THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

INTRODUCED BY GORDNER, FOLMER, COSTA, M. WHITE, EARLL, ALLOWAY AND WONDERLING, JANUARY 30, 2009

REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT, JANUARY 30, 2009  

AN ACT

Amending the act of February 1, 1966 (1965 P.L.1656, No.581),

entitled "An act concerning boroughs, and revising, amending

and consolidating the law relating to boroughs," further

providing for officers to be elected, for election of

assessors, for filling vacancies in elective borough offices,

for powers of assessors and for duplicate assessments; and

making related repeals.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Section 806 of the act of February 1, 1966 (1965

P.L.1656, No.581), known as The Borough Code, amended June 25,

2001 (P.L.651, No.56), is amended to read:

Section 806.  Officers to be Elected.--It shall be lawful for

the electors of the borough to elect:

(1)  In boroughs not divided into wards, seven members of

council, one mayor, [one assessor, except in those boroughs

where, under the applicable county assessment law, the office of

elected assessor in boroughs shall have been abolished;] a tax

collector and three auditors or one controller except in such

boroughs where there shall be an appointed auditor in lieu of

elected auditors or controller. In any borough with population,

as determined by the latest official census, of less than three

thousand, the total number of members of council may be reduced

from seven to five or to three upon petition to the court of

common pleas, as provided in section 818 of this act.

(2)  In boroughs divided into wards, at least one, and not

more than two members of council in each ward, except in

boroughs where prior to the passage of this act three members of

council were elected in each ward. In such boroughs, the number

of members of council is fixed at three in each ward until such

number is reduced in the manner provided by this act. Members of

council shall be residents of the ward from which they are

elected, and chosen by the electors of the ward; also a mayor, a

tax collector and three auditors or a controller, except in such

boroughs where there shall be an appointed auditor in lieu of

elected auditors or controller.[, and an assessor, except in

those boroughs where, under the applicable county assessment

law, the office of elected assessor shall have been abolished

who shall be chosen by the electors of the boroughs at large.]

Section 2.  Section 851 of the act is repealed:

[Section 851.  Election of Assessors.--At the municipal

election in the year 1967 and at the municipal election every

four years thereafter, the qualified electors of every borough

shall elect a properly qualified person for assessor in such

borough. The provisions of this section shall not apply to those

boroughs where, under the applicable county assessment law, the

office of elected assessor in boroughs has been abolished. No

justice of the peace shall at the same time hold the office of

assessor.]

Section 3.  Section 901 of the act, amended June 25, 2001

(P.L.651, No.56), is amended to read:

Section 901.  Filling Vacancies in Elective Borough

Offices.--If any vacancy shall occur in the office of the mayor,

member of council, auditor, controller, [assessor,] or tax

collector, by death, resignation, removal from the borough, or

from a ward in the case of a ward office, or by failure to take

the required oath or to give bond as provided by law or

ordinance, or in any other manner whatsoever, the borough

council shall fill such vacancy within thirty days by

appointing, by resolution, a registered elector of the borough,

or of the ward in case of a ward office, to hold such office, if

the term thereof continues so long, until the first Monday in

January after the first municipal election occurring more than

sixty days after the vacancy occurs, at which election an

eligible person shall be elected to the office for the remainder

of the term. No person shall be appointed to fill a vacancy in

an elected borough or ward office unless he or she has resided

within the borough, or within the ward in the case of a ward

office, continuously for at least one year immediately prior to

his or her appointment.

The person appointed shall give bond if required by law or

ordinance.

In cases where the person elected to the office shall fail to

give bond, if any, required or to take the required oath, the

borough council, before making the appointment, shall declare

the office vacant.

If the council of any borough shall refuse, fail or neglect,

or be unable, for any reason whatsoever, to fill any vacancy

within thirty days after the vacancy happens, as provided in

this section, then the vacancy shall be filled within fifteen

additional days by the vacancy board. Such board shall consist

of the borough council exclusive of the mayor, and one

registered elector of the borough who shall be appointed by the

borough council at the council's first meeting each calendar

year or as soon thereafter as practical and who shall act as

chairman of the vacancy board. The board shall appoint a

registered elector of the borough, (or ward in the case of a

ward office), to hold such office, if the term thereof continues

so long, until the first Monday in January after the first

municipal election occurring more than sixty days after the

vacancy occurs, at which election an eligible person shall be

elected to the office for the remainder of the term.

If the vacancy is not filled by the vacancy board within

fifteen days, the chairman shall or in the case of a vacancy in

the chairmanship the remaining members of the vacancy board

shall petition the court of common pleas to fill the vacancy by

the appointment of a registered elector of the borough (or ward

in the case of a ward), to hold such office, if the term thereof

continues so long, until the first Monday in January after the

first municipal election occurring more than sixty days after

the vacancy occurs, at which election an eligible person shall

be elected to the office for the remainder of the term. In the

case where there are vacancies in more than a majority of the

offices of council, the court of common pleas shall fill such

vacancies upon presentation of petition signed by not less than

fifteen registered electors of the borough.

Section 4.  Section 1081 of the act is repealed:

[Section 1081.  Powers of Assessors.--The assessors shall

have all the powers, perform all the duties, be subject to all

the obligations, and receive the same compensation as is now

provided by law.]

Section 5.  Section 1306 of the act, amended July 22, 1970

(P.L.549, No.188), is amended to read:

Section 1306.  Additions and Revisions to Duplicates.--

Whenever in any borough, there is any construction of a building

or buildings not otherwise exempt as a dwelling after the

borough council has prepared a duplicate of the assessment of

borough taxes and the building is not included in the tax

duplicate of the borough, the authority responsible for

assessments in the borough shall, upon the request of the

borough council, [direct the assessor in the borough to] inspect

and reassess, subject to the right of appeal and adjustment

provided by the act of assembly under which assessments are

made, all taxable property in the borough to which major

improvements have been made after the original duplicates were

prepared, and to give notice of such reassessments within ten

days to the authority responsible for assessments, the borough

and the property owner. The property shall then be added to the

duplicate and shall be taxable for borough purposes at the

reassessed valuation for that proportionate part of the fiscal

year of the borough remaining after the property was improved.

Any improvement made during the month shall be computed as

having been made on the first of the month. A certified copy of

the additions or revisions to the duplicate shall be furnished

by the borough council to the borough tax collector, together

with their warrant for collection of the same, and within ten

days thereafter, the borough tax collector shall notify the

owner of the property of the taxes due the borough.

Section 6.  Elected assessors in office in boroughs as of the

effective date of this section shall serve the remainder of

their unexpired terms. Thereafter, assessors shall neither be

elected nor appointed in boroughs.

Section 6.1.  Repeals are as follows:

(1)  The following provisions of the act of May 21, 1943

(P.L.571, No.254), known as The Fourth to Eighth Class and

Selective County Assessment Law, are repealed insofar as they

relate to assessors in boroughs:

(i)  The definition of "assessor" in section 102.

(ii)  Section 502.

(iii)  Section 506.

(iv)  Section 610.

(2)  The General Assembly declares that the repeals under

paragraph (3) are necessary to effectuate the amendment or

repeal of sections 806, 851, 901, 1081 and 1306 of the act.

(3)  Section 501(a)(2) and (3) of The Fourth to Eighth

Class and Selective County Assessment Law are repealed.

Section 7.  This act shall take effect in 60 days.