NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — A state Supreme Court judge on Staten Island sided with a group of homeowners and a New York City co-op in a lawsuit challenging the rollout of the city’s controversial “pied-à-terre tax,” a decision that could delay implementation of the tax through the end of the year.
The annual surcharge applies to secondary and non-primary residential properties. Mayor Zohran Mamdani has promoted the tax as a way to close the city’s budget gap and fulfill his promise to “tax the rich.”
The lawsuit focused on how the tax was implemented. Filed on behalf of a group of homeowners and a New York City co-op, the case argued that the city mishandled the rollout.
On Tuesday, Judge Wayne Ozzi of the state Supreme Court on Staten Island ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. In his decision, the judge wrote that “homeowners are being substantially harmed and penalized needlessly.”
Attorney Randy Mastro said the city improperly placed the burden on taxpayers to prove they live in their homes, rather than requiring the city to make that determination.
“I don’t like to be in a position to have to bring cases like this. The clients come to us and present meritorious claims that the city administration is breaking the law and they are the victims of it. So, it’s an honor to take on cases on their behalf. It takes a lot of courage to take on City Hall,” Mastro said.
Originally, 17,000 notices were sent to property owners. Tuesday’s ruling requires the city to redo the notices and effectively restart the process.
The Real Estate Board of New York also praised the decision. In a statement, the group’s president said, “Today’s decision confirms that the city’s rollout was deeply flawed and failed to provide basic procedural protections for homeowners.”
The statement added: “The legal challenges are far from over.”
A spokesman for the mayor, Matt Rauschenbach, released a statement following the ruling, saying that the city will “invoke a stay of the injunction.”
“With a stay, wewill continue implementing the surcharge fairly, efficiently and in full compliance with the law, as we have since day one,” Rauschenbach said in the statement. “New York is a city for the many – not a tax haven for the wealthy few.”
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