthe tax levying body.\n 9. In the event that an appropriation for a refund authorized pursuant\nto this section is included in the annual budget next adopted after\napproval of such refund, interest shall be added to such refund computed\nfrom the date that the application is approved pursuant to subdivision\nfive or eight of this section.\n 10. When a portion of an outstanding tax has been credited pursuant to\nthis section, any interest and penalties that have been imposed thereon\nshall be reduced to the extent that such interest and penalties were\nattributable to the credited portion of the tax, and no additional\ninterest and penalties shall be imposed if the corrected amount of the\ntax is paid within eight days of the date on which the notice of\napproval is mailed pursuant to paragraph (e) of subdivision five of this\nsection.\n