Nassau County’s property-tax assessment system has been in a shambles for decades. Homeowners who protested their tax bills have generally been given relief. Those who didn’t grieve their taxes paid more than their fair share.
When Laura Curran was elected county executive two years ago, she immediately put forward a plan to undo the mess. It would phase in reassessment over five years to spread out potential tax increases for the roughly half of residents who have grieved their taxes in the past. The plan is still sitting in the County Legislature, awaiting approval by the Republican majority.
The system has been decaying since 2011, when then County Executive Edward Mangano stopped updating assessments, saying that freezing them would help him decide appeals quickly and save the county money.
The move did save $20 million annually, but created a huge tax shift. Most property owners who challenged assessments every year — many of them affluent — were granted reductions. Others, who tended to be poorer and older, never challenged their assessments and paid a larger share of the tax burden.
The proportion of homeowners expected to see tax increases live in a North Shore legislative district that includes Plainview, Jericho, Old Westbury and Roslyn Heights. The biggest decreases will be seen in Hempstead, Westbury, New Cassel, Uniondale, Freeport and Roosevelt.