Today, Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele and State Senator Anthony Palumbo led a coalition of more than 35 East End leaders and organizations who signed a letter urging Governor Kathy Hochul to sign A.2633/S.6492, enacting the Peconic Bay Region Community Housing Act, which would authorize the five towns in the Peconic Bay Region to hold mandatory referenda for the creation of dedicated town housing funds. In addition, the Long Island Association and the Long Island Builders Institute have endorsed the legislation in separate letters of support. 

The Act would authorize the creation of dedicated town funds to implement affordable housing initiatives across the Peconic Bay Region, funded by a small addition to the existing CPF transfer tax. The legislation increases financial resources to address the critical demand for affordable housing in the Peconic Bay Region. If the CHF had been in place in 2020, it would have generated more than $30 million across the region to provide financial assistance for first-time homebuyers and for the actual production of new affordable housing opportunities.

The CHF would be financed in each Town by an additional ½% increase to the existing 2% real estate transfer tax. The legislation would also reduce the real estate transfer tax for nearly one-third of all transactions, by increasing the exemption on improved properties. On the South Fork and Shelter Island, the exemption would be increased from $250,000 to $400,000. On the North Fork, it would be increased from $150,000 to $200,000. The net impact of these changes to the tax would be to reduce the existing transfer tax on the South Fork and Shelter Island on all transactions of $1 million or less and on all transactions of $400,000 or less on the North Fork.