What's happening
This bill requires a two-thirds majority vote in the legislature or local governments to pass any bill that increases or imposes taxes, fees, or similar levies.
Why it matters
Raises the threshold for passing tax and fee increases. By requiring a two-thirds majority instead of a simple majority, the bill makes it significantly harder for state or local governments to enact new taxes, raise existing ones, or add fees—potentially limiting government revenue options.
Shifts bargaining power. This higher voting requirement could empower minority factions in legislative bodies, giving them more leverage to block or negotiate the terms of revenue-raising bills, which might slow legislative action or increase the need for political compromise.
Affects budget flexibility and public services. If it becomes harder to raise revenue, governments might face constraints in funding public services, responding to emergencies, or addressing long-term needs—especially in times of fiscal stress or economic downturns.
Alters local as well as state policy. The bill impacts not just the state legislature but also city, town, and county governments, meaning local tax decisions would also require broader consensus—potentially leading to more stable, but less adaptable, fiscal policies at every level.
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Who cares
State senators and Assembly members
Bills increasing, extending, imposing or reviving taxes, fees, assessments, surcharges or similar levies would require two-thirds approval in each chamber, except bills resulting from home rule messages.
Local legislative bodies
Local laws imposing new taxes, raising existing tax rates or extending tax authorizations under the covered Tax Law provisions would require two-thirds approval.
County, city, town and village officials
Home rule requests involving taxes, fees, assessments or surcharges would require two-thirds of the local legislative body's total voting power.
Taxpayers and fee payers
The bill would raise the legislative voting threshold for measures that impose, increase, extend or revive the taxes and charges they pay.
Headline styles
Require Supermajority for Tax Hikes
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Referred to investigations and government operations
- Referred to investigations and government operations
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1308
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 9, 2025
Introduced by Sen. CANZONERI-FITZPATRICK -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations
AN ACT to amend the legislative law, the tax law and the municipal home rule law, in relation to requiring assent of two-thirds of the members for any bill that enacts or increases tax revenues
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 52 of the legislative law is amended by adding a new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
5. Assent of two-thirds. For any bill that increases, extends, imposes, or revives any tax, fee, assessment, surcharge or any other such levy or collection, except any bill which results from the passage of a home rule message pursuant to section two of article nine of the constitution, the assent of two-thirds of the members elected to each branch of the legislature shall be required for passage of such bill.
§ 2. The tax law is amended by adding a new section 1200 to read as follows:
§ 1200. Tax increases; requirements. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, any taxes authorized under this article for which a local legislative body is empowered to adopt and amend local laws to impose a new tax, increase the rate of an existing tax or extend the authorization for a tax shall require the assent of twothirds of the members of such local legislative body.
§ 3. Section 40 of the municipal home rule law, as amended by chapter 78 of the laws of 1964, is amended to read as follows:
§ 40. Requests of local governments for enactment of special laws relating to their property, affairs or government. The elective or appointive chief executive officer, if there be one, or otherwise the chairman of the board of supervisors, in the case of a county, the mayor in the case of a city or village or the supervisor in the case of a town
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00917-01-5
with the concurrence of the legislative body of such local government, or the legislative body by a vote of two-thirds of its total voting power without the approval of such officer, may request the legislature to pass a specific bill relating to the property, affairs or government of such local government which does not in terms and in effect apply alike to all counties, all counties other than those wholly included within a city, all cities, all towns or all villages, as the case may be. Such a request may be made separately by two or more local governments affected by the same bill. Every such request shall declare that a necessity exists for the passage of such bill by the legislature and shall recite the facts establishing such necessity. The form of request and the manner of its communication to the legislature shall conform to rules promulgated by concurrent resolution of the senate and assembly pursuant to article three-A of the legislative law. In adopting such a request the legislative body shall be governed by the provisions of subdivision one of section twenty of this chapter with regard to the adoption of a local law. The validity of an act passed by the legislature in accordance with such a request shall not be subject to review by the courts on the ground that the necessity alleged in the request did not exist or was not properly established by the facts recited. Provided however, any request of local governments for enactment of laws which increases, extends, imposes or revives any tax, fee, assessment or surcharge shall require the vote of two-thirds of the total voting power of the legislative body of such local government.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the legislative law, the tax law and the municipal home rule law, in relation to requiring assent of two-thirds of the members for any bill that enacts or increases tax revenues
Purpose
This bill would require a two-thirds vote from each house of the state legislature to impose or extend taxes, a two-thirds vote from local legislative bodies to impose or extend local taxes, and a two-thirds vote from local legislative bodies requesting an imposition or extension of taxes by the state legislature. This bill would ensure that a super- majority of state or local legislative representatives assent to an imposition of a tax, which also holds elected officials more accountable to the state's taxpayers, both at the statewide and the local levels of government.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 of the bill amends the Legislative Law to require a two-thirds vote from each house of the state legislature to increase, extend, impose, or revive taxes.
Section 2 of the bill amends the Tax Law to require a two-thirds vote from a local legislative body that adopts or amends a local law impos- ing, increasing or extending a tax.
Section 3 of the bill amends the Municipal Home Rule Law to require a two-thirds vote from a local legislative body that requests the state legislature to enact a state law increasing, extending, imposing or reviving a tax.
Section 4 of the bill contains the effective date.
Justification
By ensuring that a supermajority of legislative representatives, on the state or local level, assent to a tax increase, imposition, or extension of taxes, fees, assessments, and surcharges, this bill seeks to hold elected officials more accountable for New York's increasingly high tax burden on state and local taxpayers.
As scores of New Yorkers voice their collective opposition to and frus- tration with record high tax levels, this bill seeks to make legislative representatives on the state and local levels more attuned to such concerns, and requiring a higher level of legislative assent to tax increases, impositions, and extensions may require legislators to consider more fully the impacts of higher or additional taxes before passing such taxes on to New York's population.
Legislative history
2023-24: S.5680 Referred to Investigations and Government Operations
2021-22: S.3040 Referred to Investigations and Government Operations 2019-20: S.1299 Referred to Investigations and Government Operations
2018: S.8401 Passed Senate
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:,
None.
Effective date
This bill would take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.