ALBANY – For-profit private businesses located on state or federal land in New York currently pay no property taxes, but State Senator James Skoufis (D, Cornwall) wants to change that.
He said those businesses have a competitive advantage over similar businesses located off government property.
“If you are a for-profit, you are a private business, like for example, the Thayer Hotel on West Point property, then society’s expectation ought to be that you are contributing something to the school budget where you are located, to the town budget that you are located in, as opposed to being able to, right now, have a competitive advantage by not paying any property taxes versus the hotel that is just outside West Point’s gate, or whatever comparative business is just off the federal or state properties,” Skoufis said.
The Democratic lawmaker is chairman of the Senate Investigations Committee.
