Taxes

I am looking for general information on the possible impact of Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreements on library tax levies. I believe that in some instances public libraries are parties to PILOT agreements.

A firm principle of this service is "don't reinvent the wheel" so here at the start of the answer, I must refer readers to Jerry Nichols' 2005 article, "PILOT Payments--a potential revenue source for public libraries."[1]  The article is an excellent primer on what a PILOT agreement is, and how libraries should cultivate the awareness

We are a small municipal library serving a village of 6500 & a town population the same size. Our village trustees have decided to take our balance from the 2022-2023 fiscal year & add to the village general fund. Does New York State Education Law #259 apply here?

For me, the most persuasive commentary on this topic is from the NYS Comptroller, who wrote in 2002:

Could we use any of our budgetary funds as collected through our tax levy and/or funds received from donations (restricted and unrestricted) to pay for food (dry goods, fresh produce and/or fruit) and PPE's which would be given freely to the public/patrons some of which may not be from our community (we would not ask them for a library card or ID)?

Before I answer this, I am going to share a story.  Trust me, it’s relevant.

We are an association Library that uses a school ballot to levy funding. We have received a bill from the school for 2 years now that a landowner has had their taxes re-accessed back 3 years and now we owe the school money. Last year we paid it because it seemed like bad luck and there weas court documents saying the back money was owed.

Imagine walking through a metal maze, wearing magnet shoes, trying to solve a Rubik's Cube coated in honey.

Visualizing that? Metal floor.  Magnet shoes.  Lots of honey.

Okay.

This…is an even stickier problem.

Why is it sticky?  Because for any library but a school district library, there is no definitive answer.

I need clarification about the IRS regulations on 501c3 organizations.

This answer comes with many disclaimers, because the legal parameters of room access and rental at chartered libraries in New York is variable territory.  In other words: the answer can depend on the library’s “type” (set by its charter), its fundamental rules (found in the bylaws), its IRS status (the “501 (c)(3) mentioned by the member”), its day-to-day rules (controlled by policies), its lea

Our public, municipal library wants to seek funding through a school board levy.  The boundaries of the school district we’re petitioning are outside (but include) our municipality.  Are there any legal impediments to a public, municipal library going on the school district ballot?  We have reached out to New York State Ed’s Division of Library Development and NYLA, but seek a lawy

Perhaps because our nation was born resisting taxes, few things can rile a close-knit community so much as a good old-fashioned tax levy.  This is one area where the legal issues might be simpler than the range of human emotions.