Bill Text: NY A03634 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes a petition to start the process to change the elective office of receiver of taxes.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-11 - reported referred to codes [A03634 Detail]
Download: New_York-2011-A03634-Introduced.html
S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K ________________________________________________________________________ 3634 2011-2012 Regular Sessions I N A S S E M B L Y January 26, 2011 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GALEF, CROUCH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Local Governments AN ACT to amend the general municipal law and the town law, in relation to establishing a petition process to change the elective office of receiver of taxes THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: 1 Section 1. The general municipal law is amended by adding a new arti- 2 cle 17-B to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 17-B 4 PETITION PROCESS TO ELIMINATE CERTAIN 5 POSITIONS 6 SECTION 799-A. DEFINITIONS. 7 799-B. PROCESS UPON PETITION OR RESOLUTION. 8 799-C. PETITION TO START THE PROCESS TO CHANGE THE ELECTIVE 9 OFFICE OF RECEIVER OF TAXES. 10 S 799-A. DEFINITIONS. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS ARTICLE: 11 1. THE TERM "QUALIFIED ELECTOR" SHALL MEAN A PERSON WHO IS REGISTERED 12 TO VOTE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THE ELECTION LAW. 13 2. THE TERM "PARTICIPATING MUNICIPALITY" SHALL MEAN A TOWN OR VILLAGE 14 THAT HAS STARTED THE PETITION PROCESS PURSUANT TO SECTION SEVEN HUNDRED 15 NINETY-NINE-B OF THIS ARTICLE. 16 S 799-B. PROCESS UPON PETITION OR RESOLUTION. 1. THE PROCESS SHALL 17 START IN A MUNICIPALITY ONCE A PETITION FROM THE RESIDENTS IS FILED WITH 18 THE MUNICIPAL CLERK. 19 2. UPON RECEIVING A PETITION FROM THE RESIDENTS, THE PARTICIPATING 20 MUNICIPALITY SHALL SUBMIT THE QUESTION OF THE CHANGE OF OFFICE OF 21 RECEIVER OF TAXES TO THE VOTERS. 22 3. A CERTIFICATE OF THE ELECTION SHALL BE FILED WITH THE SECRETARY OF 23 STATE, WITH THE CLERKS OF EACH PARTICIPATING MUNICIPALITY, AND WITH THE EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00482-01-1 A. 3634 2 1 CLERKS OF EACH COUNTY IN WHICH ANY PART OF THE PARTICIPATING MUNICI- 2 PALITY IS LOCATED. 3 4. IF THE MAJORITY OF VOTES CAST ON THE REFERENDUM IN EACH PARTICIPAT- 4 ING MUNICIPALITY, ARE IN THE AFFIRMATIVE, THE MUNICIPALITY WITHIN THIRTY 5 DAYS OF THE DATE OF THE REFERENDUM SHALL NOTIFY SUCH RECEIVER OF TAXES 6 THAT HE OR SHE SHALL SERVE OUT THEIR REMAINING TERM. 7 5. IF THE MAJORITY OF VOTES CAST ON THE REFERENDUM IN EACH PARTICIPAT- 8 ING MUNICIPALITY ARE IN THE NEGATIVE, THE REFERENDUM SHALL FAIL AND THE 9 PETITION PROCESS MAY NOT BE INITIATED FOR THE SAME PURPOSE WITHIN TWO 10 YEARS OF THE DATE OF SUCH REFERENDUM. 11 S 799-C. PETITION TO START THE PROCESS TO CHANGE THE ELECTIVE OFFICE 12 OF RECEIVER OF TAXES. 1. ELIGIBLE SIGNATURES. TO START THE PETITION 13 PROCESS, A PETITION MUST HAVE SIGNATURES FROM RESIDENTS OF THE JURISDIC- 14 TION, EQUAL TO AT LEAST TEN PERCENT OF THE RESIDENT ELECTORS QUALIFIED 15 TO VOTE IN THE LAST GENERAL ELECTION. THOSE SIGNING THE PETITION MUST BE 16 QUALIFIED TO VOTE AT THE TIME OF THE FILING OF THE PETITION WITH THE 17 MUNICIPAL CLERK. 18 2. TIME LIMIT. A SIGNATURE SHALL BE INVALID IF IT IS SIGNED UPON THE 19 PETITION MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY DAYS BEFORE THE PETITION IS FILED 20 WITH THE MUNICIPAL CLERK, UNLESS THE GOVERNING BOARD PASSES A RESOLUTION 21 TO GIVE ADDITIONAL TIME TO COLLECT SIGNATURES. 22 3. FORM. THE PETITION SHALL BE IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE FOLLOWING FORM: 23 PETITION 24 WE, THE UNDERSIGNED, ELECTORS OF THE (INSERT TYPE OF MUNICIPALITY - TOWN 25 OR VILLAGE) OF (INSERT NAME OF MUNICIPALITY) 26 , NEW YORK, QUALIFIED TO VOTE AT THE NEXT GENERAL OR SPECIAL ELECTION, 27 DO HEREBY PETITION THAT THERE BE SUBMITTED TO THE VOTERS OF (INSERT NAME 28 OF MUNICIPALITY) , PURSUANT TO LAW, A PROPOSITION AS FOLLOWS: 29 (INSERT PROPOSITION SOUGHT TO BE SUBMITTED) THE UNDERSIGNED QUALIFIED 30 ELECTORS HEREBY REQUEST THAT A REFERENDUM VOTE UPON THE ABOVE PROPOSI- 31 TION BE TAKEN AS PROVIDED BY LAW. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, WE HAVE SIGNED 32 OUR NAMES ON THE DATES INDICATED NEXT TO OUR SIGNATURES. 33 DATE NAME - PRINT NAME UNDER SIGNATURE HOME ADDRESS 34 1. ______ __________________________________ ____________________________ 35 2. ______ __________________________________ ____________________________ 36 3. ______ __________________________________ ____________________________ 37 (ON THE BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE, AFTER ALL THE NUMBERED SIGNATURES, INSERT A 38 WITNESS STATEMENT OR A STATEMENT BY A NOTARY PUBLIC OR COMMISSIONER OF 39 DEEDS, IN SUBSTANTIALLY THE FOLLOWING FORM:) 40 I, (NAME OF WITNESS), STATE THAT I AM A REGISTERED VOTER OF THE STATE OF 41 NEW YORK. I AM A RESIDENT OF THE (TOWN OR VILLAGE) OF (NAME OF TOWN OR 42 VILLAGE). THE PERSONS THAT HAVE SIGNED THIS PETITION SHEET CONTAINING 43 (FILL IN NUMBER) SIGNATURES, HAVE SIGNED THEIR NAMES IN MY PRESENCE ON 44 THE DATES INDICATED ABOVE AND IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES TO BE THE SAME 45 PERSONS WHO SIGNED THE SHEET. I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS STATEMENT WILL BE 46 ACCEPTED FOR ALL PURPOSES AS THE EQUIVALENT OF AN AFFIDAVIT, AND IF IT 47 CONTAINS A MATERIALLY FALSE STATEMENT, SHALL SUBJECT ME TO THE PENALTIES 48 OF PERJURY. 49 ___________ _______________________________________ 50 DATE SIGNATURE OF WITNESS 51 (IN LIEU OF THE SIGNED STATEMENT OF A WITNESS WHO IS A DULY QUALIFIED 52 VOTER OF THE STATE, QUALIFIED TO SIGN THE PETITION AS A RESIDENT OF THE 53 TOWN OR VILLAGE, THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT SIGNED BY A NOTARY PUBLIC OR A 54 COMMISSIONER OF DEEDS SHALL BE ACCEPTED.) ON THE DATE ABOVE INDICATED 55 BEFORE ME PERSONALLY CAME EACH OF THE VOTERS WHOSE SIGNATURES APPEAR ON 56 THIS PETITION SHEET CONTAINING (FILL IN NUMBER) SIGNATURES, WHO SIGNED A. 3634 3 1 SAME IN MY PRESENCE AND WHO, BEING BY ME DULY SWORN, EACH FOR HIMSELF OR 2 HERSELF, SAID THAT THE FOREGOING STATEMENT MADE AND SUBSCRIBED BY HIM OR 3 HER, WAS TRUE. 4 ___________ _______________________________________ 5 DATE NOTARY PUBLIC OR COMMISSIONER OF DEEDS 6 4. LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION. IN MATTERS OF FORM, THIS SECTION SHALL BE 7 GIVEN A LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION, AND PRECISE COMPLIANCE IS NOT REQUIRED. 8 S 2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 6 of section 20 of the town law, as 9 added by chapter 343 of the laws of 1940, and as relettered by chapter 10 302 of the laws of 1974, is amended to read as follows: 11 (c) (I) At least one hundred fifty days prior to any biennial town 12 election, the town board of any town of the first class in which the 13 appointive office of receiver of taxes and assessments shall exist, may 14 adopt a resolution, subject to a permissive referendum, that the office 15 of receiver of taxes and assessments shall be an elective office in such 16 town. Every elector of the town shall be entitled to vote at any refer- 17 endum held thereon pursuant to the provisions of article seven of this 18 chapter. If the town board shall have adopted such a resolution and no 19 petition shall have been filed within the time specified in article 20 seven OF THIS CHAPTER for a referendum thereon, or, if a majority of the 21 votes cast on any such proposition submitted pursuant to the provisions 22 of article seven OF THIS CHAPTER be in the affirmative the office of 23 receiver of taxes and assessments shall thereafter be an elective office 24 in such town, and a receiver of taxes and assessments shall be elected 25 at the succeeding biennial town election for the term provided by this 26 chapter, beginning on the first day of January next succeeding such 27 biennial town election and the term of office of the appointive receiver 28 of taxes and assessments for whom such successor shall be elected shall 29 expire on said first day of January. 30 (II) NO PETITION SHALL HAVE BEEN FILED WITHIN THE TIME SPECIFIED IN 31 ARTICLE SEVEN OF THIS CHAPTER FOR A REFERENDUM THEREON, OR, IF A MAJORI- 32 TY OF THE VOTES CAST ON ANY SUCH PROPOSITION SUBMITTED PURSUANT TO THE 33 PROVISIONS OF ARTICLE SEVEN OF THIS CHAPTER BE IN THE AFFIRMATIVE THE 34 OFFICE OF RECEIVER OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS SHALL THEREAFTER BE AN 35 APPOINTIVE OFFICE IN SUCH TOWN, AND THE TOWN BOARD SHALL APPOINT A 36 RECEIVER OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS FOR THE TERM PROVIDED BY THIS CHAPTER, 37 BEGINNING ON THE FIRST DAY OF JANUARY NEXT SUCCEEDING SUCH BIENNIAL TOWN 38 ELECTION AND THE TERM OF OFFICE OF THE ELECTIVE RECEIVER OF TAXES AND 39 ASSESSMENTS FOR WHOM SUCH SUCCESSOR SHALL BE APPOINTED SHALL EXPIRE ON 40 SAID FIRST DAY OF JANUARY. 41 S 3. Subdivision 1 of section 36 of the town law, as amended by chap- 42 ter 437 of the laws of 1963, is amended to read as follows: 43 1. In any town [of the second class] in which the office of tax 44 collector or receiver of taxes AND ASSESSMENTS exists, the town board 45 thereof may by resolution duly adopted at least one hundred fifty days 46 prior to any biennial town election, determine that said office be abol- 47 ished, same to take effect at the expiration of the term of office to 48 which the incumbent was elected or appointed; and no such tax collector 49 or town receiver of taxes AND ASSESSMENTS shall be elected at any bien- 50 nial town election held not less than one hundred fifty days thereafter. 51 Upon the expiration of the term of office of such tax collector or town 52 receiver of taxes AND ASSESSMENTS as provided [herein] IN THIS CHAPTER, 53 he OR SHE shall surrender and deliver to the town clerk of said town all 54 assessment rolls, books, papers, writings and all other documents and 55 property in his OR HER possession as such officer. In all towns where 56 the office of tax collector or receiver of taxes AND ASSESSMENTS has A. 3634 4 1 been abolished, it shall be the duty of such town clerk to collect and 2 receive all state, county and town taxes and assessments that may be 3 levied in such town and the town clerk shall have all the powers and be 4 subject to all the duties of a collector IN A TOWN OF THE SECOND CLASS, 5 OR OF A RECEIVER OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS IN A TOWN OF THE FIRST CLASS 6 with respect to the collection of such taxes, the deposit of receipts 7 and the return of unpaid taxes, as provided by subdivision one of 8 section thirty-five OR SECTION THIRTY-SEVEN of this [chapter] ARTICLE, 9 AS THE CASE MAY BE. 10 S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.