The amount school districts can raise in property taxes in the 2020-21 fiscal year will be capped at 1.81 percent, Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's office announced Tuesday.

The limit is a reduction from the 2 percent ceiling from the prior two years.

“As the levy growth rate dips below 2 percent, school district and municipal officials need to be fiscally cautious and examine where they can limit spending to stay under the cap,” DiNapoli said. “Local governments will have to examine their budgets more closely to control expenses.”

The property tax cap announced Tuesday will affect the budgets of 676 school districts and 10 cities in New York that have fiscal years beginning July 1. That also includes the so-called "Big Four" cities of Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester, and Yonkers.

The cap has been in effect since 2012 and is meant to limit how much of the levy local taxing districts can increase each year for property owners.

The cap is tied to the rate of inflation or set at 2 percent, whichever is lower. It also allows school districts to override the cap with 60 percent voter approval for a budget.