Opinion 92-53
[Edited for Publication]
The city, however, has repealed its sales tax effective March 1, 1993. The county legislature has adopted a resolution, which provides that effective March, 1993, the county will retain 60% of the total county sales tax receipts returned to the county by New York State and that the remaining 40% will be allocated among the city, towns and villages. You have requested the State Comptroller's approval, pursuant to Tax Law, §1262(c), of the new distribution formula which is outlined in county's resolution. Initially, we note that after the repeal of a city's pre-emptive sales tax, the county is under no obligation to pay any portion of the county sales tax to towns or cities. Therefore, absent the resolution adopted by the county, the county would receive one hundred per cent of the sales tax collected in the county after the city's sales tax ceases to be effective. With respect to whether the State Comptroller's approval is required of the county's new distribution formula, we note that section 1262(c) provides that when there is no pre-emption of sales tax by a city, the allocation to cities and the area outside the cities may be based on population or "in such other proportion as may be agreed upon by the elective governing body of the county and of each of the cities in the county with the approval of the state comptroller". Thus, the Comptroller's approval is required only when a sales tax agreement is entered into between a county and the city (or cities) within the county. In the instant situation, the city's local law which repeals its sales tax provides that the budget committee of the common council is authorized to negotiate an agreement for the allocation of county sales tax to the city, subject to approval by the council as a whole. You have informed us, however, that no sales tax agreement exists between the city and county. Consequently, this Office has no approval role with respect to the county's distribution formula set forth in its resolution. November 12, 1992
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