Companion bills in Albany, Assembly A669 and Senate S6804, would impose a commercial vacancy tax on vacant or abandoned commercial storefronts in cities of one million or more, at 1 percent of the property's assessed value, by adding a new Article 30-C to the tax law. Both were introduced in the 2025–2026 session and referred to committee, the Assembly bill to Cities and the Senate bill to Investigations and Government Operations. For NYC merchants, the relevant context is the 15,700 vacant storefronts the Comptroller's map documented in June (Issue 4) and the Salazar commercial rent stabilization bill running on a separate track (Issues 3–5). Three instruments aimed at the same problem, none enacted, and each with a different party bearing the cost: the vacancy tax hits the owner, rent stabilization constrains the owner's pricing, and the map does neither but makes the pattern legible.

Watch: Any committee action on A669 or S6804, and whether the Comptroller's vacancy map is cited in support of either.

Source: New York State Assembly A669; New York State Senate S6804