Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Want A Property Tax Rebate? You're Going To Have To Apply In Person

By Ted Cox | October 19, 2016 12:28pm | Updated on October 20, 2016 11:47am
 The property tax rebate is expected to help 155,000 households.
The property tax rebate is expected to help 155,000 households.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Patty Wetli

CITY HALL — In the wake of the record increase in property taxes approved by the City Council last year, aldermen adopted a rebate program this summer to provide some relief for households with an income under $75,000.

But in order to get a rebate you're going to have to apply in person at one of 26 neighborhood agencies designated to handle them ahead of the Nov. 30 deadline.

That has Ald. Michele Smith (43rd) questioning why.

"You know, with this thing called the internet, people should be able to scan in whatever it is they need to have to prove their income," Smith said during City Council budget hearings this week.

"Having to require an in-person application, especially among the people who might be the least able to take a day off to apply in person for this rebate, which is based on income, is a tremendous inconvenience," she said.

The $20 million program was expected to apply to 155,000 households, with an average rebate estimated at $150.

Budget Director Alexandra Holt said about 1,600 people applied for a rebate in the first week after the program launched Oct. 1, or about 1 percent of those who would qualify. She said the average rebate at that point was $116.

Holt claimed people have to apply in person for the rebate because of sensitive nature of the necessary documents required in the application process.

"People are bringing sensitive tax documents, both income documents as well as property-tax documents, and we didn't want those," Holt said. "We don't want to have to be responsible for protecting and maintaining that information in a confidential manner."

But Smith offered to have aldermen handle the applications in their ward offices, "the same way we often have property-tax assistance in our offices."

The rebate program also includes an expanded senior-citizen supplement, which Smith specifically lobbied for.

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here.