Saratoga County, NY Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Adopted
- 1-23-1996 by L.L. No. 1-1996
- Citation
- Saratoga County Code §§ 310-62, 310-63
- Mechanism
- Relevied on next County tax bill
- Requires
- Both County and locality must authorize
- Shortfall
- Local government repays County the balance
- Not covered
- County itself does not order demolition
Summary
When a town, village or city in Saratoga County demolishes or remediates a dangerous building, the County can front the cost and add it to the property's next County tax bill. Saratoga County Code §§ 310-62 and 310-63 set the relevy procedure, used only once both the County and the local government have authorized it for that parcel.
§ 310-62. Purpose. This article is intended to establish a procedure for the use of County tax enforcement processes to assist local governments in their exercise of their police powers concerning unsafe buildings or hazardous situations. § 310-63. Procedure. A. The County will relevy local expenses for demolition or remediation activities as a component of the next County property tax bill levied against the subject parcel. The County will reimburse the local government for those relevied expenses and seek full recovery through County tax enforcement proceedings. B. If tax enforcement does not provide full reimbursement, the local government will repay the County for the unreimbursed portion. The local repayment may be made by direct payment or by administrative charge against either the local tax warrant or the County's annual settlement payment for relevies. C. This relevy and recoupment method will be used only when the County and locality have both authorized its use. The County Treasurer is hereby expressly authorized to recoup any unauthorized relevies by the most convenient method.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4649512; v10 updated 2025-11-18; through 11-18-2025).
Full Breakdown
Adopted January 23, 1996 by Local Law No. 1-1996 as Article VIII of Chapter 310, this law does not give Saratoga County its own power to declare a building unsafe or order it demolished; that police power stays with the town, village or city where the property sits, under that municipality's own local code. What the County provides is a tax-collection shortcut. Under § 310-63(A), once a local government has incurred demolition or remediation expenses on a hazardous building, the County will relevy those local expenses as a line item on the next County property tax bill charged against the subject parcel.
The County advances reimbursement to the local government for the relevied amount and then pursues full recovery from the property owner through County tax enforcement proceedings, the same mechanism used to collect delinquent property taxes. If that tax enforcement does not recover the full amount, § 310-63(B) shifts the shortfall back to the municipality that ordered the work: the local government must repay Saratoga County for the unreimbursed portion, either by direct payment or by an administrative charge against its own local tax warrant or its share of the County's annual settlement payment for relevies.
Section 310-63(C) limits the whole arrangement to cases where both the County and the locality have affirmatively authorized use of the relevy method, and it separately authorizes the County Treasurer to recoup any relevy made without that authorization by whatever method is most convenient.
Violations & Fines
There is no separate County fine tied to this section; the consequence is financial. The unpaid demolition or remediation bill becomes part of the property's County tax obligation and is pursued through normal County tax enforcement against the owner. If that enforcement falls short of full recovery, the shortfall does not disappear: § 310-63(B) requires the local government that authorized the abatement to reimburse Saratoga County the unrecovered balance, by direct payment or by a charge against its own tax warrant or annual settlement payment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Saratoga County demolish unsafe buildings itself?
How does a Saratoga County municipality recover demolition costs under this law?
What happens if the County cannot collect the full remediation cost from the owner?
Can any town or village use this relevy method automatically?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Saratoga County
New York rules heatmap·Compare Saratoga County to another location·View the New York property maintenance overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.