New Yorkers finally have long-awaited answers on details surrounding New York City’s pied-a-terre tax, statewide energy rebate checks and a tax on alternative nicotine products.
The last of the policy-filled bills — the state’s revenue budget bill — was passed by the state Senate and Assembly on Wednesday, May 27, and also includes a state-level deduction for tipped income up to $25,000 and the extension of the state’s residential energy storage exemption for two years as well as exemptions, reimbursements and credits for certain alternate fuels for five years.
Here’s what to know.
New Yorkers could receive $200 energy rebate checks
The state budget is spending $1 billion on one-time Protecting Our Wallets Energy Rebate (POWER) credits for 8.2 million New York taxpayers.
You’ll be eligible for the checks, which are expected to be mailed between September and December, if you were a full-year New York resident in 2024, filed a timely tax return for 2024, had a state adjusted gross income of $300,000 or less if you filed jointly in 2024, or $150,000 or less if you were a single filer or married but filed separately in 2024. You won’t be eligible if you were claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer in 2024.
Here’s how much you could earn:
How will New York City’s pied-a-terre tax work?
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has pushed to “tax the rich” throughout his campaign as well as the first several months of his leadership of the Big Apple. The state’s allowance of a pied-a-terre tax is a very watered down version of that.
Estimated to raise $500 million in revenue for the city, the tax will ultimately affect those with non-primary properties valued at $5 million or more by July 1, 2028 and run through mid-2031.
And while some lawmakers pushed to extend the tax beyond the city, which made waves, it ultimately wasn’t included.
Will alternative nicotine products be taxed in New York?
Alternative nicotine products, such as nicotine pouches, will be included in the state’s 75% wholesale tax on tobacco products.
Pitched by Gov. Kathy Hochul and included in both houses’ one-house budgets, the Hochul administration’s main argument for boosting taxes on these additional nicotine products are their adverse effects on younger New Yorkers.
Calls to poison control centers involving children under the age of 6 and accidental nicotine pouch ingestion increased by 763% from 2020 to 2023, according to USA TODAY reporting.
However, business groups have argued higher taxes would lead to higher product costs, ultimately impeding adults’ access to smoke-free alternatives. There was also concern that the tax would accelerate the growth of illicit sales of these products.
Emily Barnes covers state government for the USA TODAY Network-New York with a focus on how policy and laws impact New Yorkers’ taxes, communities and jobs. Follow her on Instagram or X @byemilybarnes. Get in touch at ebarnes@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY approves utility rebate checks, new NYC tax in state budget
Reporting by Emily Barnes, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
