Section 11-1111. Proceedings to recover tax

a. Whenever any person shall
  fail to pay any tax or penalty or interest imposed by  this  chapter  as
  herein  provided, the corporation counsel shall, upon the request of the
  commissioner of finance, bring or cause  to  be  brought  an  action  to
  enforce  payment  of  the same against the person liable for the same on
  behalf of the city of New York in any court of the state of New York  or
  of  any  other  state  or  of  the  United  States.  If,  however,  such
  commissioner in his or her discretion believes that a  taxpayer  subject
  to  the provisions of this chapter is about to cease business, leave the
  state or remove or dissipate the assets out of which  tax  or  penalties
  might  be  satisfied  and  that any such tax or penalty will not be paid
  when due, he or she may declare such tax or penalty  to  be  immediately
  due and payable and may issue a warrant immediately.
    b.  As  a  further additional or alternate remedy, the commissioner of
  finance may issue a warrant, directed to the  city  sheriff,  commanding
  him  or her to levy upon and sell the real and personal property of such
  person which may be found within the city, for the payment of the amount
  thereof, with any penalties and the cost of executing the warrant and to
  return such warrant to such commissioner and to pay to him  or  her  the
  money collected by virtue thereof within sixty days after the receipt of
  such warrant. The city sheriff shall, within five days after the receipt
  of  the warrant, file with the county clerk a copy thereof and thereupon
  such clerk shall enter in the judgment docket the  name  of  the  person
  mentioned  in  the  warrant  and the amount of the tax and penalties for
  which the warrant is issued and  the  date  when  such  copy  is  filed.
  Thereupon  the  amount  of  such warrant so docketed shall have the full
  force and effect of a judgment and shall become a lien upon the title to
  and interest in real and personal property of the  person  against  whom
  the  warrant  is  issued.  The  city sheriff shall then proceed upon the
  warrant in the same manner and with like effect as that provided by  law
  in  respect  to executions against property upon judgments of a court of
  record, and for services in executing the warrant he  or  she  shall  be
  entitled  to  the  same  fees  which  he  or she may collect in the same
  manner. In the discretion of the commissioner of finance  a  warrant  of
  like  terms,  force and effect may be issued and directed to any officer
  or employee of the department of finance and in  the  execution  thereof
  such  officer or employee shall have all the power conferred by law upon
  sheriffs, but he or she shall be entitled to no fee or  compensation  in
  excess of the actual expenses paid in the performance of such duty. If a
  warrant  is  returned not satisfied in full, the commissioner of finance
  may from time to time issue new warrants and shall also  have  the  same
  remedies  to  enforce  the  amount  due  thereunder  as  if the city had
  recovered judgment therefor and  execution  thereon  had  been  returned
  unsatisfied.
    c.  Whenever  there  is made a sale, transfer or assignment in bulk of
  any part or the whole of a stock of merchandising  or  of  fixtures,  or
  merchandise and of fixtures pertaining to the conducting of the business
  of  the  seller,  transferor or assignor, otherwise than in the ordinary
  course of trade and in the regular prosecution  of  said  business,  the
  purchaser,  transferee or assignee shall at least ten days before taking
  possession of such merchandise, fixtures, or merchandise  and  fixtures,
  or  paying  therefor,  notify  the commissioner of finance by registered
  mail of the proposed  sale  and  of  the  price,  terms  and  conditions
  thereof,  whether  or  not  the  seller,  transferor  or  assignor,  has
  represented to, or informed the purchaser, transferee or  assignee  that
  it  owes any tax pursuant to this chapter, whether or not the purchaser,
  transferee or assignee has knowledge that  such  taxes  are  owing,  and
  whether or not any such taxes are in fact owing.

    Whenever  the purchaser, transferee or assignee shall fail to give the
  notice to the commissioner of finance required by this  subdivision,  or
  whenever  such  commissioner  shall  inform the purchaser, transferee or
  assignee that a possible claim for such tax or taxes exists, any sums of
  money,  property  or choses in action, or other consideration, which the
  purchaser, transferee or assignee is required to transfer  over  to  the
  seller,  transferor  or  assignor  shall  be subject to a first priority
  right and lien for any such taxes theretofore or  thereafter  determined
  to  be  due from the seller, transferor or assignor to the city, and the
  purchaser, transferee or  assignee  is  forbidden  to  transfer  to  the
  seller,  transferor  or  assignor  any  such  sums of money, property or
  choses in action to the extent of the amount of the  city's  claim.  For
  failure to comply with the provisions of this subdivision the purchaser,
  transferee  or assignee, in addition to being subject to the liabilities
  and remedies imposed under the provisions of article six of the  uniform
  commercial  code  shall be personally liable for the payment to the city
  of any such taxes theretofore or thereafter determined to be due to  the
  city  from  the seller, transferor or assignor and such liability may be
  assessed and enforced in the same manner as the  liability  for  tax  is
  imposed under this chapter.
    d.  The commissioner of finance, if he or she finds that the interests
  of the city will not thereby be jeopardized, and upon such conditions as
  the commissioner of finance may require, may release any  property  from
  the  lien  of  any  warrant  or  vacate  such  warrant for unpaid taxes,
  additions to tax, penalties and interest filed pursuant to subdivision b
  of this section, and such release or vacating  of  the  warrant  may  be
  recorded  in  the  office of any recording officer in which such warrant
  has been filed. The clerk shall thereupon cancel and discharge as of the
  original date of docketing the vacated warrant.