Homeowners in New York should expect a one-time property tax rebate check in their mailbox sometime this month, as the scheduled stimulus dollars arrive early. A total of $2.2 billion in tax relief will be distributed to New York homeowners under the statewide homeowner Tax Rebate Credit plan.
Under the tax rebate concept, middle-income homeowners across the state will be given some amount of relief from the rising cost of food, gas, and consumer goods.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said that the budget which authorizes the distribution of tax funds “provides much-needed tax relief for thousands of small businesses and millions of New Yorkers.”
Checks were initially expected to begin reaching milestones by late June and early July, but reports revealed how the Department of Taxation and Finance was ahead of schedule and had already delivered 1.8 million checks statewide as of last week. It means that most people received their checks ahead of the June 28 Democratic primary, which Hochul won.
Hochul Announced Tax Rebate Plans Earlier This Year
Hochul announced the tax rebate scheme in April and was accused at the time of capitalizing on the tax rebates and taking credit, in the hope that New York residents would lend her their support in the primary race.
The contents of a letter attached to the checks being delivered to New York residents, who will go to the polls to decide their next governor this November, were seen by the media early.
“Governor Hochul and the New York State Legislature are providing you this Homeowner Tax Rebate check that you can use to help pay your property taxes,” the letter reads, per the New York Post.
It wasn’t the first time, either, that checks were announced and distributed early. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo did exactly the same thing, just before the September 2018 Democratic primary. Unlike Cuomo, however, Hochul went one step further and ensured that her name appears on the letters that accompany the check.
Tax Rebate: Are You Eligible?
Most eligible New York residents have already received their payment or checks, but if you have yet to receive yours and you’re not sure if you are eligible, the government website lays it out in detail.
To get the tax rebate, according to the site, New York residents must have lived in a school district that complied with the New York State property tax cap. You can see if your district complied at this link.
Homeowners must have had an income of $275,000 or less last year, paid school property taxes that year, and also been eligible for Basic or Enhanced STAR exemption.
Jack Buckby is a British author, counter-extremism researcher, and journalist based in New York. Reporting on the U.K., Europe, and the U.S., he works to analyze and understand left-wing and right-wing radicalization, and reports on Western governments’ approaches to the pressing issues of today. His books and research papers explore these themes and propose pragmatic solutions to our increasingly polarized society.
