Bill would prevent tax increase on properties with declining value

From Patch:

State Sen. Tony Avella, D-Bayside, has introduced a bill that would prohibit the city from increasing property taxes on homes where an assessed value has decreased in the previous year.

The senator said property owners in his northeast Queens district have been subject to huge property tax increases during the past decade as a result of the housing boom.

But as the housing market dropped substantially due to the recession that began in 2008, property values have yet to recover from these declines. However, the city continues to increase property taxes with no regard to property values that have declined and not recovered, Avella said.

Under Avella’s legislation, the city would not be allowed to increase property taxes on homes where assessed values had gone down during the previous year.