OC Legislature's Zoom Meeting

The Orange County New York Legislature held a Rules, Enactments, and Intergovernmental Relations Committee meeting on September 17, 2026, focusing primarily on conservation easement funding and housing policy. The committee approved several resolutions related to conservation easements, including rescinding and correcting prior resolutions to clarify that the county holds third-party enforcement rights rather than ownership. They authorized expenditure of $272,569 from the Orange County Open Space Fund for the Morziski Farm conservation easement. Additionally, the meeting featured a detailed discussion on a proposed local law to opt into a New York State property tax exemption for affordable homeownership. Representatives from Habitat for Humanity explained the exemption would provide a 50% reduction on the county portion of property taxes for income-eligible first-time homeowners in nonprofit-developed homes, emphasizing protections such as deed restrictions and restrictive covenants to maintain affordability and owner occupancy. Legislators raised questions about eligibility verification, ongoing income assessments, and potential risks of abuse, with clarifications that the exemption applies only to initial sales and transfers, not rentals, and that income eligibility is certified at the time of sale. The discussion highlighted the challenges of rising development costs and the importance of tools to support affordable housing production and equity building in the county.