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Town board sets public hearing on ADU tax exemption and tax-bill enclosure policy
Summary
The board set an April 27 public hearing for a proposed local law creating a limited ADU assessed-value exemption (initial-year cap $200,000 and a five-year phased reduction) with eligibility rules including owner-occupancy and HUD fair-market-rent caps; the board also authorized rules for tax-bill enclosures that must avoid political content and not reference elected officials by name.
The Shelter Island Town Board voted to set a public hearing on April 27, 2026, for a proposed local law that would create a property-tax exemption for qualifying accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and to consider rules allowing authorized enclosures in town tax bills.
Under the draft local law read into the record, a qualifying ADU would be exempt from assessed-value increases attributable to the ADU up to $200,000 in the initial year; the exemption would then be reduced over an additional five-year period according to a prescribed schedule. Eligibility conditions in the draft include registration of the accessory apartment with the building department, owner-occupancy of the principal residence and either rent at or below the New York HUD fair-market rent for Nassau-Suffolk or the owner qualifying for the STAR exemption.
The draft tax-bill enclosure provisions would permit the town to include nonpolitical informational materials in tax bills if authorized by resolution; enclosures could not reference named elected officials and must be authorized by the town board. The board moved and carried the resolution to schedule the hearing; a public commenter earlier commended the board for substantially revising the ADU proposal from earlier drafts to close perceived loopholes that could have favored very large homes.
The board will hold the public hearing on 04/27/2026 at 6 p.m. at Town Hall and invited further written comment in advance of that date.
