Board opens public hearing on extending mortgage/sales tax and introduced 2026 tax levy override law

The Livingston County Board of Supervisors opened a public hearing on a local law involving mortgage tax and also introduced a local law to override the statutory tax levy limit for 2026.

At the chair’s request Shannon described the mortgage tax practice: "When a mortgage is filed with the county clerk, a 1 and quarter percent mortgage tax is collected. The additional quarter percent in tax is revenue that remains local here with the county and is something authorized under existing local law, which that law is set to expire December 1," Shannon said. The board opened the hearing to public comment and announced it would keep the hearing open and allow comments later in the meeting.

Shannon also introduced what was read as a proposed local law to allow the county to override the limit on the amount of real property taxes that may be levied for 2026, saying the law "simply provides the flexibility that may be needed as part of creating and adopting the 2026 budget." The public hearing on the proposed local law remained open at the meeting’s close; no final vote on the local law was recorded in the transcript.

Clerk communications also included notice from the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance acknowledging extension of the county’s additional 1% rate of sales and compensating use taxes for the period 12/01/2025 to 11/30/2027. The board did not take final action on the mortgage tax local law at this meeting; the hearing will continue and supervisors were invited to speak later in the session.