At The Capital
Legislators managed to pass a final state budget this past week. Highlights of the 2008-09 spending plan are outlined below.
Fiscal Overview
The state Legislature gave final approval this week to a 2008-09 state budget that increases fees and taxes for New Yorkers by $1.5 billion, provides record spending for education and adds an additional $1.6 billion for economic development projects across the state including $200 million towards affordable housing initiatives.
The budget will total $80.5 billion in state spending - about $1.1 billion less than former Gov. Eliot Spitzer proposed but about 4.5 percent more than the prior fiscal year. Because of lower spending projections in fiscal 2007-08, budget analysts lowered the state's overall 2008-09 budget, including federal aid, from $124 billion to $121.7 billion. Still, the total budget represents nearly a 5 percent spending increase.
Real estate-related highlights from the 2008-09 state budget
• No licensing fee increases for real estate professionals.
• No increases to the state mortgage recording tax or the state’s real estate transfer tax.
The final budget did not include two anti-REALTOR proposals that NYSAR fought against that were initially submitted in Governor Spitzer’s executive budget:
• Spitzer’s plan to increase the transfer fee imposed during real estate closings for sales over $175,000. Under his plan, the real property transfer fee would rise on a sliding scale from $75 up to $400 for residential properties based on sale price. This increase was intended to improve the efficiency of local property tax administration and other Office of Real Property Services operations.
• Elimination of Spitzer’s plan to provide counties the option to increase the county clerk recording fee from $5 to $20 and the additional per-page filing fee from $3 to $5. The increase in these fees was expected to help counties raise an extra $70 million and $27 million for NYC.
The final budget will provide $25 million in grants through the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) for legal services and financial counseling for homeowners facing default and foreclosure due to the unscrupulous practices of the mortgage industry.
Other budget highlights
The budget includes:
• $1.5 billion in new taxes and $205 million in new fees.
• A record $1.75 billion increase in school aid, to about $20 billion, including a guarantee that no district will receive less than a 3 percent increase.
• A $5 million increase in the Environmental Protection Fund to $255 million. The EPF is paid for though revenues collected from the state real estate transfer tax.
The budget will total $80.5 billion in state spending - about $1.1 billion less than former Gov. Eliot Spitzer proposed but about 4.5 percent more than the prior fiscal year. Because of lower spending projections in fiscal 2007-08, budget analysts lowered the state's overall 2008-09 budget, including federal aid, from $124 billion to $121.7 billion. Still, the total budget represents nearly a 5 percent spending increase.
Real estate-related highlights from the 2008-09 state budget
• No licensing fee increases for real estate professionals.
• No increases to the state mortgage recording tax or the state’s real estate transfer tax.
The final budget did not include two anti-REALTOR proposals that NYSAR fought against that were initially submitted in Governor Spitzer’s executive budget:
• Spitzer’s plan to increase the transfer fee imposed during real estate closings for sales over $175,000. Under his plan, the real property transfer fee would rise on a sliding scale from $75 up to $400 for residential properties based on sale price. This increase was intended to improve the efficiency of local property tax administration and other Office of Real Property Services operations.
• Elimination of Spitzer’s plan to provide counties the option to increase the county clerk recording fee from $5 to $20 and the additional per-page filing fee from $3 to $5. The increase in these fees was expected to help counties raise an extra $70 million and $27 million for NYC.
The final budget will provide $25 million in grants through the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) for legal services and financial counseling for homeowners facing default and foreclosure due to the unscrupulous practices of the mortgage industry.
Other budget highlights
The budget includes:
• $1.5 billion in new taxes and $205 million in new fees.
• A record $1.75 billion increase in school aid, to about $20 billion, including a guarantee that no district will receive less than a 3 percent increase.
• A $5 million increase in the Environmental Protection Fund to $255 million. The EPF is paid for though revenues collected from the state real estate transfer tax.
This update on government and politics in New York State is taken from a weekly publication published by NYSAR’s Government Affairs Department. REALTOR members and staff are urged to share this information as appropriate and reprint it in membership publications. Please note that all questions, comments and concerns should be directed to govt@nysar.com as the sending address for this update is not monitored.
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