The Town values its volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers
and seeks to provide qualifying volunteers and their spouses with
a partial real property tax exemption. This article sets forth the
requirements that must be met for volunteers to qualify for a 10%
real property tax exemption.
A 10% real property tax exemption shall be granted to real property
in the Town, provided that the following eligibility requirements
are met:
A. The property is owned or jointly owned by a current member of an
incorporated volunteer fire company, fire department, or incorporated
voluntary ambulance service serving the Town of Richmond who has met
the minimum service requirements ("volunteer"); and
B. The property is used exclusively for the volunteer's primary
residence, and any portion of the property that is not used exclusively
for such purposes shall not be entitled to this exemption; and
C. The volunteer does not receive an exemption under this article on
any other parcel of real property; and
D. The volunteer is currently enrolled as a member of an incorporated volunteer fire company, fire department, or incorporated voluntary ambulance service that serves the Town and has been certified, pursuant to §
178-24, to have met a two-year service minimum; and
E. If an applicant receives this exemption, the applicant cannot claim
a New York State income tax credit for the same volunteer service.
However, if the property has multiple owners, the owner(s) whose volunteer
service was not the basis of this exemption is eligible to claim that
income tax credit.
Volunteer firefighters or volunteer ambulance workers shall
receive a 10% real property tax exemption on eligible property for
the remainder of his or her lifetime if the following qualifications
are met:
A. The volunteer is certified by the incorporated volunteer fire company,
fire department, or incorporated voluntary ambulance service to have
accrued over 20 years of active service in an incorporated volunteer
fire company, fire department, or incorporated voluntary ambulance
service; and
B. The volunteer owns and resides at real property used as his or her
primary residence in the Town of Richmond.
The spouses of deceased volunteer firefighters or volunteer
ambulance workers who have not remarried shall receive a 10% real
property tax exemption for the remainder of his or her lifetime if
the following qualifications are met:
A. The spouse is certified by the Town of Richmond Assessor as an unremarried
spouse of a deceased enrolled member of an incorporated volunteer
fire company, fire department or incorporated volunteer ambulance
corps which serves the Town of Richmond; and
B. The deceased volunteer was an enrolled member for at least 20 years
or at least five years if the volunteer was killed in the line of
duty; and
C. The deceased volunteer and unremarried spouse were receiving an exemption
under this article for such property prior to the death of the volunteer.
No volunteer firefighter or volunteer ambulance worker and/or
unremarried spouses of deceased volunteer firefighters and volunteer
ambulance workers who received a partial real property tax exemption
under the Town of Richmond Code and New York State law prior to this
article going into effect shall suffer any diminution of such benefit
because of the provisions of this article.
An application to receive a partial real property tax exemption
under this article shall be filed with the Town Assessor on or before
the taxable status date on a form as prescribed by the New York State
Taxation and Finance Commissioner. The Town of Richmond must provide
written eligibility requirements and guidelines, available upon request,
as to the requirements of an enrolled volunteer member relating to
this exemption.
Each incorporated volunteer fire company, incorporated volunteer
fire department, and incorporated voluntary ambulance service serving
the Town of Richmond shall file a notice annually, prior to the applicable
taxable status date, with the Town of Richmond Assessor certifying
its enrolled members that have two or more years of service. Such
notice shall list as of the applicable taxable status date the number
of years of service served by each such enrolled member and such enrolled
member's address of residence.