Homeowners, Property Tax & Repairs · Surprise rank #161
Volunteer Firefighter or Ambulance Worker? Your Local Government May Cut Up to 10% From Your Property Assessment
New York lets municipalities, school districts and fire districts opt into a property-tax exemption for qualifying volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers.
Who
Qualifying enrolled volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers who meet local service, residency and property requirements.
Where: New York State, local-option jurisdictions
What to do
Start here: Ask your local assessor which county, municipal, school and fire-district exemptions are in effect and request the applicable application form.
Eligibility: The property generally must be the volunteer’s primary residence and used for residential purposes, with service and residency requirements set by RPTL 466-a and local adoption rules.
What you get
Where adopted locally, the exemption can remove up to 10% of a qualifying residential property’s assessed value from certain property taxes.
Benefit: Up to a 10% assessed-value exemption where the taxing jurisdiction has adopted the statewide option.
Possible value: The dollar savings depends on the property assessment, local tax rates and which taxing jurisdictions adopted the exemption.
Good to know
Important: This is a local-option exemption, not an automatic statewide 10% tax-bill reduction. Also, a volunteer generally cannot claim the separate $200 NY income-tax credit for the same service if receiving a service-related property-tax exemption.
Availability: Available only where the relevant taxing jurisdiction has adopted it.
Why people miss it: The rule is statewide but the actual benefit is pieced together locally, so volunteers can miss it if they never ask their assessor.
Sources reviewed: Aug 10, 2026