S 688 New York Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Relates to the real property tax exemption for surviving spouses of volunteer firefighters or volunteer ambulance workers killed in the line of duty

Summary
Amends the real property tax exemption for surviving spouses of volunteer firefighters or volunteer ambulance workers killed in the line of duty to permit continuation of such exemption for volunteer members with service between two and five years.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Apr 2025
Assembly Passage
Jun 2025
Signed into Law
Dec 2025
Introduced Jan 8, 2025 Signed Dec 5, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

S688 S688A · 4 edits
MODERATE
This bill expands a real property tax exemption for volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers. It now covers both living members with long service and their surviving spouses, while also clarifying eligibility requirements for all applicants.
Scope change
The bill now applies to both living volunteer firefighters/ambulance workers with 20+ years of service and their surviving spouses, whereas the previous version only covered un-remarried spouses of deceased members.
ELIGIBILITY

Added a new exemption for living volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers who have completed more than 20 years of active service, granting them a 10% property tax exemption.

Changed the exemption for spouses from 'un-remarried spouses' to 'surviving spouses', removing the remarriage restriction.

REQUIREMENT

Added specific eligibility requirements including that the applicant must reside in the municipality served by the volunteer service, the property must be their primary residence used exclusively for residential purposes, and the governing body must establish minimum service requirements between 2-5 years.

Changed the minimum service requirement language from a bracketed range of 2-5 years to a clear requirement that municipalities establish minimum service between 2 and 5 years.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 1, 2025 · Assembly Jun 11, 2025

How they voted

630
Passed
Total votes 63
Apr 1, 2025
D Democratic41
41 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican22
22 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
14
Key actions
4
Committee
2
Amendments
1
Dec 5, 2025
Signed into law
SIGNED CHAP.592
upper
Jun 11, 2025
Lower · Passed
PASSED ASSEMBLY
lower
Apr 1, 2025
Committee
REFERRED TO WAYS AND MEANS
lower
Apr 1, 2025
Upper · Passed
PASSED SENATE
upper
Mar 10, 2025
Upper · Passed
AMENDED ON THIRD READING (T) 688A
upper
Jan 8, 2025
Committee
REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT
upper
1 primary · 13 co-sponsors

Sponsors