PRINTER'S NO. 3125
No. 2255 Session of 1984
INTRODUCED BY GAMBLE, FRYER, DUFFY, A. C. FOSTER, JR., LEVI,
MACKOWSKI, D. W. SNYDER, MAYERNIK, BROUJOS, SAURMAN,
BELFANTI, BALDWIN AND RUDY, JUNE 6, 1984
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT, JUNE 6, 1984
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 24, 1931 (P.L.1206, No.331), entitled
2 "An act concerning townships of the first class; amending,
3 revising, consolidating, and changing the law relating
4 thereto," further providing for the sale of land to a
5 volunteer fire company, volunteer ambulance service or
6 volunteer rescue squad located within the township; and
7 providing for the sale of land to a redevelopment authority.
8 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
9 hereby enacts as follows:
10 Section 1. Section 1501 of the act of June 24, 1931
11 (P.L.1206, No.331), known as The First Class Township Code,
12 reenacted and amended May 27, 1949 (P.L.1955, No.569), amended
13 September 28, 1978 (P.L.805, No.157) and amended October 28,
14 1983 (P.L.191, No.50), is amended to read:
15 Section 1501. Suits; Property.--Townships of the first class
16 may--
17 I. Sue and be sued.
18 II. Purchase, acquire by gift, or otherwise, hold, lease,
19 let and convey, by sale or lease, such real and personal
20 property as shall be deemed to be to the best interest of the
1 township: Provided, That no real estate owned by the township
2 shall be sold for a consideration in excess of one thousand five
3 hundred dollars except to the highest bidder after due notice by
4 advertisement for bids in one newspaper of general circulation
5 in the township. Such advertisement shall be published once not
6 less than ten days prior to the date fixed for the opening of
7 bids, and such date for opening bids shall be announced in such
8 advertisement. The acceptance of bids shall be made only by
9 public announcement at a regular or special meeting of the board
10 of township commissioners. All bids shall be accepted on the
11 condition that payment of the purchase price in full shall be
12 made within sixty days of the acceptance of bids.
13 Except as otherwise hereinafter provided in the case of
14 personal property of an estimated sale value of less than two
15 hundred dollars, no township personal property shall be disposed
16 of, by sale or otherwise, except upon approval of the board of
17 township commissioners, by ordinance or resolution. In cases
18 where the board of township commissioners shall approve a sale
19 of such property, it shall estimate the sale value of the entire
20 lot to be disposed of. If the board of township commissioners
21 shall estimate the sale value to be two hundred dollars or more,
22 the entire lot shall be advertised for sale once, in at least
23 one newspaper of general circulation in the township, not less
24 than ten days prior to the date fixed for the opening of bids or
25 public auction, and such date of opening of bids or public
26 auction shall be announced in such advertisement, and sale of
27 the property so advertised shall be made to the best responsible
28 bidder. The board of township commissioners shall have
29 authority, by resolution, to adopt a procedure for the sale of
30 surplus personal property of an estimated sale value of less
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1 than two hundred dollars and the approval of the board of
2 township commissioners shall not be required for any individual
3 sale that shall be made in conformity to such procedure.
4 The provisions of this clause shall not be mandatory where
5 township property is to be traded in or exchanged for new
6 township property.
7 The provisions of this clause shall not prohibit the sale or
8 exchange of township property to public utilities.
9 The provisions of this clause requiring advertising for bids
10 and sale to the highest bidder shall not apply where township
11 real or personal property is to be sold to a county, city,
12 borough, town, township, institution district, school district,
13 a volunteer fire company, volunteer ambulance service or
14 volunteer rescue squad located within the township, or municipal
15 authority pursuant to the Municipality Authorities Act of 1945,
16 or to a nonprofit corporation engaged in community industrial
17 development or where real property is to be sold to a person for
18 his exclusive use in an industrial development program or where
19 real property is to be sold to a redevelopment authority created
20 pursuant to the act of May 24, 1945 (P.L.991, No.385), known as
21 the "Urban Redevelopment Law," or where real property is to be
22 sold to a nonprofit corporation organized as a public library,
23 or where real property is to be sold to a nonprofit medical
24 service corporation as authorized by clause LXXII of section
25 1502, or where real property is to be sold to a nonprofit
26 housing corporation as authorized by clause LXXIII of section
27 1502. When real property is to be sold to a nonprofit
28 corporation organized as a public library or to a nonprofit
29 medical service corporation or to a nonprofit housing
30 corporation the board of township commissioners may elect to
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1 accept such nominal consideration for such sale as it shall deem
2 appropriate. Real property sold pursuant to this clause to a
3 volunteer fire company, volunteer ambulance service or volunteer
4 rescue squad, nonprofit medical service corporation or to a
5 nonprofit housing corporation shall be subject to the condition
6 that when the property is not used for the purposes of the
7 company, service, squad or the corporation the property shall
8 revert to the township.
9 Any officer who sells and each officer who votes in favor of
10 selling any township property, either real or personal, without
11 the provisions of this section having been complied with, shall
12 be subject to surcharge in the amount of any loss sustained by
13 the township by reason of such sale.
14 Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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