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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2013 - 2014
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | December 20, 2012 04:12 PM |
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| From: | Representative P. Michael Sturla |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Property Tax Relief and Local Government Support |
| In the upcoming 2013-14 Legislative Session, I will be re-introducing House Bills 2041 and 2042. These two pieces of legislation will provide substantial school property tax relief and give our counties and municipalities an additional revenue tool to improve core services that are beneficial to our communities. Both bills allow the board of commissioners or home rule equivalent to decide what is in the best interest of their community. The option for counties, municipalities, and school districts to rely less on the property tax levy must be made available to them as they strive to control costs and keep the tax burden low on their residents. Another appealing aspect of the legislation is that all of the money generated in the county – stays in the county – and is used for substantial property tax reductions and for improved local services. The sales tax is the preferred method of property tax reduction and is widely supported by the public. Municipalities throughout the Commonwealth are teetering on bankruptcy, school districts are struggling to educate our children in the face of drastic cuts, and many families are feeling the pinch of ever-increasing property taxes, so it is imperative that we give local governments the tools to reduce taxes and improve public services. |
Document #1
Introduced as HB69
| Description: | Bill 1: The first bill is the County and Municipal Property Tax Relief and Collaborative Services Act. This is a reintroduction of HB 2042 from last session and garnered the support of all the local government associations. This legislation will deliver significant property tax relief to homeowners by providing counties the option of levying a 1% sales tax and sharing the revenue with the participating municipalities in the county. Under the bill, each county choosing to participate in the act must use a minimum of 60% of the revenues they receive for property tax relief and the elimination of nuisance taxes. Municipalities must also use a minimum of 60% of the revenues for property tax relief or tax-exempt property offsets. The legislation also directs a percentage of total revenues to the Municipal Collaborative Efforts Fund. The fund would be governed by a Municipal Collaborative Efforts Board consisting of elected municipal officials from throughout the county. The Board will distribute the money by providing grants for multi-municipal collaborative initiatives such as sharing of equipment, road maintenance, joint purchase, fire protection, uniform construction code enforcement, and snow removal. The following members co-sponsored HB 2042 in the 2011-12 Session: BRENNAN, BUXTON, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL, DALEY, HORNAMAN, MAHONEY, MIRABITO, MUNDY, MURPHY, SANTONI, SCAVELLO, THOMAS, WATERS AND YOUNGBLOOD |
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Document #2
Introduced as HB70
| Description: | Bill 2: The second bill is the Optional Sales Tax for School Property Tax Relief and County and Municipal Assistance Act, HB 2041 of 2011. This legislation will also provide counties the option of levying a 1% sales tax, but distributes the revenue as follows:
Core services are defined as police, fire, public health and welfare, administrative and clerical, judicial administration, corrections, and election services. The following members co-sponsored HB 2041 in the 2011-12 Session: BRENNAN, BUXTON, CALTAGIRONE, CARROLL, DALEY, HORNAMAN, MAHONEY, MIRABITO, MUNDY, MURPHY, SANTONI, SCAVELLO, THOMAS, WATERS AND YOUNGBLOOD |
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