Carrozza moves back to Bayside during tax flap
By Nathan Duke
Comment
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| Ann-Margaret Carrozza |
The Queens County Republican Party has called for an investigation of state Assemblywoman Ann-Margaret Carrozza (D-Bayside) after she admitted in late June that she had been living out of the district since March. But the assemblywoman said Tuesday that she had moved back to Bayside last week.
Queens GOP Chairman Phil Ragusa said the party wants Queens District Attorney Richard Brown, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and the state Ethics Board to determine whether Carrozza misled her constituents by living in a Glen Head property known as “The Crossways” that she and her husband, William Duke, purchased for $1.8 million in June 2008.
“In this time, when Albany dysfunction is at an all-time high and government spending is out of control at every level of government, we need to be extremely diligent in demanding real reform from our elected officials,” Ragusa said. “And the most basic reform we should demand is that officials truly live in the districts they are elected to represent, as required by law.”
Carrozza said state law did not prohibit her from temporarily living in the Long Island house. But she said this week that she was once again living in Bayside.
“I’m back in Bayside as of last week,” she said. “This smacks of early campaigning. I think all of our efforts are best focused on issues in Albany. I view this as a waste of taxpayer resources. We’ve seen in the past when politicians misdirect resources into baseless investigations. During this time of economic hardship for so many families, that money could be better spent.”
Randolph Yunker, a spokesman for the Nassau County Assessment Department, said Carrozza’s husband applied in December 2008 for a STAR exemption on the Glen Head property.
One of Carrozza’s Bayside homes had also received the exemption and would have saved the couple $232 on their 2009-2010 tax bill in Queens, city Finance Department records show. But a spokesman for that department said a request had been made by one of the property’s owners this week to remove the School Tax Relief Program exemption. The home will not receive the benefit for the fiscal year which began July 1, he said.
The application for the Long Island property had been approved, but the Nassau department froze it when it discovered that the Bayside home already had an exemption.
STAR, which is overseen by the state’s Office of Real Property Services, gives married couples a tax break on their primary residence. But state rules stipulate that a husband and wife can have an exemption for only one residence unless they are legally separated.
The deed for Carrozza’s Bayside home lists both her and her husband’s name, a Finance Department spokesman said. But the department could not verify who applied for a STAR exemption for the home. Mortgage papers for the Glen Head home obligate the owner to “occupy the property and use the property as [their] principal residence within 60 days.” It also requires the owner to “continue to occupy the property and use the property for at least one year.”
Yunker said the couple would only be allowed to have one home with a STAR exemption.
“Our interest is not in who applied for it, but that there was a STAR on another piece of property,” he said. “We don’t check with other municipalities when someone applies. We take people at their word when they show us proof that they are living in a home.”
The Long Island property would not receive a tax break from a STAR exemption until after October, he said. The savings for the home, under last year’s assessment, could save its owner an estimated $700. But this year’s figures have not yet been determined.
In late June, Carrozza said she and her husband had been living in an “investment property” in Glen Head as they planned to adopt a child and search for a new home in Bayside. But the Queens property in which she previously lived would not provide enough space for three children and she had already promised to rent the home to an Oregon couple for part of the year. She currently owns two homes and two sites for office space in Bayside. She has not yet decided what she will ultimately do with the Long Island property, which she said is her husband’s primary residence.
John Conklin, director of public information for the state Elections Board, said elected officials are legally allowed to live outside their district as long as they intend to return.
Reach reporter Nathan Duke by e-mail at nduke@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156.
Queens GOP Chairman Phil Ragusa said the party wants Queens District Attorney Richard Brown, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and the state Ethics Board to determine whether Carrozza misled her constituents by living in a Glen Head property known as “The Crossways” that she and her husband, William Duke, purchased for $1.8 million in June 2008.
“In this time, when Albany dysfunction is at an all-time high and government spending is out of control at every level of government, we need to be extremely diligent in demanding real reform from our elected officials,” Ragusa said. “And the most basic reform we should demand is that officials truly live in the districts they are elected to represent, as required by law.”
Carrozza said state law did not prohibit her from temporarily living in the Long Island house. But she said this week that she was once again living in Bayside.
“I’m back in Bayside as of last week,” she said. “This smacks of early campaigning. I think all of our efforts are best focused on issues in Albany. I view this as a waste of taxpayer resources. We’ve seen in the past when politicians misdirect resources into baseless investigations. During this time of economic hardship for so many families, that money could be better spent.”
Randolph Yunker, a spokesman for the Nassau County Assessment Department, said Carrozza’s husband applied in December 2008 for a STAR exemption on the Glen Head property.
One of Carrozza’s Bayside homes had also received the exemption and would have saved the couple $232 on their 2009-2010 tax bill in Queens, city Finance Department records show. But a spokesman for that department said a request had been made by one of the property’s owners this week to remove the School Tax Relief Program exemption. The home will not receive the benefit for the fiscal year which began July 1, he said.
The application for the Long Island property had been approved, but the Nassau department froze it when it discovered that the Bayside home already had an exemption.
STAR, which is overseen by the state’s Office of Real Property Services, gives married couples a tax break on their primary residence. But state rules stipulate that a husband and wife can have an exemption for only one residence unless they are legally separated.
The deed for Carrozza’s Bayside home lists both her and her husband’s name, a Finance Department spokesman said. But the department could not verify who applied for a STAR exemption for the home. Mortgage papers for the Glen Head home obligate the owner to “occupy the property and use the property as [their] principal residence within 60 days.” It also requires the owner to “continue to occupy the property and use the property for at least one year.”
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“Our interest is not in who applied for it, but that there was a STAR on another piece of property,” he said. “We don’t check with other municipalities when someone applies. We take people at their word when they show us proof that they are living in a home.”
The Long Island property would not receive a tax break from a STAR exemption until after October, he said. The savings for the home, under last year’s assessment, could save its owner an estimated $700. But this year’s figures have not yet been determined.
In late June, Carrozza said she and her husband had been living in an “investment property” in Glen Head as they planned to adopt a child and search for a new home in Bayside. But the Queens property in which she previously lived would not provide enough space for three children and she had already promised to rent the home to an Oregon couple for part of the year. She currently owns two homes and two sites for office space in Bayside. She has not yet decided what she will ultimately do with the Long Island property, which she said is her husband’s primary residence.
John Conklin, director of public information for the state Elections Board, said elected officials are legally allowed to live outside their district as long as they intend to return.
Reach reporter Nathan Duke by e-mail at nduke@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 156.
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Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of yournabe.com.
Confused friend of Carozzas tenants wrote on Jul 9, 2009 10:48 PM:
" If Ann Carrozza and Bill Duke were so concerned about renegeing on their tenants from Oregon, why did friends of mine (tenants of Ann and Bill) receive a 30 day notice to vacate on June 30,2009. This is a 3 Bedroom Apartment over Dukes medical office. They are both children of well known Bayside families who have lived here for more than 40 years. This couple has 2 small children and an infant. They have no idea what it means to be a true "Baysider" and don't understand what it means to be a part of the Bayside community. The Baysider's I know and grew up with look out for the neighbors and help each other, that's th Bayside I know. I don't care how much money the Carozza/duke family has, they are clearly not part of this Bayside Family too bad for them. It's too bad for us that we have someone representing Bayside that has no clue and could care less about Bayside and it's residents. "
Minister C.J. Di Donna wrote on Jul 13, 2009 12:20 AM:
" One thing is for sure. I will not be voting for this phony two-face Ann-Margaret Carrozza.
She and her doctor husband should be ashamed of themselve's by forcing a Bayside family with little children out of their apartment that they were renting from these creep's.
I'd like to give them a 30 day notice and see how they like it. "
She and her doctor husband should be ashamed of themselve's by forcing a Bayside family with little children out of their apartment that they were renting from these creep's.
I'd like to give them a 30 day notice and see how they like it. "
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Bea Fare wrote on Jul 8, 2009 8:55 PM:
Duke fellow is doing, perhaps his real name is William and not Nathan "