New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax was temporarily blocked by a state judge on Monday after homeowners sued the city last week.
The Staten Island judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the city from proceeding with enforcing the tax, which is intended to be levied on non-primary homes worth at least $5 million.
The ruling came after New York homeowners sued over the rollout of the tax, which included the publishing of a property roll that the lawsuit said “caused mass confusion” and “facilitated, invited, and amplified unwanted scrutiny of homeowners’ personal information.”
The judge ruled that the city must take down the list of over 900,000 homeowners, including names, addresses, and property values, and could not enforce any deadlines laid out in the notices mailed to homeowners while the order is in effect.
The next hearing in the case was set for August 31.
“We are very gratified by the judge’s decision, which has vindicated the rights of hundreds of thousands of New York City homeowners who were subjected to a process they never should have been a part of in the first place,” Randy Mastro, lawyer representing the homeowners, said in a statement provided to Business Insider.
Matt Rauschenbach, a spokesperson for Mamdani, said in a statement to Business Insider that the city would appeal the ruling.
“We disagree with today’s ruling, but we are confident in both the pied-à-terre surcharge and the City’s ability to implement it fairly and effectively,” he said.
Earlier on Monday, Mamdani criticized Mastro, who served as first deputy mayor under his predecessor, Mayor Eric Adams, for filing several lawsuits against the city.
“You know, there are few things more certain in New York City than death, taxes and Randy Mastro filing a lawsuit against this administration,” Mamdani said at a press conference. “So we look forward to vigorously defend our city’s position in court as we have done so with the previous lawsuits that he has filed and I’m sure with the lawsuits that he will continue to file in the months and years to come.”
