Courts’ Limited Review Powers Re: Administrative Rulings Clearly Illustrated

The Fourth Department, in a dispute about whether fiber optic cables were taxable by the city and the school district under the Real Property Tax Law, determined Supreme Court was powerless to rule on the matter on grounds not used by the administrative agencies which initially heard it. The Fourth Department succinctly explained the relevant review powers:

We agree with petitioners that the court erred in dismissing the petition on grounds different from those on which respondents relied in denying the applications. It is well settled that “[a] reviewing court, in dealing with a determination . . . which an administrative agency alone is authorized to make, must judge the propriety of such action solely by the grounds invoked by the agency. If those grounds are inadequate or improper, the court is powerless to affirm the administrative action by substituting what it considers to be a more adequate or proper basis” … . Thus, the court was without power to uphold the administrative determinations on a different basis, no matter how sound that basis may be.

Contrary to petitioners’ further contention, however, we may not grant the ultimate affirmative relief requested in the petition, i.e., removal of the subject properties from the tax rolls and a refund of the taxes paid. The Court of Appeals has noted that courts “regularly defer to the governmental agency charged with the responsibility for administration of [a] statute’ in those cases where interpretation or application involves knowledge and understanding of underlying operational practices or entails an evaluation of factual data and inferences to be drawn therefrom,’ and the agency’s interpretation is not irrational or unreasonable’ ” … . We conclude that “this case involves a question concerning the specific application of a broad statutory term, . . . and therefore is one in which the agency which administers the statute must determine it initially” … , because in such a situation, ” the reviewing court’s function is limited’ ” … . Matter of Level 3 Communications, LLC v Erie County, 2015 NY Slip Op 07104, 4th Dept 10-2-15