Making a tax everyone will hate

WESTFALL - The Delaware Valley Board of Education didn’t toss tea in the harbor last week, but they came close. State law requires them to propose some kind of an income tax for the spring primary ballot, but no one on the board wants that tax created. So, last week the board agreed to formulate a tax that no one in their right mind would vote to approve. The law calls for a decision by Jan. 18, followed by a public hearing on Feb. 17. Their tax commission earlier recommended a zero tax rate, but the Pennsylvania’s Act 1 would not allow them to do that. Two kinds of taxes are in the mix, an earned income tax on wages and a more onerous personal income tax that also covers income from investments. The lowest rate they could approve is .9 percent and the highest is 3.3 percent. The money would fund home and farmstead exemptions granted under Act 1, which would cut property taxes with revenues from state authorized slot machine operations. Sue Casey immediately recommended a 3.3 percent personal income tax. “I want it to go down and everyone will vote against it.. If we make it lower, some people might say it’s not so bad and vote for it,” she said. Others were concerned that the voters might misunderstand the board’s intent. “I don’t know how to get the message out that we’re not in favor of it,” Bob Goldsack said. They eventually agreed on a 2.5 percent PIT and to work with the PTA to help get the negative vote out.