I am delighted to announce that the Clarkstown Town Board will soon be
adopting a local law granting a partial real property tax reduction for our
Police Auxiliary volunteers. As of January 2026, new state legislation went
into effect which enables local municipalities the ability to “opt in” and offer
a tax exemption of up to 10% on the assessed value of the primary
residence of our auxiliary volunteers. The benefit is capped at a maximum
assessment reduction of $3000 multiplied by the current equalization rate.
I am thrilled to have this benefit extended to our auxiliary police volunteers,
which is something the Town had been lobbying for in a similar 2024
amendment covering volunteer EMS and firefighters. Clarkstown will offer
the maximum exemption allowed under the state legislation to the auxiliary
police officers, just as it had done previously for the firefighters and EMS
volunteers.
Our Auxiliary Officers provide an invaluable service to our residents by
assisting in matters such as routine traffic and crowd control which would
otherwise need to be covered by an on-duty officer. Combined, our
Auxiliary Officers typically log in over 8,000 hours of volunteer service each
year, helping keep our community safe and saving taxpayers significant
money by reducing police overtime.
Under the provisions of our new local law, the primary residential real
property owned by an enrolled member of the volunteer auxiliary police
shall be eligible for an exemption provided the following criteria are met:
A. The applicant resides in the Town or Village in which they serve as an
auxiliary volunteer.
B. The property is the primary residence of the applicant.
C. The property is used exclusively for residential purposes; provided,
however, that in the event that any portion of such property is not used
exclusively for the applicant's residence, but is used for other purposes,
such portion shall be subject to taxation and the remaining portion only
shall be entitled to the exemption provided by this article.
D. The applicant has been certified by the law enforcement agency in
which such volunteer auxiliary police officer serves as an active member as
determined by the local law enforcement agency’s standards for at least
five years.
Eligible volunteers must submit an application to the Town Assessor’s
office in order to receive the benefit. The deadline to apply for a reduction
on the 2027 tax bill is March 1, 2026.
I am grateful to the members of the Town Council for their commitment to
passing this local law offering tax relief to these wonderful volunteers, who
give so much to our community. Hopefully this incentive will be a useful
tool in recruiting new volunteers, who are greatly needed in the auxiliary at
this time. If you or anyone you know are interested in serving, please
contact the Clarkstown Police Department at 845-639-5800.
