According to the New York State Office of Real Property Services, one of the four bases for grieving your property tax valuation is unlawful assessment.
This category includes, among other things, situations where “property has been assessed and entered on the assessment roll by a person or entity without authority to make the entry.” (Hmmm...)
The other three categories are excessive, unequal and misclassified assessments. More reading on the topic can be had in this State-created PDF.
On a related topic, here is some information from three New York State municipalities describing the function of their Boards of Assessment Review. These descriptions make one wonder about the propriety of BAR members issuing press releases, advice, and admonitions to taxpayers, let alone engaging in ex parte debates of grievance issues in person or online, during the run-up to their annual hearings...
NORTH TONAWANDA: The Board of Assessment Review constitutes what is known as a quasi-judicial body and the members of the board are charged with. the judicial responsibility to get all the facts, and apply appropriate laws and reasoning to the facts in a fair and judicious manner. Accordingly, each member of the Board of Assessment Review should:
- Possess judicial temperament, patience and tact.
- Provide a fair hearing.
- Safeguard the constitutional guarantees of due process of law.
- Withdraw from a case where he/she deems themselves disqualified by reason of personal or business relationships or interest.
JAMESTOWN: The Board of Assessment Review is a quasi-judicial body in accordance with Section 525 of the Real Property Tax Law that meets to review all petitions received from property owners who consider their property assessment to be too high. At the conclusion of their review, the Board votes to determine if the assessment should remain the same or be lowered. If the property owner is dissatisfied with the decision, they have the opportunity to seek assistance through a judicial review.
