Property tax referendum on Nov. 7 ballot

On the Nov. 7 general election ballot, voters will have an opportunity to vote on a property tax reform measure. Currently, the state Constitution permits local governments – counties, municipalities and school districts — to exclude up to 50 percent of the median assessed home value from a homeowner’s tax bill. However, the referendum on the ballot will allow voters to decide if the maximum homestead exclusion should be increased to 100 percent of primary residences. For example, under the current homestead exclusion, if the median assessed home value in your school district is $100,000, up to $50,000 can be excluded from your tax bill if your school district elected the full 50 percent exclusion rate. If the value of your home is assessed at $150,000, your local property tax rate would only be applied to $100,000 of that value.
If the resolution amending the Constitution is approved, the homestead exclusion cap could be removed. However, the General Assembly would still have to pass a law to implement the change, and local governments would still be responsible for establishing exclusion amounts for homesteads within each district. On Saturday, Oct. 21, I spoke at a meeting at Saw Creek Estates about House Bill 1285, the bill which makes way for the constitutional amendment.
Because many of you have asked for further clarification, I would like to pass along a one-page fact sheet from the Pennsylvania School Board Association (see sidebar) that explains the proposed constitutional amendment regarding property taxes that will be on the ballot this November. This includes easy-to-understand answers to the questions that are being most frequently asked and most often misunderstood about what the questions that will appear on the ballot means, and what the impact will be for taxpayers and taxing boards, including school boards. Please share this information with your family, friends and neighbors so they understand this important issue!
PA Rep. Rosemary Brown
Stroudsburg