SENATE AMENDED
PRIOR PRINTER'S NOS. 212, 586, 986, PRINTER'S NO. 1865
1016, 1402
No. 189 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY LAUGHLIN, COY, KUKOVICH, TRELLO, CESSAR, HASAY,
ALDERETTE, RYBAK, MAIALE, KOWALYSHYN, MORRIS, F. E. TAYLOR,
WAMBACH, McCALL, COLAFELLA, LESCOVITZ, LIVENGOOD, DeLUCA,
BURD, BOWSER, SERAFINI, FREIND, CIVERA, MICOZZIE, KLINGAMAN,
LEVI, MANMILLER, WASS, PUNT, HERSHEY, GLADECK, AFFLERBACH,
KOSINSKI, O'BRIEN, STAIRS, MILLER, ANGSTADT, FREEMAN,
STEWART, WOZNIAK, McHALE, GRUITZA, LLOYD, CAWLEY, TIGUE,
BLAUM, DALEY, D. R. WRIGHT, HALUSKA, PRATT, GALLAGHER,
GAMBLE, McINTYRE, CIMINI, STUBAN, ITKIN, CAPPABIANCA AND
SWEET, FEBRUARY 8, 1983
AS AMENDED ON THIRD CONSIDERATION, IN SENATE, JULY 6, 1983
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of July 7, 1947 (P.L.1368, No.542), entitled,
2 as amended, "An act amending, revising and consolidating the
3 laws relating to delinquent county, city, except of the first
4 and second class and second class A, borough, town, township,
5 school district, except of the first class and school
6 districts within cities of the second class A, and
7 institution district taxes, providing when, how and upon what
8 property, and to what extent liens shall be allowed for such
9 taxes, the return and entering of claims therefor; the
10 collection and adjudication of such claims, sales of real
11 property, including seated and unseated lands, subject to the
12 lien of such tax claims; the disposition of the proceeds
13 thereof, including State taxes and municipal claims recovered
14 and the redemption of property; providing for the discharge
15 and divestiture by certain tax sales of all estates in
16 property and of mortgages and liens on such property, and the
17 proceedings therefor; creating a Tax Claim Bureau in each
18 county, except counties of the first and second class, to act
19 as agent for taxing districts; defining its powers and
20 duties, including sales of property, the management of
21 property taken in sequestration, and the management, sale and
22 disposition of property heretofore sold to the county
23 commissioners, taxing districts and trustees at tax sales;
24 providing a method for the service of process and notices;
1 imposing duties on taxing districts and their officers and on
2 tax collectors, and certain expenses on counties and for
3 their reimbursement by taxing districts; and repealing
4 existing laws," extending time for claims for unpaid taxes;
5 and extending waiting periods.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Section 308(a) of the act of July 7, 1947
9 (P.L.1368, No.542), known as the Real Estate Tax Sale Law,
10 amended July 10, 1980 (P.L.417, No.98), is amended to read:
11 Section 308. Notice of Filing of Returns and Entry of
12 Claim.--(a) Not later than the thirty-first day of July of each
13 year, or for the first year a county operates under this act,
14 not later than the thirty-first day of October, or whenever,
15 heretofore, any claims have been returned to and a claim entered
16 with the tax claim bureau and the same has not been pursued to
17 sale as provided for by the act of Assembly, then within six (6)
18 months after the effective date of this act, the bureau shall
19 give notice of the return of said taxes and the entry of such
20 claim to each delinquent taxable, by United States registered
21 mail or United States certified mail, return receipt requested,
22 postage prepaid, addressed to the owner personally at his last
23 known post office address. If the owner of the property is
24 unknown and has been unknown for a period of not less than ten
25 years, such notice shall be given only by posting on the
26 property affected. If no post office address of the owner is
27 known or if a notice mailed to an owner at such last known post
28 office address is not delivered to him by the postal
29 authorities, then notice as herein provided shall immediately be
30 posted on the property affected. Each mailed and posted notice
31 shall, (1) show all the information shown on the claim entered,
32 (2) state that if payment of the amount due the several taxing
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1 districts for said taxes is not made to the bureau on or before
2 the thirty-first day of December next following, in cases where
3 the notice was mailed prior to August first, or that if payment
4 is not made on or before March thirty-first of the following
5 year, in cases where the notice was mailed on or after August
6 first, or no exceptions thereto filed, the said claim shall
7 become absolute, (3) state that on July first of the year in
8 which such notice is given or if the notice was mailed after
9 July thirty-first, that on the first day of the month (naming
10 it) in which the notice was mailed the one (1) year period of
11 redemption shall commence or has commenced to run, and that if
12 redemption is not made during that period as provided by this
13 act, the property shall be sold pursuant to the provisions of
14 this act and there shall be no further redemption after such
15 sale and (4) state that the owner of any owner-occupied real
16 estate can apply for an extension of the redemption period for
17 up to twelve (12) additional months under and subject to the
18 provisions of section 502 SECTIONS 502 AND 503 of this act. <--
19 * * *
20 Section 2. The act is amended by adding a section SECTIONS <--
21 to read:
22 SECTION 502. OPTION OF COUNTY TO EXTEND REDEMPTION PERIOD.-- <--
23 IF THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE OF A COUNTY, AS DETERMINED BY THE
24 DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND INDUSTRY, IS EIGHT PER CENTUM (8%) OR
25 GREATER FOR THE PRECEDING CALENDAR YEAR, THEN A COUNTY MAY AT
26 THE OPTION OF ITS COMMISSIONERS ENACT LEGISLATION EXTENDING THE
27 REAL ESTATE TAX REDEMPTION PERIOD FOR TAXPAYERS FOR UP TO TWELVE
28 (12) ADDITIONAL MONTHS.
29 Section 502 503. Extension of Redemption Period.--(a) If <--
30 the county commissioners of the county ENACT LEGISLATION <--
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1 PURSUANT TO SECTION 502, THEN THE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, acting
2 through the county tax claim bureau determine that a tax claim
3 constitutes severe hardship to the taxpayer and that extenuating
4 circumstances beyond the taxpayer's control have caused the tax
5 claim to be filed or remain unpaid and there is a reasonable
6 probability that the taxpayer will be able to meet the
7 indebtedness if granted an extension of the redemption period
8 for up to twelve (12) additional months, they shall have the
9 authority in the event of an application for extension submitted
10 by the taxpayer to:
11 (1) Extend the redemption period for residential OWNER- <--
12 OCCUPIED real estate for up to twelve (12) additional months:
13 Provided, That the taxpayer enters into an equitable apportioned
14 payment schedule consistent therewith.
15 (2) Abate, suspend, continue or stay the tax sale
16 proceedings pending with respect to such owner-occupied
17 residential real estate.
18 (b) The payment schedule authorized under subsection (a)
19 shall permit the taxpayer to make payment of the amount due in
20 at least four (4) separate payments, spaced at least thirty (30)
21 days apart, and shall require the initial payment to be not more
22 than twenty-five per centum (25%) of the total indebtedness
23 calculated to be due under such schedule.
24 (c) The application for extension authorized in clause (1)
25 of subsection (a) shall be made in such form as shall be
26 provided by the bureau. Within thirty (30) days of receipt of
27 such an application, the director of the bureau shall either
28 allow or disallow such an extension. If such an extension is
29 allowed, the bureau shall set the length of such extension. Any
30 taxpayer aggrieved by the decision of the bureau may, within
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1 fifteen (15) days after notice thereof, appeal to the county
2 court of common pleas for de novo review of the application.
3 (d) For the purpose of this section the phrase "extenuating
4 circumstances" means:
5 (1) Serious physical illness or injury or a combination of
6 such illness or injury with a state of prolonged unemployment
7 if: (i) the taxpayer is a permanent resident of the
8 Commonwealth, (ii) the illness or injury, or combination
9 thereof, occurred during the tax year for which the taxes were
10 assessed or during the year immediately preceding, and (iii) the
11 illness or injury, or combination thereof, has been a
12 substantial cause of the taxpayer's failure to pay the tax to
13 the date of application for relief under this section.
14 (2) Unemployment if: (i) the taxpayer is a permanent
15 resident of the Commonwealth, (ii) the unemployment occurred
16 during the tax year for which the taxes were assessed or during
17 the year immediately preceding, and (iii) the unemployment has
18 been a substantial cause of the taxpayer's failure to pay the
19 tax to the date of application for relief under this section.
20 (e) For the purpose of this section an extension of the
21 redemption period shall only apply to one (1) residence OWNER- <--
22 OCCUPIED PROPERTY per taxpayer.
23 Section 3. The provisions of this act shall apply to all tax
24 claims against residential OWNER-OCCUPIED property which has not <--
25 yet been sold on the effective date of this act. The court of
26 common pleas of the county upon petition of the tax claim bureau
27 shall stay the sale under this act of residential OWNER-OCCUPIED <--
28 property subject to a tax claim for which the redemption period
29 of section 501(a) of the act has expired on or before the
30 effective date of this act or for which the redemption period
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1 will expire in less than 90 days from the effective date of this
2 act. The stay shall be for such period as the court determines
3 necessary for the bureau to comply with the provisions of this
4 act.
5 SECTION 4. THIS ACT SHALL EXPIRE JANUARY 1, 1985. <--
6 SECTION 4. SECTIONS 308(A)(4), 502 AND 503, ADDED BY THIS <--
7 AMENDATORY ACT, SHALL EXPIRE JANUARY 1, 1985.
8 Section 4 5. This act shall take effect immediately. <--
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