State aid
To encourage fair, transparent and efficient assessing practices, ORPTS offers aid programs to localities. In part, these aid programs are designed to help local governments make improvements in assessment administration.
Aid for cyclical reassessments
The Aid for Cyclical Reassessments program encourages localities to provide fair assessment to protect their initial investments in quality assessment rolls. To be eligible, assessing units must commit to conducting reappraisals of all property at least once every four years. Up to $5 per parcel is available in the year of a full reappraisal.
For fiscal year 2024-2025, up to $750,000 in aid is available. Aid is only payable to assessing units conducting a reassessment that have not received aid in the previous two years.
Applications
Due to the funding limitations, localities should not file applications for assistance for 2024 unless they are conducting a full reappraisal in 2024 and have not received aid in 2022 or 2023. Interim assistance of up to $2 per parcel is not available this year.
Plans for cyclical reassessments
To remain eligible for assistance, any changes to plans with respect to a reappraisal cycle must be submitted no later than 120 days prior to tentative assessment roll date. For municipalities on a standard assessment calendar, changes for the 2025 roll need to be filed by December 31, 2024.
If you have any questions regarding state assistance or amending your plan, contact your ORPTS customer service team.
Program details
- Pub-1028, Guidelines for Cyclical Reassessment—describes eligibility criteria, data collection, reappraisal and plan requirements
- Statute: State assistance for the maintenance of a system of improved real property tax administration (1573, Real Property Tax Law)
- Rules
- Procedures
- Slideshow: includes summary information, as well as additional examples and details regarding inventory collection, reappraisal and reassessment plans
Application documents
- Form RP-1573-ACR-P, Plan for Cyclical Reassessments (please contact regional staff if you require a Word version).
- Form RP-1573-ACR-A, Application for Cyclical Reassessments.
For questions specific to your community, contact your ORPTS Regional Liaison.
Frequently asked questions
Q. What are the requirements for ACR?
Answer:
- Reappraisals at 100% of value (except in Nassau County and New York City)
- Reassessments implemented pursuant to a plan approved by ORPTS
- Four-year plan at the minimum (can be any length beyond that)
- Reappraisals at least once every 4 years
- Reappraisals conducted in the first and last years of the plan
- Inventory collection at least once every 6 years
- Compliance with standards for quality assessment administration
Q. What are the reappraisal requirements?
Answer:
- Reappraisals at least once every 4 years
- Trending is not acceptable as the sole means of establishing a new market value for any parcel
- On-site review of appraisals is required; office review may be substituted if appraisers have collected or re-inspected property data in the reappraisal year, or the office review utilizes oblique aerial, orthophoto or street-level photography taken within three years of the reassessment year
What are the data collection requirements?
Answer:
- Inventory collection at least once every six years for each parcel
- The program guidelines will be based on IAAO standards and promote on-site physical review
What are the requirements for the plan and application?
Answer:
- Applications are due 90 days after final roll (typically Oct. 1)
- Plans are due 120 days prior to the tentative assessment roll date (typically Jan. 1)
- The reappraisal in the last year of a plan can serve as the first year of a subsequent plan
Examples of reappraisal
Reappraisal Plan | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
4-year plan * | Reappraisal $5 | Reappraisal $5 | |||
5-year plan ** (Maximum time between reappraisals) | Reappraisal $5 | Reappraisal $5 |
* Minimum plan length is 4 years; reappraisals are required in the first and last years
** The maximum time between reappraisals is 4 years
Consolidation incentive aid
Two or more assessing units are eligible to receive a one-time payment of up to $7 per parcel if they assess all property at a uniform percentage and merge their assessment functions by doing one of the following:
- Combining to form a consolidated assessing unit by employing a single assessor, preparing a single assessment roll, assessing at a uniform percentage, conducting reassessments at the same time and having a single Board of Assessment Review.
- Coordinating the assessing function to form a coordinated assessment program by either employing a single assessor or contracting with the county to provide assessment services, specifying the same uniform percentage of value for all assessments and using the same assessment calendar.
- Forming a county assessing unit.
The objective of this program is to reduce the number of assessing jurisdictions in New York State in an effort to improve the efficiency in the administration of the real property tax. Each of the approaches described above will also provide a way for smaller municipalities to reduce the cost of reassessment, facilitate acquisition of new technology and obtain valuation expertise.
Additional information
- Statute: State assistance for the maintenance of a system of improved real property tax administration (1573, Real Property Tax Law)
- Statute: Establishment of consolidated assessing units (1602, Real Property Tax Law)
- Statute: Coordinated assessment programs (579, Real Property Tax Law)
- Statute: Optional county services (1537, Real Property Tax Law)
- Form RP-3619, Consolidated Incentive Aid Program Application for State Aid
- List of coordinated assessment programs
- Coordinated assessment agreement
County aid
Provides a one-time payment of up to $1 per parcel where the county provides data collection, sales verification, assessment, appraisal, exemption or any other assessment related services to assessing units. The county may provide any one or a combination of these services.
In order to be eligible to receive County Aid, the county and the assessing unit(s) must enter into an agreement regarding the provision of specified services in accordance with Section 1537 of the RPTL.
Additional information
- Statute: State assistance for the maintenance of a system of improved real property tax administration (1573, Real Property Tax Law)
- Statute: Optional county services (1537, Real Property Tax Law)
- Statute: Powers and duties of director of real property tax services (1532, Real Property Tax Law)
- Form RP-3616, Optional County Services Application for State Aid