New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) has issued an executive order that allows for automatic renewal of property tax exemptions for some vulnerable citizens and provides an extension for sales tax payments for some restaurants affected by the pandemic.
Under Executive Order 202.83, signed by Cuomo December 19, the sales tax deadlines for payments due December 21 will be extended to March 2021 for restaurants and other food service establishments that were required to stop indoor dining.
The three-month extension “will ease tax burdens for restaurants and bars in communities where COVID-19 metrics necessitated additional restrictions,” according to a December 19 release.
The order also allows local governments to automatically renew property tax exemptions for 2021 for low-income senior citizens and people with disabilities who received the benefits in 2020. According to the release, property tax benefits are usually claimed or renewed in person at town halls and changing this requirement would help to limit the spread of COVID-19.
The automatic renewal of the property tax benefits will allow thousands of vulnerable low-income seniors and those with disabilities to stay in their homes during the pandemic, according to the release.
The governor's order also allows rent relief payments to be authorized to tenants, “without requiring that a tenant provide proof that they were paying more than 30 percent of gross monthly income towards rent prior to March, 2020.”
The order also relieves healthcare providers of some medical recordkeeping requirements and continues the suspension of the Family Court Act until January 17, 2021.
Cuomo’s office did not respond to a request for comment by press time.