ALBANY, NY - Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation in December 2025 that allows the widows of fallen police officers killed in the line of duty in New York to receive up to 50% off of their property taxes.
However, cities and towns where police widows live will have to approve the rebate for it to take effect, the New York Post reported. "We can't explain how much it means for the state to help us and just ease the burden," said Long Island widow Stephanie Diller, 31, whose husband, NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller, was fatally shot in the line of duty in Queens in March 2024.
The widow is raising the couple's three-year-old son. "We don't have our spouses, and that will be forever something that we will grieve and miss, but we get to see and be an active part of our children's lives, and for that we're immensely grateful," Diller said. "At least I know I am."
Guy Rivera was charged with shooting Diller during a routine traffic stop in Far Rockaway on March 25, 2024. There is not a day that goes by that Diller does not think of her husband. "It feels like yesterday, to be honest with you," Diller said. "There [are] some ways that I have learned a new routine, but it never fades. It never goes away."
The legislation was sponsored by Senator Monica Martinez (D-Suffolk) and authorizes local governments to provide a property tax exemption of up to 50% on the primary residence of a surviving spouse of a police officer killed in the line of duty.
Municipalities are required to opt in before the exemption can be applied, and have the option to reduce the percentage of the tax relief benefit. The town of Smithtown approved the tax break on Thursday. However, it is currently unclear how many municipalities have approved the exemption or how much the exemption will cost the state.
The total cost varies by municipality based on adoption, and there is no statewide cost figure available. The measure is the second first responder survivor tax relief bill that Martinez has sponsored.
In 2025, Governor Hochul signed legislation that allows municipalities to extend the property tax exemption to surviving spouses of volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers who were killed in the line of duty after serving between two and five years.
Under prior law, only spouses of volunteers with at least five years of service were eligible for the exemption.
However, cities and towns where police widows live will have to approve the rebate for it to take effect, the New York Post reported. "We can't explain how much it means for the state to help us and just ease the burden," said Long Island widow Stephanie Diller, 31, whose husband, NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller, was fatally shot in the line of duty in Queens in March 2024.
The widow is raising the couple's three-year-old son. "We don't have our spouses, and that will be forever something that we will grieve and miss, but we get to see and be an active part of our children's lives, and for that we're immensely grateful," Diller said. "At least I know I am."
Guy Rivera was charged with shooting Diller during a routine traffic stop in Far Rockaway on March 25, 2024. There is not a day that goes by that Diller does not think of her husband. "It feels like yesterday, to be honest with you," Diller said. "There [are] some ways that I have learned a new routine, but it never fades. It never goes away."
The legislation was sponsored by Senator Monica Martinez (D-Suffolk) and authorizes local governments to provide a property tax exemption of up to 50% on the primary residence of a surviving spouse of a police officer killed in the line of duty.
Municipalities are required to opt in before the exemption can be applied, and have the option to reduce the percentage of the tax relief benefit. The town of Smithtown approved the tax break on Thursday. However, it is currently unclear how many municipalities have approved the exemption or how much the exemption will cost the state.
The total cost varies by municipality based on adoption, and there is no statewide cost figure available. The measure is the second first responder survivor tax relief bill that Martinez has sponsored.
In 2025, Governor Hochul signed legislation that allows municipalities to extend the property tax exemption to surviving spouses of volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers who were killed in the line of duty after serving between two and five years.
Under prior law, only spouses of volunteers with at least five years of service were eligible for the exemption.
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