Requires that tax amounts extended on the final assessment roll, and any interest or penalties subsequently accruing thereon, be rounded to the nearest five-cent denomination

2025 Regular Session Introduced by James Skoufis

Rounding all final roll tax amounts, interest, and penalties to the nearest five cents before bills and warrants, with no post-rounding adjustments.

AMENDED ON THIRD READING (T) 9541A

Summary of Bill S. 9541 (2025-2026) – New York Real Property Tax Law

Purpose and intent

The bill revises how tax amounts on the final assessment roll, along with any interest or penalties accrued on those amounts, are rounded before being included in tax bills and notices.

The core goal is to standardize rounding to the nearest five-cent denomination to simplify billing and reduce minor discrepancies.

Key provisions and changes

Amends Section 904 of the Real Property Tax Law by adding a new subdivision 5.

Requirements:

All tax amounts extended on the final assessment roll must be rounded to the nearest five-cent denomination before:
delivery of the warrant
issuance of tax bills
The rounding must be applied uniformly to all tax amounts and reflected in the warrant delivered to the collecting officer.
Any interest or penalties accruing on the rounded amount must also be rounded to the nearest five-cent denomination at the time of computation, prior to inclusion on any bill or notice.
Collecting officers may not make any further adjustments to the tax amount at the time of collection due to rounding.

Effective date: The act takes effect January 1 of the year following the date it becomes law.

Who/what is affected

Local government tax collectors and treasurers responsible for calculating and issuing tax warrants, bills, and notices.

Taxpayers whose final assessment roll amounts, interest, and penalties will be rounded for billing purposes.

The rounding applies uniformly to all tax amounts, ensuring consistency across jurisdictions.

Procedural and timeline aspects

Process change occurs at the stage of final assessment roll preparation and warrant issuance, prior to any bill generation.

Rounding is fixed at the time of computation and included on the warrant; no post-issuance adjustments for rounding are permitted during collection.

The law becomes effective on January 1 of the year after it becomes law (i.e., a future January 1 date post-enactment).

Practical impact and considerations

Benefits: Simplifies amounts for billing and reduces minor discrepancies caused by penny-level rounding. Could streamline collections and reduce handling of fractional cents.

Limitations: All rounding is to the nearest five cents; there is no option for additional adjustments beyond this rounding. Jurisdictions will need to ensure their systems (final rolls, warrants, and billing software) implement the uniform five-cent rounding consistently.

Administrative note: Changes are procedural and technical rather than creating new taxes or changing assessment levels.

If you’d like, I can add a short FAQ or a comparison of current practice versus the proposed rounding to help readers quickly grasp the practical differences.