State officials are sending out postcards to remind those who haven't signed up for Basic STAR property tax exemptions of the Dec. 31 deadline.

The reminders are the latest in an aggressive statewide outreach campaign that has resulted in 1.7 million registrations to date.

Six weeks remain until the Dec. 31. The tax department has directly mailed all of the nearly 2.7 million homeowners who claimed the exemption last year, participated in 200 local meetings, fielded nearly 400,000 phone calls, and registered thousands of people at local events including the state fair.

The exemption is available on the primary residence of homeowners with incomes under $500,000. The registration stems from a tax department investigation that found thousands of taxpayers receiving STAR exemptions on more than one property.

Gov. Cuomo included the initiative in his 2013-14 state budget, and directed the tax department to develop a user-friendly system that could eliminate inappropriate exemptions while making it simple for people to maintain their rightful tax relief. Registration takes two to four minutes on average to complete online.

Senior citizens receiving the Enhanced STAR exemption are not impacted by the new registration program.

Register online or by phone

To register, visit www.tax.ny.gov or call 518-457-2036. Online information is available in six languages, and translators stand ready to assist speakers of all languages via telephone. The department is offering extended STAR hotline hours through Dec. 31 – 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays, and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.