[Adopted 12-3-2008 by L.L. No. 4-2008[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law was originally adopted as Art. IIB but was redesignated to maintain the organizational structure of the Code. For the veterans exemption and the Cold War veterans exemption, see Arts. II and VI, respectively.
The purpose of this article is to amend Chapter 199 of the Code of the Town of Clarence, adding Article VII, Exemption for Physically Disabled Persons, to provide a partial exemption from general municipal taxes to residential real property, including improvements that serve to facilitate the use and accessibility of such property by physically disabled residents to the extent of any increase in value attributable to such improvements, but is liable for special ad valorem levies and special assessments.
This article is adopted pursuant to New York Municipal Home Rule Law Section 10 and Real Property Tax Law Section 459.
This article shall be titled "Physically Disabled Persons."
Article VII of Chapter 199 of the Code of the Town of Clarence shall provide the following in accordance with Section 459 of the New York State Real Property Tax Law:
A. 
Amount of exemption; when effective.
(1) 
An improvement to any real property used solely for residential purposes as a one-, two- or three-family residence shall be exempt from taxation to the extent of any increase in value attributable to such improvement if such improvement is used for the purpose of facilitating and accommodating the use and accessibility of such real property by:
(a) 
A resident owner of the real property who is physically disabled; or
(b) 
A member of the resident owner's household who is physically disabled, if such member resides in the real property.
(2) 
The exemption shall apply to improvements constructed after the effective date of this article.
B. 
To qualify as physically disabled for the purposes of this article, an individual shall submit to the Assessor a certified statement from a physician licensed to practice in the state on a form prescribed and made available by the State Board which states that the individual has a permanent physical impairment which substantially limits one or more of such individual's major life activities, except that an individual who has obtained a certificate from the state Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped stating that such individual is legally blind may submit such certificate in lieu of a physician's certified statement.
C. 
Such exemption shall be granted only upon application by the owner or all of the owners of the real property on a form prescribed and made available by the State Board. The applicant shall furnish such information as the Board shall require. The application shall be filed, together with the appropriate certified statement of physical disability or certificate of blindness, with the Assessor of the Town of Clarence on or before the taxable status date of the Town of Clarence.
D. 
If the Assessor is satisfied that the improvement is necessary to facilitate and accommodate the use and accessibility by a resident who is physically disabled and that the applicant is entitled to an exemption pursuant to this section, the Assessor shall approve the application and enter the taxable assessed value of the parcel for which an exemption has been granted pursuant to this section on the assessment roll with the taxable property, with the amount of the exemption as determined pursuant to Subsection A of this section in a separate column. Once granted, the exemption shall continue on the real property until the improvement ceases to be necessary to facilitate and accommodate the use and accessibility of the property by the resident who is physically disabled.